Mystery in Space - What I Saved

 

   When I was just a tad my Aunt Janet would sometimes look after me. It was always a treat because her son Jamie, who was a few years older than me, had some cool toys and some comic books I could read.

   When I discovered this issue, it was burned into my memory - a giant cloud was punching a hero flying with a rocket pack? No wonder I became an instant fan after reading issue 81 of Mystery in Space, which starred Adam Strange.

   (I always wondered why the character didn't appear in Strange Adventures - something DC would correct when it reprinted his adventures in the late '70s.)

   The idea of a normal human becoming a hero on a distant planet, and defeating all kinds of bizarre menaces with his intelligence and quick thinking had me hooked - and when you add the stunning art by Carmine Infantino, I was a fan for life!

   The comic's emphasis on science even helped out in school. In issue #84 Adam faces the Dust Devil, a living sandstorm (the weather just didn't like him at all), and he realized that the creature's weakness was static electricity, so he rigged a trap using a Wimshurst Machine - a real-world device that uses a spinning wheel to generate electricity.

   In Junior High (these days they call it Middle School) a friend built one for a science project, and I said, "Cool, a Wimshurst Machine." He was stunned. "How did you know that?"

   I don't think I ever admitted that I learned it while reading a comic book.

   I only have about 30 issues of prime Adam Strange adventures in my collection, but I'm hanging onto them. 

    I wonder if Jamie still has his issue? Nah.

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Grade: A