One of the greatest stories in comic history. The fact that a train/train station is the setting, when we all know the importance of trains in the Holocaust. It's an incredible masterwork, and should easily be held up in the same regard as the legendary Maus, which you guys should also go through (w/ Warren!) on the channel.
When I took Denny O’Neil’s class at SVA, he had a great syllabus, which included William Goldman’s Adventures of the Screen Trade. And of course he wrote The Marathon Man with Dustin Hoffman and Lawrence Olivier. In that movie 🍿 Olivier plays a war criminal who gets recognized by survivors on 47th St in the Diamond District. When you watch this particular scene (my favorite scene in the movie, it makes me want to cry), Goldman had most likely read this comic. The date this issue came out is significant for me, because that’s when my folks first met in a jazz club in Paterson NJ on April 29, 1955. Ironically, my youngest stepson was born on that same date in 1996.
This was great, thoughtful look at the story. Maybe this has been answered, but it was indeed Marie Severin who coloured this one. From 'Krigstein' by Greg Sadowski: "Marie Severin found his stories difficult but worth the effort: 'Krigstein thought like a painter. He had very definite ideas about how his stories should be colored, I was a little intimidated, because his work was drawn for a specific coloring, and I was never satisfied unless I thought about if for a long time, longer than most artists. But it was very exciting when I got it right.' "
Any fan of comics will see this and notice how and who was influenced by it, but what we can't do is experience this story and art in a world where it was new and never seen or done before.
Hi -- Thanks for making this video, I'm a Krigstein fan and always enjoy learning about others' opinions and insights on his work. First off, "Master Race" ought to be recognized not only as Krigstein's pinnacle but Al Feldstein's as well. That prose sings, and he clearly put a lot of effort into making it clear and descriptive without toppling over into melodrama. I should point out that another early source of fan exposure to "Master Race" was in the 1971 hardcover book from Nostalgia Press, "The EC Horror Library of the 1950s" aka "Horror Comics of the 1950s." I first read the story there, in 1975-76, and was knocked out by it, especially the ending. In answer to the question about other comic book stories that were "on another level" regarding subject matter, there might be nothing to rival "Master Race." As has been stated previously, it's the culmination of everything EC had been doing, in terms of stories about evil deeds being repaid. In the EC pantheon, there at at least a few stories that rate an "honorable mention" here: The best of the so-called "preachies" that appeared in Shock SuspenStories were gut-wrenching portrayals of contemporary lives touched by violence arising from social ills. Probably my favorite of this group is "A Kind of Justice" from SS issue 16, which concerns rape and corrupt law-enforcement officers. Also, Joe Orlando's science fiction tale, "Judgment Day!," from Weird Fantasy issue 18, revealed in the final panel that the protagonist was not only an Earthman (as expected) but also an African-American. "Judgment Day!" has received a great deal of attention over the years, and is arguably Orlando's signature EC story. Finally, a lesser-known EC story that's pretty interesting is "Slave Ship" from Piracy issue 3, illustrated by Graham Ingels. In this tale, a Caucasian man who's been drugged, shanghaied and forced to work aboard a slave ship eventually assists the African captives in revolting against the captain and worst members of the crew, whereupon the surviving good-guy Caucasian sailors declare their intention to turn the ship around and return to Africa, to free the captives. That ending may seem sappily optimistic -- and perhaps it is, historically speaking -- but it's also one of the few EC endings that includes both an altruistic deed and a note of genuine hope.
Boys, this is great that you did this. I have enjoyed your months of shoot interviews, but they have been hit or miss. But these show and tell videos are the best. You are talking about why comics work. You are presenting your influences. These last three videos with Warren have been some of the best interviews you have done.
You're right about Spiegelman and Master Race. A great source is the Krigstein issue of Squa Tront that reprints Art's essay on the story he wrote in college. It was also printed in that exhibit book From Maus to Now that came out in the 90's. I think a lot of the material may have been reprinted yet again in the Comics Journal. The Krigstein interview in Squa Tront is really mind-expanding. He had such a clear idea of what could be done in the comics form and what he was trying to personally accomplish. The fact that he was always frustrated from getting there means that the door is wide open to pick up the torch...
Great video; I just bought the Impact reprints. The only comic that comes to mind for me with this sort of visceral power is Black Hole by Charles Burns. I also think of Beksinski's and Bacon's paintings.
