Space Ranger | Origin | Non-Series Science Fiction Stories
Showcase
Tales of the Unexpected
These best stories of the comic books are preceded by their issue number.
After his tryout in two issues of Showcase (1958), the Space Ranger appeared in Tales of the Unexpected (#40 August 1959 - #82 April-May 1964), then in Mystery in Space (#92 June 1964 - #103 1965).
The Great Plutonium Plot (1958) Writer: Arnold Drake Art: Bob Brown. The first Space Ranger story: The Space Ranger goes after a villain who is stealing plutonium throughout the solar system. The villain and his plot in the second half of this tale are strictly routine. We have seen all of these sf clichés done much better by Gardner Fox. The villain wants to conquer the solar system. Drake gets some credit for supporting democracy, and fearing dictatorships.
What is good about this story is concentrated in its first half (pages 1-6). Its picture of the future advanced civilization in the Solar System is appealing. Especially breathtaking is its picture of space travel. We see a whole series of space transportation ships, from small space taxis to mighty starships. The whole vision is genuinely awe inspiring.
Drake's story has roots in prose science fiction of the 1940's and 1950's. His portrait of an advanced capitalist society on the nine solar planets echoes the works of Robert Heinlein, who often set his tales against such a background: see Heinlein's "Gulf" (1949), for instance. His Space Ranger hero Rick Starr also echoes the name of Isaac Asimov's juvenile hero, David Starr, Space Ranger (1952).
The civilization of the future closely resembles that of 1950's America. The "luxurious offices" of the well to do company, Allied Solar Enterprises, look much like the lavish corporate headquarters of 1950's American corporations. Such headquarters were built to celebrate the peace and prosperity of the 1950's, which emerged after decades of war and depression. We also see a factory of the future. Its workers are all macho types, standing around shirtless in hard helmets and pants. Their virility and pride expresses the new prosperity and confidence of the working class in the 1950's. Carmine Infantino would also depict such workers on Rann in his Adam Strange tales: see "The Emotion-Master of Space" (Mystery in Space #83, May 1963).
Rick Starr is the son of the corporation head. Such handsome young scions of privilege recall the hero of Fritz Lang's film Metropolis (1926). Drake seems unaware that such a background might alienate readers. After all, most of us come from a background much less privileged than his hero. He seems to think we will all enjoy fantasizing about being such a character, which is probably true. There is also a certain realism here. Rick Starr has the money and the leisure time to carry on his career as Space Ranger. He has a certain plausibility in his actions. Still, he seems less appealing than Adam Strange, who seems to support himself by his job as an archaeologist.
The position of women in this future is ambiguous. Starr is a junior executive of the company, and as such is duly provided with a secretary, female of course. Myra Mason is not a shrinking violet, however. She is a brave adventurous person who keeps trying to come along on Starr's adventures. Her position is that of many 1950's women: stuck in a second rate job, but with plenty of guts and brio. It does seem unfortunate that Drake could not have imagined a more egalitarian position for women in his future society. Mason's role is precisely that available to women in the sexist 1950's, nothing more. The portrait does suggest that women had much more to offer than this, however.
Mason's desk in the glamorous corporate headquarters is curving, in the Miro-like biomorphic style that was the last word in chic design in the 1950's. Infantino often depicted such furniture in The Flash. However, The Flash took place in contemporary America, whereas Space Ranger is set in the future. It is another example of how 1950's everything looks in this "future" civilization. The desk is pretty, however, and so is everything else in this corporation. This whole future does have a powerful visual appeal. Paradoxically, the "everyday life" depicted in the first half of the story is far more interesting than the adventure and thriller elements of its second half. Drake and Brown are at their best when they are depicting the future, with its space travel and glamorous existence.
Space Ranger's costume is cool. It is bright yellow, and emphasizes his musculature. It is full of a vibrantly contrasting purple-magenta trim, which shows up on his gloves, belt, shoulder rings and boots. He also wears green devices on his belt. Such use of "opposite" colors on the color wheel, such as yellow and purple, is a strikingly effective design principle. Rick Starr has peaked hair in front, like Gil Kane's later character, The Atom. Bob Brown also created an interesting costume for his futuristic non-series hero, Earth Security chief Mark Jarvis in "The Day the Earth Stopped" (Tales of the Unexpected #31, November 1958), a red uniform with yellow epaulettes, chest ribbons, and insignia on the high stiff collar. This is more of a conventional, military-style uniform than is worn by most comic book heroes - very few have a chest full of ribbons. Jarvis is more of a conventional government official, as well. Brown is comfortable depicting such traditional, official figures of masculine success: a businessman here in Space Ranger, government security officer Jarvis, Smallville High's football quarterback "Bash" Bradford in "The Strange Death of Superboy" (Superboy #161, December 1969). Such uniformed government figures and star athletes show up fairly rarely as comic book heroes, who tend to be more independent, individualistic people.
