Uncanny Tales #48
"Power Mad!" in Uncanny Tales #48 (1956) delivers a sharp, character-driven tale of ambition and illusion, as a chemist’s misguided belief in a mind-control compound leads him to seize power in a small town—only to learn that true influence isn’t found in formulas, but in trust. Written by Carl Wessler and illustrated with crisp detail by George Roussos, with coloring by Stan Goldberg, the story unfolds with a quiet, unsettling realism. The cover by Russ Heath captures the moment of hubris, perfectly framing the chemist’s fall from perceived control.
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A chemist thinks that he has invented a compound that makes people obey him because he gave some to a dog and the dog obeys him. He goes to a small town and convinces the people to drive out the mayor and install him. He abuses his people by hiking taxes to feather his own nest and the people send him packing. He is surprised that they did not obey him but then he realizes his compound doesn't work and the dog only obeyed him out of love and trust, the same way his influence worked at first until he abused it.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).