Bob Larkin: Doc Savage paintings

Bob Larkin: Doc Savage paintings
from The Savage Art of Bob Larkin, S. Q. Productions, 2009

In 1977 artist Bob Larkin took over the cover illustration assignments for Bantam's Doc Savage paperbacks, beginning novel No. 89, 'The Magic Island', in July of that year. 

Larkin's work recalled the amazing illustrations that James Bama had provided for the series (in fact, Larkin used the same model - Steve Holland - as Bama had used).

Doc Savage Omnibus No. 9 (July 1989)

Larkin provided covers for much of the remaining books in the series, finishing up with Doc Savage Omnibus No. 13 in October 1990.

Larkin pulled off the difficult feat of evoking the realistic painting style of James Bama, while providing his own unique take on the illustrations.

Additional Doc Savage illustrations can be viewed at Larkin's website.

left: The Fiery  Menace (October 1984), top: Death Had Yellow Eyes (January 1982), bottom, The Goblins (March 1985)

specially commissioned painting for a limited edition print from Graphitti Studios

Doc Savage Omnibus No. 12 (June 1990)

top left: The Pharaoh's Ghost (January 1981), bottom left: The Time Terror (January 1981), right, The All-White Elf (unused)

specially commissioned painting for Terry Allen

 left: The Running Skeletons (unpublished), top: Hell Below, (October 1980), bottom, The Golden Man (February 1984)

Book Review: City of Illusions

Book Review: 'City of Illusions' by Ursula K. LeGuin

2 / 5 Stars

‘City of Illusions’ first was published in 1967; this Ace paperback (217 pp) was published in November, 1974. The cover artist is uncredited.

The novel opens on an intriguing note: a man - with unusual amber eyes, possessing slit pupils -stumbles out of the forest and into the encampment of a tribe of Amerindians led by Zove, Master of the House. The man – who is given the name Falk – is incoherent and crazed, the victim of a deliberate ‘mind wipe’ operation by parties unknown.

As time passes, Falk regains some of his faculties and is instructed in the ways of the tribe and their world. He learns that humanity is fragmented and dispersed, the consequence of the long-ago invasion and subjugation of the Earth by a mysterious race known as the Shing. Fragments of his lost memories begin to surface in Falk’s mind, and with them, the awareness that somewhere out in the vast wilderness of what used to be the USA, there is a city called Es Toch…..and in Es Toch, he will find the answers to his identity, and the reason for his mind-wiping.

But as Falk is to discover, not everyone believes the Shing even exist. Are they simply legends, created to explain the downfall of civilization by other forces ? Is Es Toch real – or is Falk simply pursuing a mirage ?

Despite these troubling questions, Falk sets out alone on a journey into the wild to find Es Toch. But his travels will take him into regions where murderous bandits and hostile tribesmen hold sway…….people who will think nothing of snuffing out the life of a lone trespasser……….

The first half of ‘City of Illusions’ is an engaging read, as the narrative centers on Falk’s quest for his identity, and his struggle to survive in the dangerous tracts of a far-future USA. 

Unfortunately, the second half of the novel is a disappointment, as the narrative becomes entirely static. The plot switches its focus to Falk’s confrontation with the new rulers of Earth, a confrontation waged with telepathy and psychological gamesmanship; there is much philosophizing about the role of memories in defining one’s sense of self, and whether a man who harbors two personalities in his mind can be truly considered an individual.

This melodramatic exploration of ‘innerspace’ was part and parcel of the New Wave approach to sf writing; at the time, it was considered a major step in the maturation of the genre from its juvenile preoccupations with ray guns and spaceships and alien monsters, into a body of ‘speculative fiction’ worthy of critical and scholarly analysis. While sf may indeed have need this revolution in style, it has tended to age poorly. It’s hard to see modern-day readers as having the patience to negotiate the slow-paced, self-consciously ‘writerly’ prose Le Guin employs in the second half of ‘City’.

