CoronaVirus Crime Comics SCOTLAND YARD "Little Al of the Secret Service in Case of the Microbe Menace"

When Commies attempt to use biological warfare on US soil...

...only America's brave intelligence agents can uncover and neutralize the threat!

This never-reprinted story from Charlton's crime anthology Scotland Yard #3 (1955) is actually previously-unpublished inventory from Ziff-Davis' Little Al of the Secret Service (previously Little Al of the FBI) that Charlton acquired when Ziff-Davis' short-lived comic division closed and they sold the previously-published and never-published material to recoup costs.

Illustrated by Mike Roy, the story is probably written by Ziff-Davis' comics editor Jerry (Superman) Siegel.

Little Al was called that because, though he was shorter than average but so feisty and determined that he overcame that height disadvantage with martial arts skills and superb deductive abilities.

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SHERLOCK HOLMES "Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Challenge"

Far afield from his usual British haunts...

...the Greatest Sleuth of All deduces the truth about a murder mystery in the wilds of Canada!

This never-reprinted tale from Charlton's Sherlock Holmes #2 (1955) is an original story of Holmes (minus Dr Watson) aiding the RCMP in present-day Canada.

Both the writer and artist(s) of these tales is unknown and the art style seems to be a combination of the techniques of several different illustrators.

Tell a Tale of Terror TWICE! #2 THIS IS SUSPENSE "Short Step to Oblivion"

We saw this tale of terror and justice uncut in Part 1...

...at our "brother" blog Seduction of the Innocent™!
Now let's see how it looked after the Comics Code Authority took their censoring scissors to the reprinted version...

The knife, seen in panels 5-7 on the original page HERE, is now missing!

The knife in panels 3 and 5 HERE is missing in the reprint page!

Despite being removed from the previous pages, the knife is shown to be the murder weapon!

But how did the knife get there if it was deleted from the earlier pages?

Ruth's word balloon in the last panel is rewritten to eliminate reference to the knife shown HERE on the original page!

Why is Ruth screaming? It's not like there's a dead body, like there was in the original page HERE!

Why did the villain fall to his death?
Maybe it's the fact that Holiday shot him in the original version of the first panel HERE!

This Comics Code Authority-eviscerated reprint appeared in Charlton's This is Suspense # 24 (1955).

The writer is unknown and the illustrator is George Evans.

A comic with no more violence or blood than a TV cop show of the period is gutted by the CCA to Protect the Morals of the Youth of America.

Take a good look at your parents.

Did it work?

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SHERLOCK HOLMES "Love Thy Neighbor"

He's more popular than ever with new series on both BBC and CBS...

...and like both those series, this tale was part of another effort to "update" the Greatest Sleuth of All to contemporary times, which in this case was 1955!

This never-reprinted tale from Charlton's Sherlock Holmes #1 (1955) has several aspects in common with the other tales from that short-lived series:
Yet another Dr Watson look-alike, Frothingham...
...again, set in present-day (1950s) America...
...and, again, the illustrator leaves the ear-flaps off Sherlock's deerstalker!

Both the writer and artist(s) of these tales is unknown.

None of the stories is signed, and the art style seems to be a combination of the techniques of several different illustrators.

We'll be back soon with another tale of mystery..

POLICE TRAP "Only the Guilty Run"

Yes, it's a well-worn cliche...

...but there are always examples that disprove even time-honored tropes, as seen in this tale from Police Trap #5 (1955)!

A slice-of-life tale written and penciled by the legendary Jack Kirby and inked by Mort Meskin showing a more human side to the usually by-the-book image shown in comics.

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SHERLOCK HOLMES "Star of the East"

Though Sherlock has just concluded it's 2nd season on Masterpiece Mystery...

...there's no shortage of the Greatest Sleuth of All's tale on this blog!

This never-reprinted tale from Charlton's Sherlock Holmes #1 (1955) has another Dr Watson look-alike, Dr Cromwell, is set in present-day America, and, again, the illustrator leaves the ear-flaps off Sherlock's deerstalker!

You'll also note the tartan-style pattern on both the deerstalker and Inverness cape disappears after Page 3!

Both the writer and artist(s) of these tales is unknown.

None of the stories is signed, and the art style seems to be a combination of the techniques of several different illustrators.

Join us next week for another tale of mystery..

POLICE TRAP "The Gun"

What happens when a police officer "burns out"...

...and years of dealing with the scum of society take their toll on his emotions and his rationality?

Remember, cops are people, too.

Though the scripter for this tale from Police Trap #5 (1955) is unknown, the art is by Bill Draut (pencils) and George Roussos (inks).
This fascinating title showing how the rank and file police operated lasted only 6 issues.

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