Thanksgiving: Day 13

Because nothing says Thanksgiving like a robot holocaust!

Harvest printed in Weird Science-Fantasy #25 (September 1954). Credited to Al Feldstein, art by Joe Orlando and colors from Marie Severin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

PICTO-DIGITIZING IS NOT UNLAWFUL

TRITTSYC

Jeepers! Got to escape that robot!

TRITTSYC

Robots with Brains

Credited to Nathaniel Nitkin (N. N. Nathaniel) is this two page pulp-inspired illustrated story Robots with Brains from Weird Comics #11 (February 1941).

No surprises here and the story seems to be missing a few paragraphs in the beginning but the image of the robot chauffeur taking the hero for a ride is postable.

Text stories are seemingly out of place in old comics but they were often included in comic books and comic magazines to allow the periodical to qualify for better shipping rates.

Outstanding in his field

I'm really enjoying the new Avengers series primarily for the JRJR art though I'm not hating the story direction either.

In particular I appreciate this scene from Avengers #6 (Dec 2010) of Ultron standing at the crest of a pile of debris.

This panel conveys a real sense of horror and menace from the human-hating robot Ultron. In the past Ultron or any other villain, when shown as victorious, would usually be depicted standing in a vast control room or city that is an extension of itself. While visually appealing it also became somewhat of a cliche and usually the cause of the antagonist's defeat. A super-intelligent robot wouldn't really need to sit on a throne or connect to the internet though it looks good in CGI cartoons.

In the comic Ultron was placed in a scene where the robot's essential binary nature was revealed. Ultron is either ON or OFF, at ZERO or ONE. Having completed the directive to erase humanity from the planet Ultron stops in mid-step, inert until it is prompted to proceed again. Like an anti-life Roomba, Ultron apparently just walking the earth until the program was fulfilled, having extinguished all life. That's scary.

Then something went wrong

From Thrilling Wonder Stories #1 (January 1931). Art by Frank R. Paul.

Self-Diagnostic complete

Jerk-circuits working at optimal efficiencies.

Rom #27 (February 1982).

Jerk-Circuits

Robo Force (1985).

Terminator: Babe-O-Rama

In a bleak, post-Apocalyptic future mankind is on the brink of extinction. The machines rose from the ashes of atomic Armageddon. Their war to exterminate mankind had raged for decades. Nuclear fires rage across half the North American continent. The sky is dark with ash.

Terrible, thinking machines called Terminators hunt without mercy the pitiful remnants of humanity. The people the Terminators kill immediately are the lucky ones. Those that survive being captured are made into slaves and when their usefulness is ended, fed into ravenous incinerators to serve as fuel for nightmarish factories.

And yet in this horrible, dying future one woman looks fan-freaking-tastic.

That woman is Tara, the wife of destined savior of humanity, John Connor. Squalid living conditions, high background radiation count, rampant disease, lack of clean water and malnutrition have had no deleterious effect on her magnificent, giant, firm breasts and awesome hair. Tara's smooth, clean and finely toned body are nothing less than a sexy, totally bad-ass shout of defiance against mankind's tireless enemies, who are clearly cool (being Terminators and all) but are not really intended to be fanboy fantasy material. We should all look that good during present day.

If Skynet sent the Terminators back in time to kill the creators of the panty before they were born then they apparently failed, so it's heartening to see that after nuclear Armageddon hot, hot, hot Uber-babes will wear thongs into battle against killer cyborgs. Because sexy underthings will recruit more humans into the Resistance than any old speech by John Connor.

From Terminator: Revolution #1 (2009).

More Techno-Scat

There's Techno-Scat.

And then there's Techno-Scat.

Ice Pirates (1984).

And in another instant...

TRITTSYC TBBT

The Big Bang Theory is one of my favorite "fish out of water" shows. The nerdy, strange character of Sheldon has quickly become the primary focus of the show as each episode spotlights his increasingly bizarre behavior.

I don't know how long the stories can continue by spending all their time on Sheldon as his actions can get annoying very fast. Each episode tries to top the previous one in strange personality quirks, but he is clearly the stand out character of the group. The writers are on something of a roll so lets see how long it lasts.

One of the pluses of the show is the "Sam and Diane" situation was dealt with fairly quickly between the very distracting Penny and hapless Leonard (who as an adult still has not accepted his innate outcastiness). I usually find something to laugh at in every episode.

But geek humor can be infuriating, particularly when the writers get it wrong or wield it with sledgehammer subtlety. I can't help but think if Sheldon Cooper was a true comic book fan he would be wearing a TRITTSYC t-shirt. I was this close to having one made and sending it to the producers in the hope that the actor would wear it in an episode but I realized I wasn't hopeless and insane and stopped myself.

Also I don't know his size.

You have become a demigod!

From Mind Over Matter. Astounding Stories, January 1935. Story by Raymond Z. Gallum with art by M. Marchioni.

Traditional Artistic Lion Dancing Robot

ROBOT WOMAN

By Basil Wolverton, Weird Mysteries #2 (February 1952).

My Brother Was A Robot

The story My Brother Was A Robot from My Greatest Adventure #42 (April 1960) is uncredited but I suspect it may be from the mind or editorial office of Otto a.k.a. Eando Binder, a former participant in science fiction pulps of an earlier era who did some work for DC. While working at DC, Otto had a habit of recycling some of his ideas, particularly those of his popular pulp creation the robot Adam Link, into his later comic book works.

I'm presenting My Brother Was A Robot here not because it is particularly good, the plot is pretty dull actually and is an otherwise forgettable entry into the annals of comic history. What makes this story worth noting at all is that it features a robot beating the crap out of some crocodiles and a gorilla. Sometimes comics just don't get any better than that.

Click each picture to make ZAIUS-SIZED!