Creepy Worlds #161

Bart Lanning, a brilliant scientist, becomes obsessed with proving that mirages are not optical illusions but temporary breaches in time caused by intense human emotion. After witnessing a haunting vision tied to a convicted man’s final moments, he travels the world documenting strange phenomena, convinced they’re echoes of past tragedies. As his theories grow more daring, he watches helplessly from the sidelines while his best friend Jim and his longtime love Nell grow closer—until a new, inexplicable mirage over the ocean forces him to confront a mystery far beyond his calculations.

In "The Invisible Men!" from Creepy Worlds #161 (1976), Harry Miles—once a man given five years to live after a Korean War explosion—finds unexpected fame as a mystery writer, only to discover his fictional creations are stepping out of the pages and into his world.

In "The Reformers," a group of interplanetary agents sent to corrupt alien societies by blaming their ills on comic books, alcohol, and fashion are stunned when they arrive on a world where such indulgences coexist with peace and virtue. Despite their mission to sow discord, they find a civilization that embraces pleasure without falling into moral decay—until their leader, Satan, reveals the truth: this world is not just different, it’s Heaven.

Herb Thomas investigates the mysterious decline of Jonesville, uncovering the tragic history of the Prairie Belle, a locomotive whose ill-fated journey to Harper City ended in disaster. As he pieces together the tale of Ephraim Flint’s dream, Ed Gormley’s sabotage, and the fate of Selena Flint, he becomes drawn into the town’s haunting legacy—especially after encountering a photograph that feels strangely alive.