'Fantagor' No. 3

featuring 'Kittens for Christian'

‘Fantagor’ No. 3 was self-published by Richard Corben and something of an experiment for a horror / fantasy underground comic in 1972, as it was printed in full color. Even the high-end Warren horror magazines were printed in b & w, with color sections appearing on a sporadic basis. Indeed, it really wasn't until the advent of 'Heavy Metal' that a magazine-sized publication appeared on the stands with color comics as a staple of its material. 

With ‘Fantagor’, the color separations seem a bit crude today, but by the standards of the time they weren’t bad. Not as good as the mainstream comics from publishers like Marvel or DC, but still reasonably entertaining. And as an 'underground' comic, Fantagor didn’t have to abide by Comics Code regulations.

This issue featured ‘The Temple’ by Corben; ‘Fugue’ by Arnold’, ‘Kittens for Christian’ by Strnad and Corben; and ‘The Demon Gate’ by Dresser.

‘Kittens’ is a great little story and I’ve posted it here. The moral: when you see an albino kitten, you may want to think things over before adopting it….

Book Review: The Grotto of the Formigans

Book Review: 'The Grotto of the Formigans' by Daniel da Cruz

 

3 / 5 Stars

‘The Grotto of the Formigans’ (185 pp.) was released by Del Rey in 1980; the cover illustration is by H. R.  Van Dongen.

It’s the early 80s and anthropologist Maynard Griggs is finishing up a three-year sabbatical spent in a camp located in the darkest, deepest region of Zaire. One night he hears the sounds of a helicopter in distress; heading to the crash site he comes upon the lone survivor, a well-built young woman named Consuela Milan. 

Not only is Milan a major in the Cuban Army, but she’s carrying a substantial sum of money embezzled from her erstwhile employers. When the remains of the copter mysteriously vanish overnight, Griggs and Milan embark on a search of the area around the crash. They find themselves abducted by a small army of strange creatures resembling humanoid termites - the Formigans of the book’s title. 

Borne underground to the tunnel network of the Formigans, Griggs and Milan make the acquaintance of the Queen of this unusual nest. When the seemingly indolent Queen gives them the liberty to explore the nest as they please, Griggs makes a number of exciting discoveries that could provide him with overnight worldwide acclaim as the first scientist to ever explore this strange realm. Visions of Nobel Prizes, sponsored professorships, and television interviews fill Maynard Griggs’s head as he contemplates how best to reveal the grotto of the Formigans to the world at large.

But are the Formigan Queen and her cohorts of workers and soldiers really as defenseless as they seem ? Is the freedom given the two human interlopers genuine, or part of a devious plan made by a creature with the accumulated wisdom of centuries of a hidden existence ? 

Daniel da Cruz wrote a number of SF and action / thriller novels throughout the 70s and 80s, with several of these constituting the ‘Texas’ series of novels dealing with a near-future incarnation of that state. 

‘Formigans’ is a competent SF adventure, if not particularly memorable. The narrative moves along at a good clip, the dialogue is well-written, and the ecology of the humanoid termites is worked out with considerable insight. The overall tenor of the story evokes a kind of wry humor, and the two main characters are a likeable enough pair. By featuring a black man - Maynard Griggs – as a protagonist, ‘Formigans’ is also a bit more unconventional compared to the other SF adventures of its time. 

Readers looking for a quick, enjoyable read with lighter SF content may want to check out ‘Formigans’.

Killraven Amazing Adventures No. 34

Killraven: 'Amazing Adventures' No. 34

(January 1976)

Throughout the 70s (and even, arguably, today) Marvel routinely used the 'death' of a main or supporting character to jazz up the covers of titles that needed a boost in their circulation. And so it was that for 'Amazing Adventures' No. 34 (January 1976) some of the supporting cast of Killraven's 'Freemen' were deemed expendable.

This issue features a script by Don McGregor and art by Craig Russell. Unfortunately, as was the case with many issues of the comic around this time, Russell's artwork is smothered by McGregor's overwrought prose. But enough of the art peeks through the verbiage to make this 18-page issue one of the better ones of the mid-70s. 

