Longbox Junk Retro Review - Four Color #942 (Tales of the Pony Express)

Welcome to Longbox Junk, the place to find more comic reviews you never asked for than you could ever ask for! Read it again. . .it DOES make sense!

Recently, I've thrown out a few reviews of comics that are the bread-and-butter bargain box fillers. . .and there WILL be more to come.  But right now, it's flea market and yard sale season here in Utah and I've been having a pretty good run of luck finding some great older comics.

And so, I got to thinking. . .

If comics from Malibu, Image, Marvel's New Universe, and the like are some of the comics you're practically guaranteed to find while Longbox Junkin' through the cheap bins at your local comic shop. . .what are some of the comics you're most likely to find at the flea market, or at an estate sale, or at an antique/junk store?  In other words, what is the "Longbox Junk" of comics found OUTSIDE of the comic shop?

Three words: Dell Four Color

Dell's Four Color comics have to be THE most common comics I've come across outside of comic shops.  The series ran from 1939 to 1962, for an astounding 1354 issues. . .the record for the most issues produced of an American comic book.  Four Color hit 1000 issues LONG before Action Comics managed to get to that milestone.  Not bad for a series that didn't have any regular characters or continuity!

Four Color isn't so much a "series" as it is a vast collection of one-shots.  Each one can be read on its own, in any order.  They cover a VERY wide range of subjects. . .heavy on licensed properties popular at the time, and Disney properties in particular.  You can find anything from westerns to detective stories, to funny animals, to adaptations of movies and novels. . .and everything in between!  

And, like I said above, the great thing about Four Color comics are that they are easy to find in the wild.  I have about FIFTY of them in my collection!  Even better than the relative ease of finding them is the rock bottom prices most of them are sold at.  I see some pretty high "values" in online price guides for Four Color comics. . .but I've never paid more than twenty bucks for one.   

What I'm trying to say is that if you're Longbox Junkin' out in the wild outside the comic shop, you WILL find Four Color comics, and you WILL be able to afford issues going back into the Golden Age of comics.  Perfect example: The issue at hand is from 1958, in decent condition, and I bought it at a flea market for FIVE BUCKS.

ANYWAY. . .

Let's strap into the Longbox Junk time machine and take a trip back to 1958, when westerns were king and comics cost a dime!  Ready? LET'S DO THIS!

FOUR COLOR #942

TALES OF THE PONY EXPRESS

DELL (1958)

COVER: Sam Savitt

THE COVER:

I'll tell you true, folks.  To ME, that cover alone is worth the five bucks I paid for this comic!  Just look at it! It's FULL of motion, action, and detail!  This stunning painting of a Pony Express rider running for his life from a band of pursuing Indians isn't just a great comic cover, it's a great piece of western art, period.  Let's get inside!

THE STORIES:

Plenty of Western action in here for your one thin dime! Two full-length comic adventures, along with two one pagers on the inside front and back covers.  You can't buy THAT for four bucks these days!

Let's check out each one in their own turn, shall we?  WE SHALL!

ALERT FOR WAR PAINT 

(Inside Front Cover)

SCRIPT: ?

PENCILS: Nicholas Firfires

Basically a short little lesson in the meaning of various Native American war paints.  It's actually pretty  interesting, but there's not much more here than an appetizer.  The whole thing is scanned below.

NEXT!

WAR PAINT

SCRIPT: Eric Friewald & Robert Schaefer

PENCILS: Nicholas Firfires

THE STORY:

Pony Express rider Craig Garrett is given the task of buying new horses for the Express, as well as being trusted with the $5000 in government gold allocated for the purpose.  Little does he know that word of the gold being held at an isolated Express station has gotten out and a band of outlaws have attacked and stolen the funds, making it look like it was an Indian attack!

Garrett isn't convinced that Indians were behind the attack, though.  He follows clues and believes he's found proof, but must keep on the trail and prove his theory before the army mobilizes against the Indians and it's full-on war!  

He and another express rider follow clues to the town of Liberty Junction, but lose the trail.  Garrett discovers that a man named Miller had been talking about the Express Station attack before it happened, and Garrett is back on the trail!  

The two Express riders head to Indian Land outside of town after hearing that Miller is a friend of the local tribe. They don't receive a warm welcome, but Garrett convinces the warriors that confront them  that he's there to prevent a war and needs to see their Chief. . .

