Tales From The Crypt Fare Tonight, Followed by Increasing Clottiness

Tales From The Crypt issue 36 featured a vampire story called Fare Tonight, Followed by Increasing Clottiness about a taxi driver on night shift looking for a fare whilst fearful of the recent reports of murders in the city, bodies drained of blood and rumour that a vampire is on the loose. The cover of this issue featured art based on this story and was one of the more memorable of the comics run. Yet the story was never adapted into the HBO series of the 1990s (or 70s Amicus movies). It did however get a loose adaptation in the cartoon spin off, Tales From The Cryptkeeper. Renamed simple fare Tonight, this version focused on two young girls investigating reports of a vampire in the area whilst still keeping the Taxi driver and vampire hunter from the comic story involved. 

A more adult, but still somewhat loose adaptation was part of the Tales From The Crypt Radio Series of the early 2000s which served as an 8th season of the HBO show with John Kassir returning to voice the Cryptkeeper and the Danny Elfman score used. In this version Keith David voices the vampire hunter, picked up by an immigrant new to America working as the taxi driver and played somewhat tongue in cheek.

The Real Ghostbusters Frightful Four

 When people think of the Frightful Four, they tend to think of the supervillain group who would oppose the Fantastic Four in Marvel comics. Howeverthere is another Frightful Four from Marvel. Marvel UK's The Real Ghostbusters issue 118 introduced readers to a group of ghosts based on the classic universal monsters but wearing uniforms similar to the Ghostbusters. 

This quartet were sent to capture and punish the Ghostbusters for their crimes against the spirit world. Basically, Ghostbuster Busters. 

The team consisted of Frank (the Frankenstein monster), Arnold the Werewolf, Wilbur the Mummy and Vigor the Vampire the leader of the group.  Vampire the leader of the group. 

Their first appearance was in a text only story but in their second outing in issue 136 they would get a full comic strip story.

The Kenner Real Ghostbusters toy line included a Monster Series of toys based on Universal Monsters, including Dracula, Frankensteins Monster, a Werewolf and Mummy. The closest we got to toys of the Frightful Four.

Monster Wrestlers In My Pocket Issue 3

 

Monster In My Pocket Comics UK

Monster In My Pocket's popularity was short lived in America but had an after life in the UK where it seemed to be more popular, expanding into gimmick lines like Monster Sport Stars, Monster Ninjas and the most successful, Monster Wrestlers In My Pocket. This led to the UK receiving more comics than the US did for the franchise. 

First there was the Marvel UK Summer and Holiday Specials in 1991, reprinting the US Harvey Comics Monster In My Pocket title that lasted four issues in America. Marvel UK also printed a hard back Annual to finish reprinting all the Harvey Comic issues. 

Keesing comics then released the Monster Wrestlers In My Pocket comic in 1995 featuring original UK comic strips. This comic lasted only three issues

This comic too had a hard back annual to finish it off. The annuals are a bit easier to get hold of but all five of the UK Monster in my Pocket comics are very rare and difficult to find. 

Masters of the Universe Battle Ram Chariot

One of the better vehicles in the 2003 Masters of the Universe reboot line was Skeletors Battle Ram Chariot. Not to be confused with the vintage Masters of the Universe Battle Ram which was a vehicle of the Heroic Warriors, this was not an update but a completely new vehicle which just happened to have a similar name. 

                               

When rolled along the ground the two rams at the front of the chariot move up and down in a butting motion to ram through any heroic warriors that stand in Skeletors way.

In the 200X cartoon, Skeletor was seen riding the Battle Ram Chariot more than Panthor into battle and it was featured in multiple episodes making it a stand out vehicle from the era, with it's distinct ram head design tying into Skeletors havok staff motif and very historical fantasy design. 

Masters of the Universe War Whale

The 200X Masters of the Universe toy line had many new vehicles, none of which became iconic within the fandom as the memorable vintage ones such as Attack Track, Battle Ram or Roton but there were still some quite unique and interesting new vehicle designs. The War Whale in particular, being one of the only water based seafaring vehicles in the franchise to get a toy. 

When rolled along the ground the flippers on the side of the vehicle flap up and down, as does the tail while the mouth opens and closes. The vehicle also has an impressive arsenal of weapons with a gun mounted on the handle bars, a missile launcher either side on each fin and another in the mouth. 

Though there were quite a few sea based episodes of the series, only one episode of the cartoon actually featured the War Whale, The Mystery of Anwat Gar. He-man and Man-At-Arms are seen riding one each on their way to the island of Anwat Gar. A rather brief appearance that doesn't get an action scene to show off the multiple missile launchers incorporated into the design. 

The only other appearance the vehicle has made is in the Dark Horse Comics Andra One Shot. Set in continuity with the Revelations/Revolution cartoon, this comic sees Andra travel to Orkas Island where she reunites with her grandfather Dekker to battle Count Marzo. 

Back to the Future EC Inspiration

Like many films, books and TV shows in pop culture in the 1980s, Back to the Future was in part inspired by EC comic books from the 1950s. In particular the science fiction titles such as Weird Science and Weird fantasy. The first movie in the Back to the Future series gives homage to this by featuring a mock EC comic in one scene where Marty first arrives in 1955 and is discovered by a farmer and his family. The farmers son tells his dad Marty must be an alien and shows him the cover of a comic book styled like a classic EC comic. 

The comic titled Tales From Space even has the EC logo in the top corner, though Tales From Space wasn't actually a real EC comic title. But the layout of the cover is pure EC. A fun little nod. 

Robert Zemeckis who directed Back to the Future would go on to be a executive producer on the HBO Tales From The Crypt TV series beginning in 1989 which would adapt stories from across the EC titles of the 50s. Yet another creative in Hollywood at the time who was inspired by EC while growing up.