Dick Briefer 1946
FRANKENSTEIN Vol. 2, No. 14 & 15
Published by Prize Publications, Crestwood Pub., 1946

Briefer's loose and smooth ink and brush skills carry off the basic "story" of the cover by showing all the elements: a saboteur, already subdued with a convenient note to let the viewer know what is happening; Frankenstein (something of an erstwhile superhero versus the later Briefer incarnation of 1951 which was a bit more true to a gruesome Mary Shelley version); and the train on the verge of disaster being saved. The bright yellow beam of the train engine is a striking yellow triangle highlighting the sweeping logo.

Like the cover shown here (below), the interior stories straddle some amorphous line between pure children's humor and adventure and an adult sensibility about the world. The interior pages below show off Briefer's story-telling and his light-hearted approach to the material. An effortless looking brush stroke is Briefer's distinguishing feature, also an ability to cram in the abundant text. The page design is minimal, with individual panels showing the progression of the tale. Middle-ground figures repeat from panel to panel which makes for an overall "sameness" to the page. However, everything is well-drawn and animated by the very strong Dick Briefer brush work.

An excellent page on Dick Briefer with more than a dozen large page images at American Comic Archive here.

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Click either page to view 800 pixel-wide enlargements.