I’ve periodically looked at the model kits of the 1960s as part of my Silver Age reread. We have the classic horror models —
—the superheroes —
— and the cars.
The model-makers did their best to keep up with the trends, too.
I’ve never seen anything before like this ad from mid-1971.
It’s a much simpler set-up if no glue is needed (that may reflect the awareness sniffing model glue was an easy way to get high). It’s also much more improvisational — rather than a classic scene from a horror film or Batman tossing a batarang, it apparently gives you the flexibility to make your own story.
I’m guessing that the ordinary model kits were losing their luster so they were trying something new. While I never bought this one — I still wasn’t reading comics at the time (this is from an issue I picked up years later) — it’s certainly more interesting than most of the earlier offerings.
“Don’t worry, this is New York. No one will help her.” Yikes.
A standard image of big city life back then, cemented by Kitty Genovese being stabbed to death while her apartment building watched and did nothing. That wasn’t at all how it went down (some of them called the police, one of them came out and held Genovese while she was dying) but it cemented the “no one will help” perception for years.