The tribe's Chief is doubtful that a friend of the tribe like Miller would use them to hide such a crime as murder and theft, and even to try and pin the blame on the tribe.  But after overhearing Miller secretly talking to his two co-conspirators, he quickly realizes that Garrett is telling the truth.

Knowing they've been found out, Miller and his friends make their escape from the camp. Garrett, his partner, and an Indian brave set off in hot pursuit!  

After a short gun battle, the criminal gang is taken down.  At the end of it all, the gold is recovered, a war is prevented, and the Pony Express has made some new Indian friends.  All's well that ends well.

The End.

THE REVIEW:

Okay. . .not bad!  I liked that this story followed a trail just a little bit out of the ordinary, giving the reader equal parts investigation and action.  It wasn't all just rootin' tootin' shootin' like you find in a lot of these older western comics. 

 I can see that there was some actual thought and effort put into this story, which is a little surprising because if you read a lot of old westerns like I do, you KNOW that there's quite a bit of similarity across the board. 

The art was also surprisingly good for Four Color.  Normally, what you get is a fantastic cover and art inside that hopefully is at least serviceable, but usually is borderline bad.  The art here is actually pretty good.  Not great, but solid and better than expected. 

So overall a well-done story backed up by decent art.  Not bad.  I usually come into these Four Color comics with pretty low expectations, but this time I was pleasantly surprised.  Let's check out the second story and see what we get.

NEXT!

DESERT AMBUSH

SCRIPT: Eric Friewald & Robert Schaefer

PENCILS: Nicholas Firfires

THE STORY:

Pony Express rider Craig Garrett is tricked into an ambush by two men while riding a dangerous route across the Nevada desert.  When he wakes up from the attack, he realizes that the men didn't steal any of the mail, just Garrett's prize horse, Colonel.

After recovering from the attack for a few days at a nearby Express Station, Garrett takes a leave of absence.  He's seen that there's a big horse race taking place in Carson City in four days, and suspects that he was ambushed because of his horse's reputation for being one of the finest in the West. . .and that the culprits will be entering Colonel in the race.

Arriving in Carson City, Garrett meets a man named Len Miller, who was entered in the big race, but has to forfeit his entry fee because his horse has taken ill.  Miller offers Garrett the hospitality of his home while the Express rider tries to locate his own horse.

The next morning, before the cross country race begins, Garrett and Miller spot the two men who ambushed Garrett a few days before.  They've got Colonel, and just as Garrett thought, have him entered into the race.  Garrett confronts the men.  They deny his accusations and the sheriff is called.

Garrett proves his ownership of Colonel by giving the horse commands that he obeys.  That's enough proof for the Sheriff and the two thieves are taken away to jail.  In thanks for Miller's hospitality, Garrett lets him ride Colonel in the big race.

Riding the powerful Pony Express horse, Miller easily wins the race.  With the prize money, he can now afford an operation that his wife needs.  Garrett has his prize horse back again.  All's well that ends well.

The End.

THE REVIEW:

With the same creative team as the first story, it's no surprise that this one is pretty solid as well.  Once again, there's less focus on gunplay than one would expect from a western comic from the 1950s.  As a matter of fact, there's NO gunplay at all in this story! There's a little bit of fist fighting to be had in a couple of places, but this is definitely a story that breaks my expectations for a Golden Age western comic!  I like that.  I like it a lot!

Overall, this was a well-written little nugget of western action that steps outside the boundaries of what I normally expect.  It's backed up with some very solid art, and I found it to be a pretty enjoyable read.

Let's wrap this up!

TRAILS THAT CROSS

(Inside Back Cover)

SCRIPT: ?

PENCILS: Nicholas Firfires

Another one pager to finish this comic off like the one on the inside front cover that started the show.  Like the opener, there's not much to this little story. . .a tale of two Pony Express riders passing each other while they sleep in the saddle.  If the one inside the front cover was an appetizer, this one makes for a nice little dessert.  The whole thing is scanned below. . .

CONCLUSION

One of the things I love about doing these Longbox Junk "Retro Reviews" is knowing that I'm writing what will probably be the ONLY review of this comic that has been, or ever will be, written.  I feel that by scanning the pages and describing the contents, I'm doing a small part to add to the overall comic knowledge out there, even if nobody asked me to.  

