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a 1996 BBC television series he also wrote. Average guy Richard Mayhew ceases to
exist for the regular world and enters into the fantastical and often frightening world of
London Below.
Post-apocalyptic narratives in comics often veer into fantasy. Set on a devastated,
conquered, or otherwise radically altered Earth at some point in the future, these nar-
ratives allow heroes a number of opportunities for adventure, as when former Skywald
and Marvel artist Jack Katz became one of the fi rst independent publishers when he
blended elements of fantasy and space opera to create his post-apocalyptic epic First
Kingdom (1974).
In 20 issues of Amazing Adventures , beginning with #18 in 1973, and in a graphic
novel sequel in 1983, Killraven leads a band of humans attempting to free Earth of
2018 from Martian conquerors, leading to a number of fantasy-like adventures. Such
tales indicate the fl exibility of the fantasy genre, which partly accounts for its ongoing
popularity over the years.
Randy Duncan
FELDSTEIN, AL (1925–). Albert B. Feldstein is an American cartoonist who edited
MAD magazine for three decades, from 1956 to 1985. While attending New York’s
selective High School of Art and Music, he began working in Jerry Iger’s workshop,
where he erased pencil lines, drew backgrounds, and inked leopard spots onto clothing
for Sheena, Queen of the Jungle. He attended Brooklyn College by day and Art Students
League classes by night before entering military service. Serving in Special Services
during World War II, he created posters, slide presentations, and a base comic strip
called Bafy , while working on the side by painting women on airplanes. After his 1945
discharge, he returned to Iger’s shop, and then wrote and drew teenage titles ( Junior ,
Sunny ) for Fox Feature Syndicate.
Feldstein was contracted to draw teenage comics for EC Comics before publisher Bill
Gaines decided the market had changed. Feldstein instead drew We s t e r n and romance
titles like Saddle Justice and Moon Girl. He soon dropped most drawing duties to focus
on writing and eventually took over editing most EC publications. In 1950 EC replaced
crime titles with horror and suspense. Known for shocking twist endings, the stories
addressed controversial topics including domestic abuse, racism, and misguided patrio-
tism. Feldstein was editing seven horror, suspense, and science fi ction titles in 1951,
generating more revenue than fellow EC editor Harvey Kurtzman’s war comics , and
by 1952 held creative authority over most Gaines publications. EC’s MAD comic book,
under founding editor Kurtzman, inspired numerous imitators including EC’s own
Panic which Feldstein wrote and edited. Panic courted controversy and became banned
in Massachusetts over an issue mocking Christmas. Th e U.S. Senate’s 1954 Subcom-
mittee to Investigate Juvenile Delinquency hearings shook the comic book industry,
devoting special attention to Gaines and EC, and led to the elimination of suspense
and horror titles. Feldstein worked on the last EC comic book, Incredible Science Fiction ,
in 1955. MAD remains the only EC publication still in print, transformed from comic
