Doc Savage (1975 series) #8

Additional credits: story plotted by John Warner and John Whitmore. a) Final issue in this series; b) in issue #6, editor John Warner said this story would feature John Sunlight; plans change; c) artist Ernie Chan is the same person who inked issue #2 of the color comic under the name Ernie Chua; d) Doc demonstrates his expertise in psychiatry/psychology for the first time; e) for the first time we learn that there is a branch of the Hidalgo Trading Company in Los Angeles (and more elsewhere presumably); f) error: Doc knows that Ham was planning to accompany Renny on his trip to Hollywood, even though he wasn’t present for the discussion; g) not an error: though World War II was declared on September 3, 1939, no military engagements took place for several months, hence it isn’t odd that there is no mention of the war in London or Paris. Additional comments: a) Issue also includes “Mail of Bronze” a letters column; b) the cover by Ken Barr is nicely lurid with its dark blue-green color scheme (though the monster is supposed to be red—note the story title), but Doc’s face is identical to the one on the previous issue (angle, expression, etc.); c) inside front cover has a portrait of Doc with a rocket pack, courtesy of Tom Sutton; d) Ed Davis contributes another montage portrait, this time of Long Tom, making him look as sickly as usually described for the first time; e) a full page portrait of Doc surrounded by the Roadster, Autogyro, Amberjack, and Helldiver by Bob Layton and Dick Giordano follows; f) John Warner supplies an essay, “Editorializing on the Bronze Side in Two Parts!” Part one announces the magazine’s cancellation; part two explains that the current story was a fill-in kept in the inventory for just such an emergency, clarifying the matter of the new creative team.