The Martian's top assassin, Skar, catches Killraven and his crew unawares and quickly deals some major injuries to Old Skull before our hero can react. As the series of pages I've posted below indicates, the ensuing battle is well-choreographed and has the kind of flair reminiscent of European SF comics of the 70s. 

While I won't spoil things by revealing who eventually survives, I will say that the body count is real and there is a downbeat ending to this episode that (hopefully) revived the Killraven franchise in the minds of the comic-buying public as 1975 drew to a close....

Book Review: The Deep

Book Review: 'The Deep' by John Crowley

5 / 5  Stars

‘The Deep’ first appeared as a hardcover from Doubleday in 1975; this Bantam paperback (176 pp.) appeared in January 1984 and has a cover illustration by Yvonne Gilbert.

The plot of this brief novel is straightforward. There is a strange world that resembles a giant dinner-plate atop an enormous pedestal, suspended over a formless void (the ‘Deep’ of the title).

[Think of the painting ‘The Titan’s Goblet’ by the 19th century Hudson River School artist Thomas Cole:]

Peopling this world is a small population of humans, living comfortably at a medieval level of technology, who are governed by one of two perpetually warring parties: the Reds and the Blacks. As the book opens, the Reds and Blacks are busy with another struggle over who shall rule their odd little realm. A wrinkle is thrown into their contest by the arrival of the Visitor: an android, a sexless, ageless, nameless being who happens to suffer from brain damage.

As the Visitor becomes drawn into in the political intrigue surrounding the successor to the deposed King Little Black, he begins to recover his memories, and an understanding of his purpose. It seems that someone, or something, connected with the Deep has an interest in the affairs of its people, and the Visitor may be a powerful tool for change…...or destruction.

I remember reading ‘The Deep’ in hardcover back in ’75 and I have since re-read it multiple times. It’s one of the best SF / fantasy books to emerge from the New Wave movement.

It’s true that Crowley’s prose style is not the most accessible. Many aspects of the politics and sociology of the world of the Deep are communicated in an oblique manner, and the narrative regularly switches from passages of straightforward exposition to those with poetic and figurative content, which can be frustrating at times . As well, the author’s convention of giving his major characters appellations that are based on variations of the same color – Red Senlin, Redhand, Old Redhand, etc., etc. – makes for confusion.

The landscape of The Deep is an interesting one, featuring a Northern Country-inspired setting that is simultaneously familiar, but also unique. While The Deep was his first novel, Crowley avoided succumbing to the New Wave error of sacrificing plot for lots of pretty writing; with every few pages, another twist in the political and military gamesmanship at work in the world of the Deep becomes manifest. The book's ending includes appropriate revelations about the nature of the Deep and its origins, and does so without being facile or contrived.

The novel's atmosphere is downbeat and permeated with entropy, reminiscent in many ways of another great 70s SF / fantasy hybrid, M. John Harrison's book 'The Pastel City'.

The result is a novel with more artistry in its 176 pages than few other SF or fantasy pieces from the 70s could provide in twice the page count. If you haven't yet read 'The Deep', you really should get a copy.

Realms by Paul Kirchner

'Realms' by Paul Kirchner

During the late 70s and early 80s some of the best comics to appear in the magazines Heavy Metal and Epic Illustrated were done by Paul Kirchner, an artist from Connecticut. 

Kirchner, whose regularly appearing comic ‘The Bus’ was a prominent feature in the early years of Heavy Metal, had a knack for putting together stories with both great art and offbeat, wryly humorous themes. Kirchner was adept at working in illustrative styles from non-Western cultures, as attested to in the strips ‘Shaman’ and ‘The Mirror of Dreams’.

‘Realms’ was published by Catalan Communications in 1986 as a softcover, trade paperback of 80 pages. It reprints Kirchner’s non - 'The Bus' works from Heavy Metal and Epic Illustrated. This is a big (8 ½ x 11”), well-produced book with good color reproductions.

Unfortunately, as is the story with many Catalan publications these days, copies in good condition have exorbitant asking prices from online vendors (at amazon, someone wants $56 for their copy). There are sellers on eBay who are asking only $20 for a copy. I was fortunate to score a copy of 'Realms' some years ago for about ten bucks. What can I say: keep an eye out for an affordable copy, and if you see one, don't hesitate, grab it !

