What's the Difference, edition #75

Last puzzle of August.  There are five (5) changes to this simple yet iconic cover.  If I'm not mistaken, the original was in Walter B. Gibson's office, watching his raconteur faithfully relate his thrilling adventures for The Master's legion of agents.  Have a great holiday weekend and we'll check back in on Tuesday.

Finished "Murder Marsh" and now...

"The Devil Genghis" is next up on the docket.  So far I'm not impressed.  However, I'm only a chapter or so into this one.

This is the second adventure in the John Sunlight saga.  I'll keep an open mind but after the terrific writing of W. B. Gibson in "Murder Marsh" I have a high standard in mind.  I'll keep everyone posted as I wend my way through yet another Doc Savage tale.

As for "Murder Marsh", read it.  It's terrific.

And the answers are...

"Agent J reports: #, top hat, end of Tommy gun barrel, strap for nylons (2 silver bands), The Shadow's .45 barrel, villain's mask."

Oh, yeah!  6 shots, 6 bullseyes.  Well done, Agent J.  I must get sneakier with the next one.

No guesses to the puzzle clew so...

The most iconic of all The Shadow covers.  I would love to own the original painting and hang it in my own sanctum.  Alas, tis but a dream.

What I'm reading now

Murder Marsh, October 1, 1934.  I am loving this tale as I come to the conclusion.  I can't help but feel like this may have influenced many of the episodes of The Shadow radio series.  The marshy setting with the odd inhabitants living on the outskirts.  But that is neither here nor there.  This has been a fun read and I'm hoping that finale is a real twist.  I have my guesses as to what is actually going on but I've been fooled before.  On top of it all is this awesome cover!

What's The Difference with this Steranko piece?

Six (6) changes to this one.  Find 'em all and you won't be hurt. 

Puzzle pieces

Can you guess what classic cover this is from?

Trail of Vengeance revealed

"Agent J reports: 1941 both below and next to the W, Bonds for Victory upside down, shirt color on man on the right - that's all I can find!"

 Pretty good.  Tie on the guy in the left photo and the muzzle flash in the right hand photo.  Didn't think anyone would catch the date beside the W.  Good eye.

(I made a mistake and there were only six (6) changes, not seven (7).  Apologies)

Finished

I finished "The Fortress of Solitude" this weekend and need to take a break before I read the follow up to the John Sunlight "saga".  My opinion has not changed, unfortunately.  As far as I am concerned, this story didn't get any traction until the last 10 or 12 pages.  Too long, in my opinion, to grab my attention.  Again, the style of Dent just doesn't sit with me.  I may try one of the stories that one of the other writers penned and see if I like the series better.  Looking forward to reading another adventure of The Shadow next.
Again, I don't want to belittle anyone who likes the series.  I'm a Star Trek fan far beyond being a Star Wars fan.  Different strokes, ya know.  I love the idea of Doc Savage and really wanted to fall for this series.  It just hasn't clicked.

What's the Diff... well, you know it's Friday

Seven changes.  Find them all or suffer the disappointment of... The Shadow!

What I'm reading now

I've heard so much about the John Sunlight stories that I figured they must be the pinnacle of Doc Savage tales.  Halfway through this one and I have to say that I am very disappointed.  The writing, as I've stated before, is not my cup of tea.  This one is in an even odder style than the other two I read.  I'll finish this and Devil Ghengis but I'm not holding my breath.  I just can't figure out what is so special about this series.  Love the concept, just not the execution. 
I don't mean to demean anyone who loves these stories, it's just not clicking with me.  Besides, I still have a mountain of The Shadow stories to get through and that does click with me.

Charg, Monster

I finished this over the weekend and am ashamed to say that I did not remember this from when I read it the first time.  Granted it was over 40 years ago but I usually can pull up some aspects of the story.  Neither here nor there.  Read this one.  Not only does this sport a super classic cover, the story is top notch.  I normally don't like The Shadow to deal with sci-fi concepts (and I am a big sci fi nerd) but this one was so well written and a great read that I didn't mind.  And I was led down the red herring path by WBG and had the wrong character pegged as the villain.  Made it even better.  Check this out, The Shadow commands it!

This is the version I read all those years ago.

Marder Mursh.... REVEALED!

"Agent J reports: mardur mursh, cat tail on left, blade of grass on right (below NRA symbol), missing fingertip - that's all I can find!"

Well, four out of six ain't bad.  The NRA symbol has the legs switched and there is an extra water drop.  Sneaky, ain't I.

It's Friday and time for another...

"What's the Difference" puzzle.  The 72nd edition features Murder Marsh, one of those "hands" covers that I love so much.  This one has six (6) changes to it.  Find them all and feel good about yourself.

Okay, I did that

Alright, I've read the first two books.  I gave "The Man of Bronze" a pass since it was so reminiscent of the film and I felt like I had been through all of it before.  I then read the backstory regarding the creation of the series.  Lester Dent (aka Kenneth Robeson) was given free reign to write the story as he saw fit so I thought I'd give that one a try.  The Land of Terror was pure pulp in the 12 year old boy sense.  Still not digging Dent's writing and I think the story was bloated to fill a page count but I was intrigued by his obvious research into dinosaurs.  However, being a fan of The Shadow, I couldn't believe that he didn't realize who he had in his midst.  Dragging that out for the entire story really made it drag on too long.
I plan on reading the John Sunlight saga (The Fortress of Solitude & The Devil Genghis) when I get back from a couple of Gibson's tales, starting with Charg, Monster!  I will wrap up my tour of the adventures of Clark Savage, Jr. with The Red Spider.  I hope they get better. 

Zemba revealed

"Agent J reports: Top of Eiffel Tower, Memba, cigarette, I don't know the name for it but the red thing on the right side of the window, that's all I can find."

  Well, close but... hey, we all know the rest.  The year has been changed (kinda sneaky since the source image isn't that great) and the window grille has been extended.

  I really love this cover and look forward to rereading this tale when it comes up in my queue.  We'll try again with another cover soon.

August's first "What's The Difference?" puzzle

Welcome to August in Paris.  Six (6) changes to this unique cover.  And if you haven't read this one I'd highly recommend it.  Have fun with this and have a great weekend.

August's calendar

Ahhh, the ultimate classic cover.  It may be the hottest month of the year but The Shadow sure looks cool.