The Voice Of ODD!: Frankenstein

Showing posts with label Frankenstein. Show all posts

13 January 2019

Sunday Morning FrankenFunnies or Leave It To Briefer

As some know, i have a fondness for artists inserting themselves into their comics. Not too long after when we left off last time, Dick Briefer had fun with the notion, going for considerably more than the average cameo appearance in his Frankenstein series while the creature does his impression of Scott Carey -

(That's John Reese - Editor of Prize Comics)

(Milt is credited as Milt Turet. But who was Milt Turet?)

This wasn't the only time he showed up in his comics. The first is so old (actually, the same year as above, and a year prior to below - but i didn't want to hurt its feelings and say that nobody loved it and saved it) that the only copy i've ever seen is on microfiche, so the image quality is going to suck. It's worth looking at while we're here, but we'll stick to just the appearance panels -

...and he was off with Hercules to grab a fresh girdle...

There was one other instance of which i'm aware. Just a year later in Crime Does Not Pay, we got an inside look at Briefer's work methods...

Curious? Let's follow along to the next page and see what the series was like -

I don't wan to spoil things, so i'm putting the solution after the break below. You'll have to follow the link if you want to see how Dick Briefer totally twisted the conventions of the form to create what is likely the most oddly unique who-dunnit type comic.

Go ahead - take as long as you like. But unless you've got a very odd mind, it's unlikely you'll guess the solution.

page art by Dick Briefer for Prize Comics #30, Boy Comics #9, and Crime Does Not Pay #38 (1943, 1944)

For The Solution-

Frankenplan

After repeated failures to stop Frankenstein, something had to change. Bulldog Denny was having about as much success against the creature as British Bulldog had facing his monster.

But then - a new plan arose...

If at first you don't succeed - get help!

At the end of the previous post, i introduced a few of the other stars of Prize Comics. There is a reason i chose those particular characters...

With very rare exceptions like Peter Porker and Captain Carrot, i'm not recalling another crossover/team-up that included cartoon comedy characters with superheroes. From the moment the General and the Corporal showed up at the conference table, my head was spinning.

Of course, once you've caught the creature - what do you do with him...?

...and with that we entered a transitional period for Dick Briefer's Frankenstein. A new direction was coming, but they didn't seem to be certain what that was...

page art by Frank Briefer for Prize Comics #s 23-25 (1942)

Frankenstein - The Supervillain

With the fourth chapter of Dick Briefer's Frankenstein comic, things took a little twist and the strip changed direction with the addition of a new element...

And so it began - an ongoing superhero series with Frankenstein as the Big Bad (and titular star), and Bulldog Denny as "the only human he fears". For over a year Bulldog battled to stop the monster...

Sometimes Bulldog even got to share billing...

The big problem, however, was that Bulldog Denny was - as Nick phrased it - Hopelessly...Hilariously...Outgunned. He succeeded (or survived) primarily by luck against the overwhelming power of Frankenstein. Here's a good example from close to the end of this phase, in which Frankenstein teams with another villain - Doctor Devil...

The creature, of course, routinely did not die.
A new plan was needed...

The addition of a superhero to the mix might seem strange at first glance, but it should be remembered that Frankenstein was appearing in Prize Comics, which was primarily a superhero title with features like The Black Owl having been around since issue one...