Hopefully, I don't sound like I'm not just tooting my own horn, and some of what I've put out here in this review will be useful or informative for those interested in Golden Age western comics like this one.  

THAT SAID. . .

I found this comic to be quite a surprise.  Both of the stories focused less on gunplay and more on narrative than I expected coming in.  There's plenty of action, don't get me wrong, but that action is a different sort than I'm used to when I open up a Golden Age western comic.  

The stories seemed less like boilerplate, and more like some thought and effort had been put into them.  The artwork was also surprisingly solid for a Four Color comic.  The combination of the two gave me some timeless western action that still reads well even after 64 years!

I'm not sure how rare this comic is, but I can certainly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good western story that steps slightly outside the often-repeated scripts that most Golden Age western comics stick to.

Up Next. . .

Back to the bargain bin!

If you've ever gone digging through a dollar box, I can practically guarantee you've seen a "Glory" comic.  So let's take a look at Image's version of Wonder Woman, shall we?  WE SHALL!

Be there or be square!

Longbox Junk Retro Review - Four Color #656 - 1955 (Turok, Son of Stone)

Welcome back to Longbox Junk, the place to find comic reviews you never asked for!

Normally here at Longbox Junk I like to keep things in the bargain bin. . .sort of shine a bit of light on some of the comics you might pass by without a second thought while you flip through the back issues.

But every now and then, I step outside the cheap stuff and focus on some of the older and more "valuable" comics in my collection. I call them "Retro Reviews", and I'm gonna do a few over the next month or two, just to mix things up a little bit.

On to the comic at hand. . .

I bought this comic for a measly TWO DOLLARS from an antique store (really more of a junk shop) last year when I spotted that sweet painted cover in a stack of unbagged random comic books thrown in an old wooden laundry basket in a corner of the shop.  There were only a few comics in decent condition in that forgotten stack of comics, so I grabbed this one, a couple of Roy Rogers comics, and a Casper the Friendly Ghost. 

Imagine my surprise when I was later adding them to my comic collection database (Courtesy of COMIC BOOK REALM ) and discovered that this comic I'd bought for the cover for Two Bucks was worth a pretty penny!  Just HOW pretty a penny depends on where you look.  But in any case, it's of interest to collectors because it features the second appearance of Turok and is therefore not quite what one could call "Longbox Junk", as far as "value" goes.

BUT. . .

After a quick flip through to confirm that, yes. . .the interior art didn't even come close that that great painted cover (something I've come to expect from Dell/Gold Key comics), I bagged it, boarded it, and put it away unread. . .like I do with most older comics I buy for their covers.

UNTIL NOW!

I'm crankin' up the Longbox Junk paper time machine and setting the dial to 1955!  Join me as I read this very "collectible" comic and throw down what seems will be the one and ONLY full review ever written on it. Ready?  

Let's do it!

FOUR COLOR #656
TUROK, SON OF STONE
DELL (1955)

The Mystery of The Mountain & The Missing Hunters

SCRIPT: Gaylord Du Bois

PENCILS: Bob Correa 

INKS: Bob Correa 

COVER: Robert C. Susor?

THE COVER:

I couldn't find any solid information on who painted the cover, but the physical appearance of Turok is very similar to that on the covers of a couple of other early Turok comics I have in my collection (from his later solo series) done by Robert Susor, so that's who I'm going with.  If I'm wrong, please feel free to mock me publicly in the comments.

THAT SAID. . .

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.  The painted covers done by companies like Dell and Gold Key are hands-down the BEST covers in comic history, in my extremely humble opinion.  This one is no exception.  The colors are what caught my eye. . .with the stunning burnt orange sunset contrasting with the yellow title.  The flying dinosaur threatening Turok is a little rough, and he's holding his ax sort of awkwardly,  but those little things don't keep this cover from being a fantastic Golden Age eye-catcher!

Too bad the interior art doesn't even come close to matching the awesome cover.  But that's sort of to be expected from this comic publisher. But enough about the cover, let's get inside this thing!

THE STORY:

There's two stories in this comic, but really they're just the first and second parts of one long story through the whole issue. . .a little odd for comics of the time, which tended to feature multiple unrelated (except by character) stories in each issue.  Still, they're titled as two separate stories, so I'll run them down that way.

