Giant Ants in the Comics

Giant ants in the Comics are a given. The gigantic monsters appeared in the Pulps, so they have to be in the comic books as well. All the usual suspects of course, DC, Marvel, horror comics and Science Fiction and superheroes. The Formic race presents a terrible danger not only because they are giant but because they are organized. Since many of these are SF stories, sometimes the ants aren’t giant, the humans are shrunk small (also a classic Pulps scenario.)

Golden Age

In the Golden Age, the Pulps were the inspiration. Several of the later writers got their start in the old SF magazines like Edmond Hamilton and Gardner F. Fox. Most of the authors are unknown.

“Giant Ants of the Moon” (Speed Comics #44, January-February 1947) features a giant ant on another celestial body.

“Mickey and Pluto Battle the Giant Ants” (Four Color Comics #279, June 1950) has Mickey, Pluto and Goofy shrunk down.

“The World of the Giant Ants” (Strange Adventures #7, April 1951) was written by Gardner F. Fox, the first of three ant comics to appear in Strange Adventures. This comic is a monster film before 1950s B&W drive-in craze.

“The Giant Ants” (Airboy #93, November 1951)

“Giant Ants” (Plastic Man #37, September 1952)

“Meet your Masters — the Ants” (Strange Adventures #23, August 1952) was written by Mann Rubin

“The Great Ant Circus” (Strange Adventures #30, March 1953) was written by Gardner F. Fox

“The Hungry Jaws” (Uncanny Tales #11, August 1953) is a little different. The ants aren’t giant but check out that last frame. It reminds me of “The Zanti Misfits” from The Outer Limits.

“Black Death” (Fantastic Fears #4, November 1953) mixes a little “Leiningen Versus the Ants” with H. G. Wells.

Most of these Golden Age comics are available at DCM.

Silver Age

One influence that can’t be denied after 1954 (unlike with the Pulp magazines that preceded it) is the movie, Them! (1954). All those old Amazing Stories and Astounding covers had come to life in glorious black & white.

“Grottu, King of the Insects” (Strange Tales #73, February 1960) was written by Stan Lee and Larry Lieber

“I Created Krang!” (Tales to Astonish #14, December 1960) was written by Stan lee and Larry Lieber.

“We Fought the Giant Ants” (The Greatest Adventure #55, May 1961)

“King of the Giant Ants” (Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen #54, July 1961) was written by Robert Bernstein

“The Man in the Ant Hill” (Tales to Astonish # 27, January 1962) was written by Stan Lee and Larry Lieber. Despite that horror cover, this is the first adventure of Ant-Man, not Scott Lang but Henry Pym.

“Invasion of the Super Ants” (Action Comics #296, January 1963) was written by Edmond Hamilton, Pulp superstar. He wrote many invasion stories with spider and beetle-like aliens but not giant ants. His story “Pigmy Island” (Weird Tales, August 1930) has a giant rat.

“The Giant Ants” (Kona, Monarch of Monster Island #7, July-September 1963) was written by Don Segall.

Bronze Age

By the 1970s the giant ant thing had been around for at least seventy years. This didn’t stop creative writers from finding a way…

“Captives of the Ant Kingdom” (The Unexpected #158, July-August 1974) was written by Dave Wood.

“Kingdom of the Ants” (Devil Dinosaur #5, August 1978) was written by Jack Kirby.

“Ant Wars” (2000 A. D. #71-84 , July1-September 30, 1978) was written by Gerry Finley-Day. This series was collected in its own volume.

“The Amazing Ant-Man” (2000 A. D. #640, August 19, 1989) was written by Alan Grant. I know it’s a little long-in-the-tooth to be called a Bronze Age comic but what the hell, it’s Judge Dredd!

Others

Conclusion

These are not all the ant comics ever, of course. I have drawn the line in the 1970s. The 1980s had its own Ant thing going on. The coming of Ant-Man to movie screens was a big deal for Marvel fans. I think that will dominate ant comics now in the 21st Century.