In this final installment of the blog for July, I wanted to spotlight another western comic book. Truthfully, as I said last week, westerns aren’t my favorite, but I do think they’ve had good creators on them, that put everything they had into them. The 1950s-1960s was the time of the westerns on television, with shows like Gunsmoke, Rawhide, Bonanza, etc., so it was only natural that comics followed. A very striking cover on this one by Dick Ayers and Frank Giacoia!

There are four stories in this book, and the first one just might be the best! “Draw or Die, Mister!” shows us a true western situation. We get a traveling tough named Splash Spade, and he’s looking to kill someone in a watering hole. But he has one problem, Kid Colt is in this very saloon as well! Written by Stan Lee with art by Jack Keller.

The second story, “Flames Along the Border,” is not only from the cover, but a really cool adventure staring Kid Colt Outlaw! The Kid but stop a group of bandits, but he ends up becoming their prisoner! Writer Joe Gill, art by Jack Keller.

The next one is called “The Iron Giant!” Sorry, no robots here, only one of my favorite things in old comics, a train! A bunch of thieves board the train though, and aim to steal the money on it, but does the train have a mind of its own? Story by (maybe) Stan or Larry Lieber, art by Paul Reinman.

Finally, we get “Trail’s End!” Kid Colt is wounded, and dehydrated so badly he falls off of his horse, but a Native American that he helped once, repays a debt of honor and helps him back to health. Writer Joe Gill, art by Jack Keller!