MYSTERY OF THE MOUNTAIN

Turok and his brother, Andar, are teaching the primitive tribe of humans they have discovered in an isolated valley full of strange creatures how to make and use bows to hunt with.  They are having some success, but one warrior, Sinak is not doing well.

After Sinak breaks his bow and tries to steal Turok's, the tribe's chief punishes him by making him stand watch that night on the cliff above the canyon.  To Turok's surprise, the burly warrior shows fear of this task.  That night, Turok and Andar lay awake and discussing the days events when they hear Sinak scream in the darkness!

The tribe rushes to the sound of the screams, but there's no sign of the warrior.  Turok scours the area, but even he finds no clue as to where Sinak might have gone.  With the mystery unsolved, the tribe goes about their business until, that night, more screams come in the night and yet another sentry vanishes!  Determined to get to the bottom of the disappearances, Turok and Andar volunteer to stand guard duty during the coming nights.

On the second night of Turok and Andar's watch, they are attacked by a giant, silent flying creature!  After narrowly defeating the flying beast with poisoned arrows, Turok and Andar gather supplies and investigate the cave that it came from the next morning. . .

The two brothers discover a gigantic cave full of the flying creatures!  After a brutal battle, Turok and Andar manage to defeat the creatures using torches and poisoned arrows. Their new friends now safe, the brothers pursue one of the surviving creatures deeper into the cave. . .

Turok and Andar follow a maze of passages leading to another, even larger cave.  From there, they follow a stream and manage to find an exit that leads to another valley that is much bigger than the one they had been exploring!

As Turok and Andar begin to scout the new valley, they witness a battle between a huge flightless bird and a gigantic cat. . .and then encounter a bison that has someone trapped in a rocky cleft.  The brothers decided to come to the rescue and bring down the bison with their poisoned arrows. . .

The brothers discover that they have rescued a woman.  They are able to communicate with her and learn that she is hunting because all the young men of her village have been missing for several weeks.  Turok and Andar help her carry the meat from the bison to her village.

The End. . .to be continued.

THE MISSING HUNTERS

Continuing directly from the end of "The Mystery of The Mountain", Turok and Andar arrive in Yellana's (the woman they had saved from an attacking bison) village.  They are greeted by hungry women, children, and old folk glad to see them bringing food to eat.  Indeed, as she had told them, there are no young men to be seen. . .

After a few days, the meat they had brought has almost run out.  Turok and Andar decide to go hunting, and Yellana insists on coming with them.  The trio climb back down the treacherous cliffs to the huge valley below.  Yellana guides the brothers toward the tribe's hunting grounds.  On the way, they spot several gigantic creatures too large and strong for the small party to take down. . .

Later, while hiding from a battle between a stampeding pack of mastadons and the saber tooth tigers hunting them, Turok discovers the skeleton of a bear that has been killed with a stone-headed spear.  Upon examining the spear, Yellana begins to sob.  She recognizes the spear as one belonging to her brother. . .one of the village's missing hunters.

When Turok and Andar investigate the area, they discover human tracks.  They follow the prints to the edge of a steep cliff leading to a cavern below.  As they consider whether or not the village's hunters might have somehow fallen down the cliff, a black panther attacks!

The panther's attack takes them by surprise, and as they fight the cat the three hunters tumble to the bottom of the cliff.  After defeating the panther using their poisoned arrows, the three of them are greeted by the shouts of men as they run from the darkness of the cave. . .Yellana is overjoyed to find her brother, Marok, among them!

Marok explains that a herd of pigs had driven them over the cliff and that they had taken refuge in the cave, where they had found food and water to survive on during the weeks they had been missing, but could discover no way to climb back up the cliff. 

 Turok and Andar quickly fashion a rawhide rope out of the skin of some dead animals that had fallen down the pit, amazing the primitive hunters who had never seen rope before.  It's not long before Turok, Andar, Yellana, and the village's missing hunters have all climbed back up the cliff and out of the pit.

At the top of the cliff, they are attacked by the same herd of gigantic pigs that had driven the hunters into the pit.  Turok and Andar manage to drive the boars away using their poisoned arrows.  Turok teaches the amazed hunters the secret of making the poison powder he coats his arrowheads with, then they all head back to the village, loaded down with meat.

