Continuing its work of bringing the glory that was EC Comics to modern readers, Dark Horse Comics has published a new trade paperback volume dedicated to the Weird Science series. EC Comics is widely considered one of the most influential comic book lines in history. Before the Comics Code Authority claimed it as one of the victims of its censorship practices, EC brought to paper many memorable tales of horror, science fiction, fantasy, and much more. Titles such as Tales from the Crypt and Weird Science are known even outside of the world of comic books aficionados. In the mid-1950s EC ceased to publish everything except Mad Magazine Despite this, its impact on the entertainment industry, including major comics publishers such as Marvel and DC, is widely recognized. EC stories were also famous for providing socially conscious commentary on important themes such as racial equality, pacifism, and environmentalism.
Starting in the 1970s, the legacy of EC Comics was kept alive through a series of reprints, mostly thanks to the efforts of publisher Russ Cochran. In 2013, Dark Horse took over and has since published a vast number of collected editions. Starting from 2006, the EC Archives series started being printed with a digital re-coloring of the original stories. They also feature forewords by famous personalities such as Steven Spielberg, John Carpenter, Rob Zombie, Gene Simmons, Brian Michael Bendis, Joe Kubert, Walter Simonson. George Lucas has written the introduction for The EC Archive: Weird Science Vol. 1 (which will be included in the paperback edition), explaining how the series influenced his imagination as a kid and, as a consequence, the world of Star Wars that he created.
Dark Horse’s TPB edition of The EC Archive: Weird Science Vol. 1 is now available and reprints issues #12-#15 and #5-#6 (which are actually the first six, despite the weird numbering). These include seminal science fiction stories, such as “Lost in the Microcosm,” “The Last War on Earth,” and “Man and Superman!” by Harvey Kurtzman, “‘Things’ from Outer Space!” “The Flying Saucer Invasion,” and “Made of the Future!” by Al Feldstein. In this last story, a man travels to the future and procures an artificial wife. Twenty-three years later, the legendary Jack Kirby would use the same plot for the first issue of his DC Comics futuristic series Omac.
In 1985, the plot of “Made of the Future!” was used as the basis for the movie Weird Science, made after Joe Silver acquired the rights for EC Comics adaptations. Weird Science also had a sister publication, Weird Fantasy, in which EC’s most famous story, “Judgment Day,” was published. The story centers around an astronaut from Earth who visits another planet to assess if it’s worthy of being included in the Galactic Republic. After discovering that the robot inhabitants are divided into two races, different only by color, and that one has fewer rights than the other, the astronaut deems them unworthy of the Republic. In the final panel, he removes his helmet to reveal he is a black man. The story was censored by the Comics Code Authority.
Weird Science did not have a long publication history, compared to other more successful EC titles such as Tales from the Crypt. However, it showcased the science-fiction genre and it brought it to the attention of a large audience of readers, including many who would go on to become influential creators in the comic books and movie industry. The Dark Horse TPB edition of The EC Archive: Weird Science Vol. 1 is a great chance for modern readers to add this piece of comic books history to their collections.