[ Kirchner has his own storefront at eBay, titled stayingamused, where you can purchase newly issued reprint volumes, by European publisher Tanabis, of his past and present works, including his 'Dope Rider' comics from High Times magazine. ]

Back to 'Realms', where the entries include ‘Tarot’

‘Shaman’

‘Hive’

and ‘Mirror of Dreams’

There are b & w entries, including the longer comic ‘A Sprig of Thaxin’, as well as the shorter (i.e., 3 - 4 pp.) strips ‘The Temple of Karvul’, ‘Pillars of P—11507’, ‘Critical Mass of Cool’, ‘Survivors’, ‘My Room’, and the one-pagers ‘Judgement Day’ and ‘They Came from Uranus’.

 

All classic stuff, and well worth having in your personal library.

Heavy Metal magazine January 1981

'Heavy Metal' magazine January 1981

 

January 1981, and the FM radio is playing 'Hey Nineteen' by Steely Dan, '[Just Like] Starting Over' by the late John Lennon, and 'Rapture' by Blondie. 

The latest issue of everyone's favorite stoner magazine is out, and looking at the January Heavy Metal reveals that the columns so loved by recently departed editor Tim White all are gone, and the magazine has returned to its initial incarnation as a strictly illustration - based publication.

Among the strips appearing in the January issue are the continuations of 'Bloodstar' by Corben and 'Valentina' by Crepax. Also appearing are an odd b &w piece by Don Wood titled 'Bang, Hah'; 'The Ambassador of the Shadows', a new SF comic by Mezieres and Christin; and 'What Is Reality, Papa ?' by Ribera and Godard, a rather confused spinoff from the ongoing 'The Alchemist Supreme' serial.

But the most stoner-friendly piece in this issue is by far and away Jeronaton's 'Woman', which I've posted here. 

Apart from its excellent draftsmanship and coloration, this strip has some subtle satiric humor (which I think probably escaped the minds of the more cannabis- befuddled readers).

 

Secrets of the 70s: Genital Herpes
Part Two: Relief for the Afflicted

In 1977 a paper written by Gertrude Elion and her colleagues at the Burroughs-Wellcome Company in Research Triangle Park in North Carolina appeared in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In the paper, Elion described a novel compound, 9-(2-hydroxyethoxymethyl) guanine, or ‘acycloguanosine’,  as an inhibitor of herpes virus replication in cultured cells. This was the among the first reports of an effective antiviral compound, and the discovery of what would come to be called ‘acyclovir’ (among other work) would earn Gertrude Elion the Novel Prize in 1988.

chemical structure of acyclovir

By 1979 acyclovir (also referred to as aciclovir) was being experimentally tested in human patients receiving the drug intravenously (de Miranda et al. 1979, Clin. Pharmacol. Ther.), and by the early 80s clinical trials were underway,  with the drug being administered orally as  200 mg capsules taken 5 – 10 times a day (True and Carter, 1984, Clin. Pharm.).

Not only did acyclovir reduce the intensity and duration of herpes lesions, but it could also suppress reactivation of the virus. The drug was effective in immunocompromised individuals, including AIDS patients, who were suffering from disseminated herpes infections. Side effects were minimal.

In due course, in 1984 the FDA approved Zovirax ointment, a cream containing a 5 % concentration of acyclovir, as well as oral formulations of Zovirax, for treatment of genital herpes.

At last, relief was at hand !

 

Fast forward to today. Valtrex (valacyclovir), a more bioavailable variant of acyclovir, is widely advertised and seemingly the drug of choice for the Hollywood set. 

 chemical structure of valacyclovir

Somewhat disturbingly, even the participants in so-called ‘reality shows’ are gobbling Valtrex like it was candy. According to 'Jersey Shore' producer Sally Ann Salsano, "We hand it [Valtrex] out like M&Ms !" She adds that the show's set is a 'herpes nest'. 

People in the 21st century can rejoice in the advances of modern medicine, something unavailable, an impossible dream, to those legions of 70s swingers.