Weird Fantasy #22

In "The Silent Towns," Captain Kaye and his crew stumble upon the derelict Y-75, a long-abandoned rocket drifting through space for over two decades. Inside, they find the skeletal remains of countless passengers and uncover a chilling log revealing the ship’s dark past: a desperate attempt to return exiled prisoners to Earth, met with a captain’s grim refusal. Written by Bill Gaines and Al Feldstein and illustrated with haunting precision by Bernie Krigstein, this story from EC’s Weird Fantasy #22 (1953) blends cold space dread with moral weight, its stark visuals enhanced by Marie Severin’s colors and Jim Wroten’s tight lettering. The cover, by Joe Orlando, captures the eerie stillness of the silent ship.