Unusual Tales #5

Charlton's anthology of "Extraordinary Stories Never Before Told" serves up a wonderfully absurd premise right on the cover of this 1956 issue: a anthropomorphic hound in a full police uniform — ticket book in paw, fist raised — pulls over a startled human motorist at a city intersection, demanding "Where do you think you're going… to a fire?" while the driver can only reply "Woof! Woof!" Cover pencils by Dick Giordano and inks by Vince Alascia give the scene a crisp, lively energy that makes the role reversal land with real comic charm. With Joe Gill writing and Tony Tallarico on interior art, Unusual Tales #5 is the kind of ten-cent delight that reminds you why Charlton's oddball anthologies had such a devoted readership.