Weird Tales of the Future #2
In "The City of Primitive Man," a 1952 sci-fi tale from Weird Tales of the Future #2, a disillusioned scientist in the year 2552 attempts to reverse humanity’s physical decay by creating a serum that reverts people to a more muscular, primal state—only to unleash chaos when his assistant, Luga, transforms into a savage caveman and spreads the serum across the city. With Basil Wolverton’s wild, dynamic cover art capturing the story’s fevered energy, the issue explores the perilous edge between progress and regression, all written with a sharp, speculative eye.
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In the year 2552 a scientist is disgusted that due to advanced technology, humans have entropied bodies with no muscle since no one does anything remotely physical anymore. He creates a serum that will devolve humans to the point when they had muscles. His serum is too powerful though and his assistant Luga devolves into a savage caveman. Luga gives the serum to others and the savages take over the city. Ultimately the scientist is able to kill Luga, and assures the rest will return to normal. He then administers a weaker dose of the serum to the population to make them strong.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).