Number 1590: The planet that admired Earth

Clejos Andra is a planet full of Earth-groupies. People from that planet visited our planet in the 1920s and liked it so much they went home and emulated our culture. (From what is shown it's American culture.) Five hundred years in the future some Earth people visit Clejos Andra and are welcomed with open arms, only to turn on their adoring hosts with treachery and violence. It would be my guess that any aliens from space doing any visiting on our planet would learn in no time we can be a very violent and hostile bunch. I don’t know why the Clejos Andrans missed that aspect of our culture during their stay.

Despite the genial goofiness of most of the story there is that nasty behavior on the part of the Earth crew. But while the commander is a badass, at least one of his crew has a conscience. He pipes up with, “. . .But can’t we humans rise above greed and blood-baths? Can’t I put a little pity into you, in God’s name?” The psychopathic captain responds: “I've taken all I can from you — you muddled liberal! You’ve dared to criticise me, cast doubt on my plans — and that’s mutiny!” he says as he ss-putts! his outspoken crewman with a ray gun blast. Early in the story he had ejected two crew members into space for fighting. This captain brooks no nonsense. Any infraction is a capital offense.

I wasn’t expecting that dark story thread to weave through what is otherwise a silly plot from a silly ACG comic book. It’s drawn by Pete Costanza and written by editor Richard E. Hughes under his pen-name of Shane O’Shea. It’s the second posting from our theme week of Skiffy Stories (see Monday’s post for an explanation), and it originally appeared in Unknown Worlds #28 (1963).