I've got the glorious Russ Cochran over sized B&W hardcover slipcase version of this book so I'm used to just seeing the inks. I love how those Cochran hardcovers allow you to see every detail in the inking but it's really nice seeing the original Marie Severin colors too. More often than not modern re coloring of these old books for the re-issues totally ruins them for me. Thanks for this video! Anytime you want to bring Warren back on for a show n tell, I'm all for it.
Side note -- at the 20:48 mark, one of the commenters points to Panel 2 of Page 4, with the man wearing the Star of David, and the commenter says that there's a photo with a similar image. Well, I took a look around online. Though I didn't find a photo that resembled Panel 2, I did find one that resembles Panel 5 on the same page, with the death camp prisoners looking out through the barbed wire. If you look closely at Panel 5, there are three men standing furthest forward, ie. closest to the fence. Their postures and facial expressions seem to be roughly based on those of three prisoners in a famous photo from the liberation of the Ebensee camp in Austria in May of 1945. Here's a Wikipedia article; the photo is at the top right of the page -- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebensee_concentration_camp
Hey, I found another photo that Krigstein might have used for reference -- if you look at Page 3, Panel 3, it depicts Hitler addressing an enormous crowd at an outdoor rally. This panel seems to be based on a photo of Hitler at a rally in Nuremberg on Sept. 12, 1938. If you click the link for this story, the photo I'm talking about is the third of the four photos included with the article -- www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/neo-nazi-rally-nuremberg-germany-hitler-far-right-a8799301.html
The more Warren Bernard the better. That tour of Warren's house to view his astounding collection was an all time highlight of the channel. So great to see this focus on individual items, Even if it's not comics I'd love to see him discuss works of art and culture with Ed and Jim.
OMG I saw this as a kid in the early 1980s! Can't remember where or when exactly but the panel with the skin lampshade haunts me to this day. Awesome wonderful work fellas!
Amazing..finished one and a new one pops up! Haven't even watched it yet...thumbed it up and called all my friends. Ok, two of my friends. Ok, my two friends. Ok, one of them is my sister. But she's cool as shit. Like and subscribe!
Warren could have his own channel with all the killer stuff he has. Hope there's still a few more of these vids in the hopper, cause this shit is dope!
Love these videos with Warren. I just got the Best of EC artist’s edition vol. 2 and it having Master Race in there alone is worth the price of admission. Really mind blowing.
I feel like the train may be riding by slowly-slowed doen in the mind of the MC. I would assume that a speeding train would have less frames, not more, and the fact that we see the same person framed multiple times suggests to me that it may be traveling slowly. However, i feel like audiences now would assume it was traveling fast because we are accustomed to the films that use speeding trains.
What do you think of Pogo as the next step, although it's a strip of course, but it was regularly collected as books with long story lines.. Also, altho Warren generally doesn't like academic books, I'd recommend William's Dreaming of the Graphic Novel on creating the idea of a graphic novel.
Wow! Thanks for posting this and- Warren-! Decided NOT to watch this video until tonight. I am going to drag out my EC Treasury Library edition and do a read along with your commentary!
Hi Damian. I think the connection is they were both influenced by German expressionist film. The creepy angles and contorted faces, the extreme atmospherics, it makes for dramatic comics.
They could have taken a bit more care with historical accuracy. Belsen was liberated by the British advance, not the Russian, Belsen didn’t have gas chambers, and the prisoners in the story were not wearing the striped pyjama uniform. Still, an impressive story and deftly rendered by use of panels.
Fair enough. Also, it seems extremely unlikely that an ordinary German man with (apparently) no military involvement would end up as the commandant of a death camp, as depicted in the story. But that’s poetic license for you….
I'm so happy you guys have brought Warren on the channel. His wealth of knowledge is incredible
One of the greatest stories in comic history. The fact that a train/train station is the setting, when we all know the importance of trains in the Holocaust. It's an incredible masterwork, and should easily be held up in the same regard as the legendary Maus, which you guys should also go through (w/ Warren!) on the channel.
When I took Denny O’Neil’s class at SVA, he had a great syllabus, which included William Goldman’s Adventures of the Screen Trade. And of course he wrote The Marathon Man with Dustin Hoffman and Lawrence Olivier. In that movie 🍿 Olivier plays a war criminal who gets recognized by survivors on 47th St in the Diamond District. When you watch this particular scene (my favorite scene in the movie, it makes me want to cry), Goldman had most likely read this comic. The date this issue came out is significant for me, because that’s when my folks first met in a jazz club in Paterson NJ on April 29, 1955. Ironically, my youngest stepson was born on that same date in 1996.