After once again using his homemade rawhide rope to help climb the cliffs surrounding the village, Turok, his brother, and the missing hunters are greeted with much celebration and joy.  Turok and Andar have now found a place to call home. . .but Andar still hopes to one day return to their own home and hunting grounds outside of this strange new valley they have discovered.

The End.

THE REVIEW:

I've discovered that when doing these "Retro Reviews", I sort of need to separate my opinion into two parts:  First, what I think of the comic as a modern reader. . .and second, to consider it from the point of view of who it was originally written for.  And from there to try and find a middle ground.

As far as my opinion as a modern reader goes. . .this comic gives me a feeling of mediocrity.  This is written and illustrated in such an utterly average manner that I wonder just how the character of Turok managed to survive for over 65 years.  The IDEA behind this story is a great one. . .Ancient Native Americans discover a series of lost valleys where dinosaurs and humans live together.  It's a narrative path with a lot of possibility for action and adventure.  Unfortunately, while the idea is great, the execution is lacking. 

The writing is just. . .bland.  This story is pretty much a series of "They went there and then they did that" told with a narrative voice that is  so level and straightforward that reading this comic is almost like watching a documentary.  Information is presented, but there's not much "punch" to it.  Disappointing in a story involving rampaging mastodons, saber tooth tigers, and exploring mysterious caves.

Likewise, the art is also bland.  It's not BAD, but it can certainly be described as "workmanlike".  It tells the story and that's pretty much it.  There are moments here and there that manage to reach a little higher than the rest, but overall nothing here ever really goes above "pretty good".  Once again, disappointing in a story featuring elements like a surprise black panther attack and a battle against a cave full of hungry pterodactyls.  

So as a modern reader, I found this to be pretty disappointing.  Not bad, mind you, but it could have been a lot better.  It's just sort of. . .there.

BUT. . .

This story wasn't written for me.  It was written for boys in the 1950's.  So how does this story look from that perspective (or at least my best try at it, anyway)?  It looks better.  Still not great, but better.

There's a lot to like here for a kid spending a dime on a comic book in 1955.  I'm mostly speaking about dinosaurs and Indians.  I think I can boil down the good stuff in this comic from a 1950's kid view as dinosaurs and Indians.  Westerns were king in the 1950's.  At heart, this is a western comic.  It has a sort of unusual viewpoint in that the main characters are Indians instead of Cowboys, but it's pretty much a western comic when you get right down to it.  

And then you throw in dinosaurs.  It doesn't matter WHAT decade you're talking about, kids love dinosaurs! Heck, I loved dinosaurs growing up in the 70's.  I STILL like dinosaurs!  Does it matter that the dinosaurs aren't drawn that great?  Not really because it's still dinosaurs! And Indians! It's Dinosaurs and Indians!

In other words, the kid in me sees a comic about dinosaurs and Indians.  Not much more than that.  The modern me wants a better story and art.  These two things come together in the middle and I say that this is a pretty good comic book for what it is. . .something written for 50's kids that puts a western twist on the old "Lost World" style story.

CONCLUSION

To the modern reader, this is a pretty disappointing comic.  The writing is bland and unexciting.  The art is decent, but very workmanlike.  The cover is honestly the best thing about this comic.

But looking at it as best I can from the point of view of who it was written for, it's better.  It's a story about dinosaurs and Indians.  Does a kid really need anything more than that?

Both of those viewpoints together say that this is a pretty good comic that could have been better, but really didn't need to be.  

I'm glad I have this comic preserved in my collection and that I gave it the only full review that's ever been written of it. . .and I hope that the information here is of interest to people who might be trying to find anything on this comic besides that it has the second appearance of Turok.  But I'm gonna be honest here with the bottom line that this isn't bad, but there's a lot better comics in my collection that are "worth" a LOT less.  

Up Next. . .

Another Longbox Junk retro review!

I just got this comic last week for my birthday, so why not give it a read?

Longbox Junk time machine set back to 1967. . .

It's Stan Lee and Jack Kirby with "The World's Greatest Comic Magazine!"

Fantastic Four #58 . . .The Dismal Dregs of Defeat!

Be there or be square!