From Unknown Worlds Of Science Fiction. here's a wonderfully creepy, skin-crawling slice of nastiness from Bruce Jones, the EC-artist-that-never-was, that approaches it's denouement with awful inevitability. Just another reason Jones is up there with Archie Goodwin for never telling a bad story.
Classic Jones story from issue 3, cover dated May, 1975.
ReplyDeleteStill a bit mysterious after reading it, but in positing any theories I don't want to divulge spoilers. Somewhat open-ended in some aspects.
Regards,
Chris A.
Its ok, but for me it looks too Al Williamson without the pay off of actually being drawn by Al Williamson.
ReplyDelete-sean
Jones has made it no secret that the E.C. sci-fi artists were his heroes. As you probably know, he worked with Williamson in the early '80s on "Cliff Hanger," a backup feature in Somerset Holmes. In the '90s Mark Schultz attempted to assimilate the same influences in Xenozoic Tales, but without photo reference.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Chris A.
Yeah, but artists are much better when they don't try to emulate their heroes so obviously imo.
DeleteLike Barry Sm... uh, Windsor-Smith moving on from trying to be a younger Kirby.
-sean
LOVE Xenozoic Tales
ReplyDeleteI hope you'll post some of Jones' other stories from this mag, too.
ReplyDeleteGene Poole
Definitely, Gene, I'm a huge fan of Jones. And again, seems like you had a good time at NYC CC last week.
ReplyDeleteYes, but Bruce Jones wasn't there. I'd love to meet him.
DeleteGene Poole
He'd probably freak out with me. 'Hi Bruce, been a fan since Unknown Worlds Of Science Fiction'
ReplyDelete'Get away from me, no one's THAT old!'
I own all three issues of Web of Horror, his first pro work, from 1969. But I first encountered Bruce's work with either "Jenifer" drawn by Wrightson, or Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction ("Kick the Can" in particular) in the '70s.
DeleteRegards,
Chris A.
Loved Web of Horror. Number # 1 was so-so. But 2 and especially 3 (with its B
Deleteerni Wrightson painted cover) was superb from cover to cover. Jones, Kaluta, Reese, Wrightson, Brunner. How could one miss with a line-up like that?
Both classics, yeah, especially 'Jenifer'. ( On here if no one's read it )
ReplyDeleteJenifer was when Wrighton was ink-washing his way across Warren at the peak of his career.
DeleteSo...is Bruce saying in this story that the female is the one who made the web, and that, like a praying mantis, she eats the winged male? Or is there a third party arachnid that we never see in the story? If the former theory is correct, then why didn't she eat our protagonist? Must he become winged first? The story is perhaps too open-ended...but I still enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Chris A.
I think Peter flew too close to the web and fell prey to the unseen spider, not Emma.
DeleteGene Poole
I agree. They transform into the butterfly and are then eaten by the spider ( as Peter was ) or manage to evade it, like Emma. Bruce doesn't transform because of the polio.
ReplyDeleteBut he does become dumb as a slug... or caterpillar.
Delete- Neil
Nah, theres no giant spider - Chris was right the first time about the female and the male.
DeleteWhich is why Emma stops waiting and flies away at the end once its clear the protagonist "not make bag".
I'd add the story is also about their transformation by an alien world - flowers, insects (of the familiarly small variety) and food.
Open-ended is ok; the main problem I had was that its a bit unlikely space travelers would be so careless in a new environment - at the very least they'd surely do a bit more research before eating an alien lettuce! - but if you let something like that bother you too much theres not a lot of point in reading EC-type shorts.
-sean