Marvel-ous Monday: "It" by Sturgeon, Thomas, Severin, and Giacoia

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Halloween is almost here, so let's kick off this week with classic Marvel adapting classic pulp--Theodore Sturgeon's "IT" from Supernatural Thrillers #1 (September 1972)! As Rascally Roy explains in the editorial (there it is, right under Ol' Groove's words), Marvel intended to do more classic and literary type "mystery" tales--not "horror" tales--with Supernatural Thrillers, and they did--at least for the first four issues. They also did H.G. Welles' "Invisible Man", Robert E. Howard's "Valley of the Worm", and Robert Louis Stevenson's "Dr. Jekyll and Mister Hyde" before the mag was taken over by the Living Mummy (with a single side-trip to give us a modern sequel to "The Headless Horseman"). This is one of the best--obviously a labor of love on writer/editor Thomas' part. First, here's Roy's editorial (as promised above)…

and now...get ready to get your creepy on!

Cover art by Jim Steranko

If you wanna read Sturgeon's original tale, you're in luck! Click here--and if you can't get enough Sturgeon, check out "Killdozer" right here!

Thursday Terrors: "Pyramid of Peril!" by Isabella, Mayerik, and Adkins

Dig it, Groove-ophiles! Tony Isabella, Val Mayerik, and Dan Adkins really had it going on with Supernatural Thrillers #9 (July 1974)! With their latest chapter of The Living Mummy, they merged the supernatural with super-heroics as N'Kantu went wrapped head-to-crowned head with the X-Men's own  Living Pharoah! Check it out!

Thursday Terrors: "Power Times Four!" by Isabella and Mayerik

Dig it, Groove-ophiles! Another new department: Thursday Terrors! This brand new but already moldy and mysterious department is kicking off with The Living Mummy in "Power Times Four!" from Supernatural Thrillers #8 (May 1974)! With this issue, writer Tony (the Tiger) Isabella was manning the typewriter, and did he ever come up with a doozy of a tale! Not only is it filled with action, intrigue, and moment after moment of macabre mysticism, but buried within it is the origin of a future Marvel villain--who would exist in the past! Can you catch the clues without reading Ol' Groove's end-notes, baby? Oh, and take your time--Val Mayerik's art is stunning, amazing, far-out, and kozmik! His pencils and inks were killer here, weren't they?

Didja catch the homage to the Golden Age Blue Beetle, Dan Garrett? A few years later, September, 1976, to be exact, writer/editor Rascally Roy Thomas would snatch up the origin of the scarlet scarab as the focal point of the origin of the villainous Scarlet Scarab in Invaders # 23! Did he and Tony plan that character/connection out way back in early 1974? Or is that just another example of the Rascally One's mutant ret-conning abilities? You out there, Tony? Can you give us the real skinny on The Scarlet Scarab's Living Mummy connection? (If there really is one?)