Summing up, ‘City of Illusions’, while considerably more well-written than many sf novels of the mid-60s, doesn’t offer much in the way of excitement or imagination. But I suspect Le Guin fans may find it rewarding.

The Sacred and the Profane

The Sacred and the Profane
by Dean Motter (plot) and Ken Steacy (art)
Graphic Novel, Eclipse Books, 1987

The Sacred and the Profane first appeared as a five-part series in the black and white indie comic Star*Reach in 1977 - 1978. Archie Goodwin later approached the creators about publishing a revised, colorized version of the series in Epic Illustrated. The new series was launched in the October, 1983 issue and continued through the October, 1984 issue.

This 1987 Eclipse Books graphic novel compiles all of the Epic Illustrated episodes, as well as a sketchbook section, commentary by the authors, and an Introduction by Archie Goodwin.

The premise of the story is that in 2043, the SETI array receives a transmission from space, a transmission that suggests the presence of intelligent life in the Andromeda galaxy. A few years later, the Vatican announces that it is converting most of its assets to fund a small fleet of spaceships. Their goal: travel to the Andromeda galaxy, and proselytize to whatever aliens are responsible for sending the transmission.

Carrying a mixed crew of 215 clergy, nuns, and laypeople, in 2047, the St. Catherine sets off on its fateful journey to the stars.

Even before the St. Catherine has reached the region of space thought to contain the transmission's point of origin, there is dissent and argument in the ranks, fueled by both personal and philosophical intrigues.

But when the St Catherine does indeed encounter the alien life-form, all internal struggles must be set aside....for the alien does not appear to be friendly, and the ship soon is invaded.....and the lives of the entire crew put at risk. 

Will the peaceful acquiescence recommended by the clergy be enough to deter the aliens ? Or is the violent response advocated by the secular members of the crew the more effective path ? Either way, time is running out aboard the St Catherine......and soon it will be too late for anyone to have any hope of survival....

Unfortunately, TSATP is best regarded as a comic book concept whose reach exceeded its grasp...........

Writer Motter seeks to infuse the storyline with 'deep' questions about spirituality, organized religion, self-identity, the Validity of the Other, etc., etc. As a result, the plot is overwhelmed by having too many passages of dialogue in which various characters berate, argue, remonstrate, debate, and cavil at one another.

The aliens - which are never really given much in the way of substance or explanation - serve a simple function as a sort of 'cosmic' Rorschach Blot upon which the crew of the St. Catherine project their existential angst and emotional insecurities.

A pretentious storyline can sometmes be salvaged by great artwork, and at first glimpse, Steacy's artwork seems to accomplish this. It has a distinctive style, calling to mind the melding of art deco with medieval, stained-glass imagery.

The problem is, the comic book / graphic novel printing technology of the 80s could not really accommodate this style, and as a result, the artwork looks murky and underexposed, making it difficult for the reader to figure out what, exactly, is taking place among the crew of the St. Catherine.

Steacy's artwork also suffers from being static in terms of its presentation; blocky and underlit, the action sequences lack the 'traditional' comic book visual enhancements - such as speed lines, impact bursts, and sound effects - that would impart a necessary degree of dynamism to the depicted activities. 

As well, the fact that much of the narrative revolves around scenes of conversations means that, with the exception of some brief, Star Wars - derived spaceship battles that take place early on in the story, Steacy rarely gets the chance to do much in terms of breaking free of the overly 'talky' nature of TSATP.

Summing up, TSATP is best viewed as an overly ambitious effort to create an sf comic that sought to transcend the (arguably) simplistic approach that marked much of the content present in the genre during the 70s and early 80s. 

For a comic series that was first published in 1977, in some respects it was ahead of its time; in other respects, particularly in light of the advent of the sophisticated but entertaining European approaches to sf comics that would come to be showcased in Heavy Metal magazine that very same year, it was an effort that missed the mark.

