Mystery in Space #103
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeMystery in Space #103 (November 1965) occupies a pivotal hinge point in DC's Silver Age science-fiction publishing: it simultaneously closes the book on Space Ranger — the 22nd-century gadget-hero who had anchored the title since issue #92 — and opens a new chapter with the first appearance and origin of Ultra the Multi-Alien, one of the most visually audacious concepts the era produced. The double-duty made it the last issue to carry the familiar anthology structure that editor Julius Schwartz had built through the Adam Strange years, a structure that successor editor Jack Schiff had struggled to sustain after taking over in mid-1964. Although Ultra's run lasted only until cancellation with #110 in 1966, the character's composite-body premise was distinctive enough that Grant Morrison later rehabilitated him in Animal Man #25 and writers periodically revive him to this day, making #103 the origin point collectors and DC historians return to when tracing that thread.
In "The Billion-Dollar Time-Capsule," Captain Ace Arn finds himself caught in a bizarre cosmic anomaly when four aliens simultaneously strike him with a mysterious ray—splitting him into four distinct alien forms, each wielding a unique power through a separate limb. Written by Dave Wood and illustrated with dynamic flair by Lee Elias (who also handled the cover pencils and inks), this 1965 issue delivers a surreal sci-fi twist that’s as puzzling as it is thrilling.
In "Ultra the Multi-Alien," Captain Ace Arn is struck by a simultaneous ray from four alien invaders, fusing his body into a single form with four distinct alien limbs—each granting a unique, unpredictable power. The story follows his desperate struggle to master this chaotic transformation while facing an enemy that’s already proven it can rewrite reality with a single blast.
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After Julius Schwartz departed Mystery in Space with issue #91 (May 1964), Jack Schiff assumed editorial control and restructured the book around Space Ranger, a character he had originally co-developed — with writers Edmond Hamilton and Gardner Fox and artist Bob Brown — following a 1957 directive from DC editorial director Irwin Donenfeld to each create a new science-fiction hero. Schiff brought in writer Dave Wood and artist Lee Elias to handle the title's stories; Elias, best known for his Harvey Comics work on Black Cat, provided energetic alien designs throughout the run. By the time #103 went to press (on-sale date: September 9, 1965, per the Grand Comics Database copyright registration), Adam Strange had been phased out entirely after #102, and Wood and Elias were tasked with debuting the replacement feature — Ultra the Multi-Alien — within the same issue that gave Space Ranger his valedictory story.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Cover date: November 1965; on-sale date: September 9, 1965. Published by National Periodical Publications (DC Comics). Cover price: 12 cents. Editor: Jack Schiff.
- Contains three stories: 'The Billion-Dollar Time Capsule' (Space Ranger, written by Dave Wood, art by Howard Purcell); 'The Telepathic War' (art by Carmine Infantino); and 'The Origin of Ultra, the Multi-Alien' (written by Dave Wood, art by Lee Elias). Letterer: Henry Boltinoff.
- FINAL Space Ranger story: 'The Billion-Dollar Time Capsule' is the character's last solo outing, ending a run that stretched from Tales of the Unexpected #40 (1959) through Mystery in Space #92–103 (1964–65). Supporting cast members Cryll and Myra Mason appear in this story.
- FIRST APPEARANCE AND ORIGIN of Ultra the Multi-Alien (Ace Arn): human astronaut Ace Arn is struck simultaneously by transformation rays from four aliens — from the worlds of Ulla, Laroo, Trago, and Raagan — and is fused into a composite being with super-strength, magnetic powers, flight, and energy abilities. He derives his name 'ULTRA' from the initial letters of those four worlds plus his own name.
- Space Ranger (Rick Starr) was created by writers Edmond Hamilton and Gardner Fox and artist Bob Brown, debuting in Showcase #15 (July–August 1958). The character's secret was known only to shape-shifting alien sidekick Cryll and secretary/girlfriend Myra Mason.
- Ultra the Multi-Alien was later featured in Grant Morrison's Animal Man #25 (among pre-Crisis characters in comic-book limbo) and appeared alongside Space Ranger in James Robinson's Starman #55 (July 1999).
- The Space Ranger story from this issue was reprinted in Superman Presents Wonder Comic Monthly (K.G. Murray, Australian publisher), circa 1965–1967. The full issue is also reprinted in DC's Pulp Fiction Library: Mystery in Space (September 1999).
- Ultra the Multi-Alien was singled out by Wizard Magazine as a 'Mort of the Month' — a backhanded distinction that nonetheless kept the character in the conversation — and was later assessed in American Comic Book Chronicles: 1965–1969 by John Wells and Keith Dallas.
Cast · 3 characters
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Reprints
Reprinted in Superman Presents Wonder Comic Monthly #11 (1966), All Star Adventure Comic #38 (1966), Eclipso #2 (1968), Pulp Fiction Library: Mystery in Space #[nn] (1999)
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