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Power Records Podcast #07: More Monsters!

The Power Records Podcast, Part of the Fire and Water Podcast NetworkThe seventh episode of THE POWER RECORDS PODCAST is now available! It’s Halloween time, and that means Monsters! Hosts Rob Kelly and Chris Franklin talk about two spooky Marvel Monster records, “The Monster of Frankenstein!” and “The Curse of the Werewolf!”

Find the seventh episode of THE POWER RECORDS PODCAST on iTunes. Each episode is released as part of THE FIRE AND WATER PODCAST feed. While you’re on iTunes, please drop us a review. Alternatively, you may download the podcast by right-clicking here, choosing “Save Target/Link As”, and selecting a location on your computer to save the file (65 MB).

Power Records - Monster of Frankenstein

Power Records - Curse of the Werewolf

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4 Comments

  1. Kyle Benning says:

    Another great episode of the Power Record’s Podcast! Great Halloween choice!!

    I am relieved that the Power Records resists falling into the trap of calling the Monster “Frankenstein.” I’m not sure when this phenomenon starting taking hold, but I would guess that most of those good for nothing youngsters below the age of 20 nowadays don’t realize that Frankenstein is the name of the doctor, and monster is nameless, going by either just Monster or Frankenstein’s Monster. Obviously the Power Records predates this trend of ignorance on the subject. Nowadays whenever you see the Monster, whether its a halloween costume, tv, or whatever, he’s always just called “Frankenstein.” So we have a generation of kids who walk around believing this to be the case, that the monster is named Frankenstein and the was apparently reanimated by a nameless doctor with a short little toady named Igor. God forbid they use the smart phone they’ve had since they were 8 years old to google the damn thing and find out the correct name. Of course in the grand scheme of things this is trivial, but it causes me to facepalm in disgust. Get off my lawn.

    Maybe the culprit of this social atrocity rests with Frankenberry Cereal. Perhaps if they had called it Frankenberry’s Monster Cereal, people would know the difference.

    I still can’t get over how corny of a pun they use by naming the human alter ego of the werewolf, Jack Russell, after a dog breed. C’mon man.

    I can’t wait to read Frank’s analysis of these 2 tales.

    A great seasonal episode, I can’t wait for the next episode of Power Records, Drop the Needle and Turn the Page!

  2. Anj says:

    These two are close to the ‘creepy clown’ Man-thing record in how horrific they are.

    Seriously between plunging fangs and slurping blood and hanged women, these are crazy. As an adult, I doubt I would let my own kids listen to these.

    I also know that if I had heard these as a kid I would have loved them!

    It was a simpler time.

    Thanks for sharing!

  3. Kyle, I think the blame on “Frankenstein” being confused with the monster may go back to Universal. “Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man” has a granddaughter of the original Frankenstein, but it’s clearly pointing toward the monster and the Wolf Man meeting up. “House of Frankenstein” and “Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein” have no actual characters named Frankenstein…just the monster.

    Anj, I’m with you. As I said in the show, these acts of violence are in the comics themselves, but somehow seem much worse when dramatized. Not sure I’d hand any of these to my 6-year old…although I was much younger than that when I got my first Power Records!

    Chris

  4. Frank says:

    Barring a lapse in memory 30+ years down the line, The Monster of Frankensten was the most excellent Power Record of my childhood. The production is altogether a cut above the rest of the editions I’ve heard. I imagine the collection of voice actors looking at the script and thinking “finally, something to really sink your teeth into… To take seriously as a thespian.” The passion for the material is manifest across the board, including the eerie music, sound effects and the manipulation of the comics material. There’s usually at least one false note in these deals, but from the narration to the gravally-voiced monster on through the bit players, it’s all good. For the allotted space, the story was a solid adaptation jam-packed with engaging incident, while Mike Ploog’s art is rich with period feel and unnerving poses for the monster. Images I had not seen since grade school were so thoroughly seared into my memory that I recalled them vividly when bidden by the audio alone while listening on a freeway drive. This was especially true of the monster’s battle with the bear, the wolf, and the closing pages of hunting. I cannot recall another instance outside the original novel where I found Frankenstein as sympathetic? I certainly prefer the monster to be portrayed as such, instead of the constant riffing on Karloff. The Monster of Frankenstein was tops!

    …except the lettering.

    The Curse of the Werewolf was new to me, having never read much original Werewolf by Night material, and it contrasted strongly against Frankenstein by being one of the worst Power Records I’ve had the displeasure of having slap with a wet sticky thud against my eardrums. I had no reservations about listening to Monster again while writing this comment, but now my fingers are briskly racing to complete it before the Werewolf audio kicks in. Ploog’s art is crude, amateurish fanpro crap, while the characterization of the entire Russell family is like a stinging strong stream of urine filtered through a prism made of feces to project 76 shades of objectionability. Jack specifically was such a whiner that it made my skin crawl, but the acting in general caused me physical pain to listen to. Then I drifted off for a moment, and I’m hearing a Dracula story. WTF? It’s like biting into a piece of fish and finding it’s been filled with butterscotch. I look at the art, and see three terribly constructed Gene Colan pages that strike me as sinful to present in a fashion that so poorly reflects his talent. Oh god… Jack’s waking up, his voice quivering like the protagonist from the second Nightmare on Elm Street but without the boss homophobic subtext, and he’s describing his dream as the Power Records janitor makes obnoxious howls and screams in the background. Must run away, before this track goes any further down its infernal path!!!

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