Forbidden Worlds Archives Volume 2

by Harry Lazarus, Richard E. Hughes, Sam Cooper (Editor)

What do a fifty-foot-tall telepathic merman, a typewriter possessed by Satan, and a demented ringmaster who attaches human heads to circus animals have in common? Nothing, perhaps? Well, except that they all appeared in Forbidden Worlds, the weird and wonderful anthology of science fiction and supernatural fantasy that ran from the early 1950s into the late 1960s. Issues #5 through #8 of this enchanting and bizarre series are collected in a deluxe archival hardcover, which features a foreword by comics historian Dan Nadel (Art Out of Time), early art by Al Williamson and Roy Krenkel, and more demons, robots, and Atomic Age thrills than you can cram through an interdimensional portal!

Genres: Graphic Novels

192 pages, Hardcover

First published July 9, 2013

Reviews

[Bart Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed vol. 1 of Dark Horse's collection of Forbidden Worlds, but I found myself often thinking this collection lacked the entertainment value of the first. Not by much, but there were several stories that seemed too hurried in order to reach a conclusion. However, I liked the prose stories that this magazine ran and there are, more often than not, tales of the unusual, weird, and unexpected that any reader of early comics will enjoy.
My suggestion is the read this collection at a fast pace. When I took the time to lazily read these over an extended period of time, I found that I "lost" the feel of the stories. It took me about 5 weeks to read issues 5&6, but only two days to finish 7&8. As I was saying, when I read them rather quickly, I found myself enjoying the style of the stories more.

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

For me the draw on this book was the Roy Krenkel and Al Williamson artworks. Clearly early work for either and it shows. I'm sure they're both turning over in the graves that this crap is back in print. I'd suggest avoiding this pricy book.