STRANGERS IN PARADISE 599
been shot. However, he discovers that the woman is his cheating wife whose greed had
encouraged him to work for the criminals in the fi rst place. Th e doctor then commits
suicide by stabbing a scalpel into his stomach, leaving his unfaithful spouse to expire
on the operating table. As a result of the senate investigation, starting with issue #35,
Strange Tales prominently displayed the Comics Code seal; the series also had a new
subtitle: “Strange Tales of Suspense!”
Starting with issue #67, Strange Tales turned to a science fi ction theme, depicting
monsters such as those favored in drive-in movies—the “creature features.” Some
examples included Grottu, “King of the Insects” (issue #73), Taboo, “Th e Th ing from the
Swamp” (issues #75 and #77) and the fi rst appearance of Fin Fang Foom (issue #89)—
the last of which became a recurring villain in the Iron Man comics. From here until
near the end of its run, the series featured scripts by Stan Lee and art by Steve Ditko
and Jack Kirby among many other luminaries.
Alongside these monster comics, Lee, Ditko, and Kirby introduced prototypes of
characters that would later become Ant-Man, Iron Man, and the Human Torch, to
name a few. Issue #84 (May 1961) featured a villain with Magneto-like powers two years
before Magneto would make his fi rst appearance in X-Men #1 (1963). Likewise, Aunt
May and Uncle Ben from Spider-Man appeared in issue #97 ( June 1962), two months
before Amazing Fantasy #15 (August 1962). Th ese Silver Age characters would come
to dominate the pages of Strange Tales along with appearances by Th e Fantastic Four,
among others.
In July 1963, with issue #110, Ditko introduced Doctor Strange who would become
the character most associated with this anthology, along with Nick Fury (formerly of
Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos) in issue #135 (August 1965) by Kirby. From
issues #145–#68, Strange Tales alternated between Nick Fury and Doctor Strange.
Starting with issue #150, the names of these characters shared the masthead, while the
title, “Strange Tales,” was reduced in size. After issue #168 (May 1968), both Nick Fury
and Doctor Strange were featured in their own books.
After May, 1968, Strange Tales was put on hold until September 1973 when it was
revived at issue #169 with the fi rst appearance of Brother Voodoo, whose run lasted
only until issue #173 (April 1974). In issues #178–#81, Jim Starlin revitalized the
character of Warlock, whose self-titled book had been canceled, with a new origin in
the “Magus Saga.” In the 1980s, Marvel briefl y revived the Strange Tales series with
19 issues from April 1987 to October 1988, featuring Doctor Strange and Cloak and
Dagger stories. Th ere was a one-shot Volume 3 in November 1994; a two-issue series
that was never completed in 1998; and Strange Tales: Dark Corners in May 1998, a
one-shot anthology, featuring a variety of writers and artists.
Wendy Goldberg
STRANGERS IN PARADISE (SiP) is a 90-issue series written and drawn by Terry
Moore. It ran from 1993 to 2007 and has been compiled in 6 pocket books and
19 trade paperbacks. Th e comic book was fi rst self-published by Moore with Antarctic