A Gothic Tale

A Gothic Tale
by Richard Corben
Story by Tom Veitch
from Richard Corben Complete Works vol. 3 (Catalan Communications 1987)

Originally published in Skull comics No. 7, November, 1972, this comic was later reprinted in volume 3 of Catalan Communications' Complete Works compilation of Corben's underground and indie press works.

Heavy Metal magazine June 1985

'Heavy Metal' magazine June 1985

June, 1985, and on the radio and on MTV, 'Don't You (Forget About Me)', by Simple Minds, is in heavy rotation.

The latest issue of Heavy Metal magazine is out, with a front cover by Jim Cherry.

The Dossier section for this issue shows all the telltale signs of an 80s periodical whose staff have gotten access to PC-based 'desktop publishing' software. ....visible somewhere amidst the "...hey ! Look at this cool effect !" confusions are interviews about low-budget zombie movies; reviews about even more low-budget, obscure videos; word of a Stephen King newsletter; and an advertisement for the old-school art book by Roger Dean, Magnetic Storm.

The graphic / comic content of this issue is middling in terms of quality.There are further installments of Moreno's 'Rebel', Findley's 'Tex Arcana', Corben's 'Bodyssey', and Torres's 'Whisper Mystery'. 

Charles Burns's 'El Borbah: Bone Voyage' series is the best of these, and concludes in this issue. I've pasted this installment below.

Book Review: Lost Worlds

Book Review: 'Lost Worlds' by Lin Carter

2 / 5 Stars

‘Lost Worlds’ (176 pp) was issued by DAW Books (as No. 398) in August 1980. The cover artwork is by Enrich.

All but one of the eight stories presented in this volume were previously published, in the interval from 1967 – 1976. All are pastiches of one pulp author or another, and display Carter's skills (if one could call them that) at aping the vocabulary and diction of the styles of the pulp era.

The stories in ‘Lost Worlds’ are organized by the mythical continents in which they were set; these include Hyperborea, Mu, Atlantis, Lemuria, Valusia, and Antillia.

The two ‘Hyperborea’ stories are pastiches of Clark Ashton Smith tales; these include ‘The Scroll of Morloc’ and ‘The Stairs in the Crypt’. They are more horror stories than fantasy, and both adhere faithfully to Smith’s prose style, including the use of some of the more obscure words in the English language.

‘The Thing in the Pit’ is a Lovecraft pastiche; a foolhardy wizard calls forth an Abomination which threatens the very existence of Mu.

Lemuria is the home for two of Carter’s ‘Thongor’ stories. ‘Thieves of Zangabal’ sees our hero making a dangerous foray into the lair of an evil wizard, while ‘Keeper of the Emerald Flame’ has Thongor investigating a lost temple within which eldritch mysteries lurk to harm the unwary. Both of these stories are the better ones in the anthology; they are Conan clones, but reasonably well-written.

‘Riders Beyond the Sunrise’ is a King Kull story, set in Valusia; as with the Thongor stories, it’s a competent pastiche of Howard’s writings. This tale sees King Kull pursuing a rival into a forbidden territory, where Kull discovers, to his misfortune, that magic has provided his quarry with unforeseen powers.

In his Introduction to ‘The Twelve Wizards of Ong’, set in Antillia, Carter states that with this story, he was attempting to evoke the literary stylings of James Branch Cabell, Clark Ashton Smith, and Jack Vance. Whether or not you think this is wise (and I certainly don’t), the story is nearly unreadable due to its clotted prose.

The final entry, ‘The Seal of Zaon Sathla’, is set in Atlantis and deals with a self-confident wizard who desires the fabled Seal; alas, he lacks the means to pay for it…….

Summing up ‘Lost Worlds’, well……at the time it was written, fantasy was still an emerging genre, and Carter one of its foremost practitioners. There wasn’t a great deal of material being published, and thus, Carter’s sheer output of fiction– however mediocre much of it was – meant that he was showcased by default when it came to publishers like DAW Books.

I doubt there is much here that would interest contemporary fantasy fiction fans, but DAW Book completists may want to get their copy.