This first tale of the Space Ranger does not tell how Rick became the Ranger; rather it shows him already fully operating in this role. It does set up the continuing characters and their backgrounds. Particularly appealing is Cryll, an alien who can change color and shape at will. He often changes color to express his moods. Only a medium as color oriented as comics could have invented such a character. Cryll resembles in his shape changing ability and sweet personality such child like shape changing aliens as the heroes of Bill Finger's "The Contest of Heroes" (World's Finest #74, January-February 1955), and Edmond Hamilton's "The Creature of 1,000 Disguises" (Action Comics #234, November 1957). Unlike these one-shot characters, Cryll is a series regular. He is the hero's sidekick. This is typical of Drake's tendency to give his heroes alien friends. Before any of these characters is Loopy, the hero's pet in Edmond Hamilton's Chris KL-99 stories, beginning with "The Menace of the Green Nebula" (Strange Adventures #1, August-September 1950). Loopy does not change shape, but he does change colors to express his mood, just like Cryll. Unlike Cryll and most of the later shape changers, he is not a highly intelligent being, just a pet. He is as good natured as Cryll. One can also notice a general resemblance between the Space Ranger and Chris. Both are future heroes who fly around a lot to different planets in their space ships. Neither has any super powers; both are purely science fictional characters.
The Army of Interplanetary Beasts (1960) Writer: ? Art: Jim Mooney. Robberies are committed throughout the Solar System by teams of specialized alien animals. Each of the animals has their own super-power, based in their alien biology. The effect somewhat resembles the Legion of Super-Heroes. It also resembles some of the stories of the Krypton Zoo and its unique Kryptonian animals that appeared in the Superman family.
Starr does some good detective work here. Space travel plays a part in this. The story reminds us that the Space Ranger is principally a detective character, someone who solves crimes in the future. However, it is Cryll who actually cracks the case, just as in Showcase. This tale is full of inventive alien animals. Mooney's art is quite witty. I especially liked the villainous bunnies, who look cute even as they mess up the good guys. There is no horror mood to this tale whatever - instead, it emphasizes plot imagination.
Mooney has set the tale in an Art Deco future version of New York City. The city is full of towers with hemispherical domes on their tops. The towers are connected by ramps, in the style familiar from Fritz Lang's Metropolis (1926), along which people can walk. There are also roof gardens. Being high in the air means one is part of a beautiful and complex pedestrian landscape.
Mooney's version of his hero is closely modeled on Bob Brown's: the costumes are virtually identical. Mooney includes a panel of Rick Starr getting dressed in his Space Ranger costume that is similar to one in the first Showcase story. However, Mooney has also adapted the character to his own style of art. Rick Starr looks much like some of the handsome, tough villains that often menaced Supergirl. He is much more macho looking than most of Mooney's heroes - we are used to the juvenile looking Tommy Tomorrow, or some of the nice youths Supergirl dates. I've never seen this sort of tough guy as a hero in any other of Mooney's tales. Starr's secretary Myra Mason is drawn by Mooney to look much like Supergirl. Both are blondes.
Non series stories also appeared in Tales of the Unexpected. These were pure science fiction stories, not fantasy or supernatural. The stories tended to be set in the future, during eras of space travel - in this, they were like Space Ranger. Also like the Space Ranger stories, many intelligent kinds of alien beings work together with humans, all treating each other with respect.
The Giant that Devoured a Village (1961). Writer: ? Art: Howard Purcell. A primitive planet has a legend about a face that appears on a mountain every hundred years. This story is made up of a series of small sf ideas, all strung together to form a tale.
Howard Purcell's art shows his flair for alien landscapes. These include jungle scenes, and alien beings. This is quite different from his modern day crime tales, such as those in the Mr. District Attorney series.
Cosmic Catastrophes for Sale (1961). Writer: ? Art: George Roussos. Special effects whiz Harry Hammond stages outer space scenes for the movies in 2200. This sort of Hollywood in space story has a long comic book history.
Harry Hammond is a big business success here. He is quite handsome, and "sophisticated" in the style of glamorous late-1950's heroes. His more ordinary-looking assistant Bud looks like the comic protagonist of Roussos' story in the next issue, "The Man Who Inherited a Planetoid". Both of these tales have heroes who are working towards business success. Both encounter a whole series of business opportunities, in the course of their tales.
George Roussos sometimes worked on the Air Wave and Johnny Quick series.
The Braggart from Planet Brax (1961). Writer: ? Art: Howard Purcell. A boastful spaceman keeps telling his colleagues that everything is better on his home planet Brax. The writer is unknown, but one suspects it is by the same unknown author who wrote "The Giant that Devoured a Village" (1961). It too consists of a string of small sf ideas, all involving adventure in the jungle on an alien planet. In both, the protagonist is having concerns about blending in with other members of a space crew exploring the planet, in part because he himself is from a different planet than the other members of the crew.
Purcell's art is very science fictional here. The alien landscapes include two fiery lakes: one on a moon (p2), and a later corrosive lake (p6), both filled with vapor making curving lines. Purcell's gift for geometric figures is shown in the flower pods, and the flowers to which they give rise (p3), a particularly nice image.
The Man Who Inherited a Planetoid (1961). Writer: ? Art: George Roussos. A poor but determined inventor tries to make his fortune on a planetoid beyond Pluto.