This was great, thoughtful look at the story. Maybe this has been answered, but it was indeed Marie Severin who coloured this one. From 'Krigstein' by Greg Sadowski: "Marie Severin found his stories difficult but worth the effort: 'Krigstein thought like a painter. He had very definite ideas about how his stories should be colored, I was a little intimidated, because his work was drawn for a specific coloring, and I was never satisfied unless I thought about if for a long time, longer than most artists. But it was very exciting when I got it right.' "
I thought in the end it would be revealed
that the man in black was only in his mind
but driving him insane nonetheless.
Any fan of comics will see this and notice how and who was influenced by it, but what we can't do is experience this story and art in a world where it was new and never seen or done before.
Hi -- Thanks for making this video, I'm a Krigstein fan and always enjoy learning about others' opinions and insights on his work.
First off, "Master Race" ought to be recognized not only as Krigstein's pinnacle but Al Feldstein's as well. That prose sings, and he clearly put a lot of effort into making it clear and descriptive without toppling over into melodrama.
I should point out that another early source of fan exposure to "Master Race" was in the 1971 hardcover book from Nostalgia Press, "The EC Horror Library of the 1950s" aka "Horror Comics of the 1950s." I first read the story there, in 1975-76, and was knocked out by it, especially the ending.
In answer to the question about other comic book stories that were "on another level" regarding subject matter, there might be nothing to rival "Master Race." As has been stated previously, it's the culmination of everything EC had been doing, in terms of stories about evil deeds being repaid.
In the EC pantheon, there at at least a few stories that rate an "honorable mention" here: The best of the so-called "preachies" that appeared in Shock SuspenStories were gut-wrenching portrayals of contemporary lives touched by violence arising from social ills. Probably my favorite of this group is "A Kind of Justice" from SS issue 16, which concerns rape and corrupt law-enforcement officers. Also, Joe Orlando's science fiction tale, "Judgment Day!," from Weird Fantasy issue 18, revealed in the final panel that the protagonist was not only an Earthman (as expected) but also an African-American. "Judgment Day!" has received a great deal of attention over the years, and is arguably Orlando's signature EC story. Finally, a lesser-known EC story that's pretty interesting is "Slave Ship" from Piracy issue 3, illustrated by Graham Ingels. In this tale, a Caucasian man who's been drugged, shanghaied and forced to work aboard a slave ship eventually assists the African captives in revolting against the captain and worst members of the crew, whereupon the surviving good-guy Caucasian sailors declare their intention to turn the ship around and return to Africa, to free the captives. That ending may seem sappily optimistic -- and perhaps it is, historically speaking -- but it's also one of the few EC endings that includes both an altruistic deed and a note of genuine hope.
Boys, this is great that you did this. I have enjoyed your months of shoot interviews, but they have been hit or miss. But these show and tell videos are the best. You are talking about why comics work. You are presenting your influences. These last three videos with Warren have been some of the best interviews you have done.
You're right about Spiegelman and Master Race. A great source is the Krigstein issue of Squa Tront that reprints Art's essay on the story he wrote in college. It was also printed in that exhibit book From Maus to Now that came out in the 90's. I think a lot of the material may have been reprinted yet again in the Comics Journal. The Krigstein interview in Squa Tront is really mind-expanding. He had such a clear idea of what could be done in the comics form and what he was trying to personally accomplish. The fact that he was always frustrated from getting there means that the door is wide open to pick up the torch...
Hard to believe that having Nazis be unambiguous villains is now a controversial concept.
Incredible video. Also I don't know but Warren's ''OKAY'' is soothing to me haha
You guys are producing the best comic content on RUclips. I gotta tell ya, Warren is a real add value. I’ve really been enjoying his contributions.
Great video; I just bought the Impact reprints. The only comic that comes to mind for me with this sort of visceral power is Black Hole by Charles Burns. I also think of Beksinski's and Bacon's paintings.
I’m watching this again...one of my favourite pieces.
I've got the glorious Russ Cochran over sized B&W hardcover slipcase version of this book so I'm used to just seeing the inks. I love how those Cochran hardcovers allow you to see every detail in the inking but it's really nice seeing the original Marie Severin colors too. More often than not modern re coloring of these old books for the re-issues totally ruins them for me. Thanks for this video! Anytime you want to bring Warren back on for a show n tell, I'm all for it.
As a fan of Mazzucchelli, I love this story.
You guys are cranking out some classic beautiful art that I’ve never seen before in the EC comics. thanks for sharing.
Side note -- at the 20:48 mark, one of the commenters points to Panel 2 of Page 4, with the man wearing the Star of David, and the commenter says that there's a photo with a similar image.
Well, I took a look around online. Though I didn't find a photo that resembled Panel 2, I did find one that resembles Panel 5 on the same page, with the death camp prisoners looking out through the barbed wire. If you look closely at Panel 5, there are three men standing furthest forward, ie. closest to the fence. Their postures and facial expressions seem to be roughly based on those of three prisoners in a famous photo from the liberation of the Ebensee camp in Austria in May of 1945. Here's a Wikipedia article; the photo is at the top right of the page -- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebensee_concentration_camp
Hey, I found another photo that Krigstein might have used for reference -- if you look at Page 3, Panel 3, it depicts Hitler addressing an enormous crowd at an outdoor rally. This panel seems to be based on a photo of Hitler at a rally in Nuremberg on Sept. 12, 1938. If you click the link for this story, the photo I'm talking about is the third of the four photos included with the article -- www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/neo-nazi-rally-nuremberg-germany-hitler-far-right-a8799301.html
yeah that ability to convey so many facts, ideas, feeling, so MUCH in so little is the power of comics imo
That is a stunning cover. It looks so current on the coloring.
This is first time I've watched cartoonist kayfabe since Mr Piskor left us ...💯
Such a classic book. Thanks for digging in.
Awesome having a piece of comics history discussed by experts. Having Warren make an appearance is a huge treat.
That Smithsonian collection was in my library growing up! This story made me always slow down from zipping through the book! Thank you!!!
The more Warren Bernard the better. That tour of Warren's house to view his astounding collection was an all time highlight of the channel. So great to see this focus on individual items, Even if it's not comics I'd love to see him discuss works of art and culture with Ed and Jim.
OMG I saw this as a kid in the early 1980s! Can't remember where or when exactly but the panel with the skin lampshade haunts me to this day. Awesome wonderful work fellas!
Amazing..finished one and a new one pops up! Haven't even watched it yet...thumbed it up and called all my friends. Ok, two of my friends. Ok, my two friends. Ok, one of them is my sister. But she's cool as shit. Like and subscribe!
Warren could have his own channel with all the killer stuff he has. Hope there's still a few more of these vids in the hopper, cause this shit is dope!
Cartoonist Kayfabe! Now in Stereo! ;)
I have been waiting for this one. A true game changer.
Love these videos with Warren. I just got the Best of EC artist’s edition vol. 2 and it having Master Race in there alone is worth the price of admission. Really mind blowing.
I feel like the train may be riding by slowly-slowed doen in the mind of the MC. I would assume that a speeding train would have less frames, not more, and the fact that we see the same person framed multiple times suggests to me that it may be traveling slowly.
However, i feel like audiences now would assume it was traveling fast because we are accustomed to the films that use speeding trains.
How about Feiffer's Munro as an adult work from the same era? Even adapted into an Academy Award winning short.
What do you think of Pogo as the next step, although it's a strip of course, but it was regularly collected as books with long story lines.. Also, altho Warren generally doesn't like academic books, I'd recommend William's Dreaming of the Graphic Novel on creating the idea of a graphic novel.
Heyy!! i was waiting for you to Review this classic!!
Wow! Thanks for posting this and- Warren-! Decided NOT to watch this video until tonight. I am going to drag out my EC Treasury Library edition and do a read along with your commentary!
Marathon Man.
Classic groundbreaking story. Thanks for sharing.
One of the best episodes yet
i love impact magg, thanks!!!
Thank you.
In this video Spiegelman briefly discusses his thoughts on Kriegstein and Master Race: ruclips.net/video/cmHsmDXzPsE/видео.html
REPEAT on REPEAT
Poignant, my dudes. Keep it up!
Fascinating
the influence of the master race is inverse to the size of the story and the artist's body of work.
What is this Tantrum comic?
I see a ton of Will Eisner in this...and Eisner's work that might have influenced this was 5-10 years older than this....
Hi Damian. I think the connection is they were both influenced by German expressionist film. The creepy angles and contorted faces, the extreme atmospherics, it makes for dramatic comics.
They could have taken a bit more care with historical accuracy. Belsen was liberated by the British advance, not the Russian, Belsen didn’t have gas chambers, and the prisoners in the story were not wearing the striped pyjama uniform. Still, an impressive story and deftly rendered by use of panels.
Fair enough. Also, it seems extremely unlikely that an ordinary German man with (apparently) no military involvement would end up as the commandant of a death camp, as depicted in the story. But that’s poetic license for you….
Maestría!