"ELECTRANS"
Classification: Extradimensional extraterrestrials
Location/Base of Operations: The planet Electra, somewhere in Dimension X (see comments)
Known Members: Koaa; about 16 others (none named)
Affiliations: None
Enemies: "Benton" Lynwood; giants from Mount Rushmore
First Appearance: Strange Tales I#80/3 (January, 1961)
Powers/Abilities: The beings from Electra could fire force rays from their hands which could levitate people and objects.
Traits: Vaguely humanoid with scaly green skin, and standing about 6 feet tall, the "Electrans" were four-armed bipeds with horned heads and large mouths that went completely through their bodies. They exhibited warlike and expansionist tendencies.
History:
(Strange Tales I#80/3 (fb) - BTS) - The past of the "Electrans" is unknown. Although they knew of Earth, and desired to invade and conquer the Earth dimension for ages, they had no means to penetrate the dimensional barrier.
(Strange Tales I#80/3) - "Benton" Lynwood was employed by Paragon Laboratories when he was caught (for the fourth time) working on an unauthorized project: his Dimension Connector; his supervisor was quite irate over Lynwood wasting company time on such foolishness, so he fired him. Lynwood took a drastic step and moved to where he could work by himself, without ridicule or scorn from others. He rented a small cabin in the mountains of South Dakota (near Mount Rushmore) and set up his lab.
After several weeks, Lynwood completed his Dimension Connector, yet still the machine did not seem operational. He checked and rechecked it, but could not find a solution; because of his weariness and the lateness of the hour, he decided to leave it until morning and went to bed. As Lynwood slumbered, the first of the "Electrans" emerged through the Dimension Connector, followed by several of its fellows. Lynwood awoke with a start and saw the group of invaders surrounding his bed. One "Electran"--Koaa--pointed an arm at Lynwood and unleashed rays that hit the man with the force of a pile-driver. As they levitated him toward the ceiling, the "Electrans" told Lynwood that he was responsible for dooming his race, as thousands of "Electran" warriors were preparing to invade Earth. The aliens released Lynwood--they were confident he could not stop them--and more and more of them emerged through the Dimension Connector. Then the aliens left the cabin and went out into the night, but before they got 20 yards, they cried out in terror, for they saw gigantic forms coming toward them. They fired their rays at the huge figures, to no avail--the giants were too monstrous, too powerful. Fearing that they'd be crushed, the horde of "Electran" invaders rushed back into the cabin in blind panic and went back through the gateway created by Lynwood's machine. They realized it was foolish to think they could conquer Earth because they never dreamt such monsters existed, and vowed never to go outside their dimension again. Not knowing what frightened the creatures, Lynwood just watched thankfully as they all fled through his machine, then he grabbed an ax and destroyed the Dimension Connector to ensure that another invasion never happened again. When he finished, Lynwood raced outside; he looked around and caught sight of enormous footprints which led to nearby Mount Rushmore. As he stared up at the four faces of the national monument, Lynwood briefly considered the impossible--but the former presidents couldn't have come to life to protect the nation...or could they?
Comments: Created by an uncredited writer and Don Heck (art).
The "Electrans" were never named as such in the story itself, but they did say their homeworld was Electra in another dimension; they never specified which dimension they came from, but the title of the story was "The Things From Dimension X!". (It may simply be that "X stands for unknown".---Grendel Prime)
In regards to Lynwood: I'm assuming his last name was Lynwood because that's how his irate boss addressed him (Take it from me, kids--when the boss gets mad at you, he always uses your last name!), and his first name wasn't revealed, so I took the liberty of giving him one: "Benton" (He kinda reminds me of Dr. Benton Quest, the father of Jonny Quest).
It was never specified what Lynwood's field of expertise was. After he was fired from Paragon Laboratories, he mentioned that it was the sixth job he'd lost in a year. He didn't seem to be concerned about finding employment while he took time off to work on his Dimension Connector, so maybe he was independently wealthy (perhaps from sales of patents from previous inventions?).
In regards to those giants from Mount Rushmore: My guess is that Dr. Stephen Strange (who was shown to be active prior to the modern heroic age (@ Marvel: The Lost Generation #s 8 and 12)) was somehow involved. He probably sensed the invasion from another dimension and--inspired by the national monument near the area the invaders were attacking--he cast a spell to magically create the giants.
For more information on the real Mount Rushmore, see HERE.
For a similar story--wherein invaders were driven off by another animated national monument--see the profile on the Undersea Giants.
And a BIG Thank You to James Sharpe for the scans of this story!
Profile by John Kaminski.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Electrans have no known connections to:
Lynwood was fired from several jobs because of his unauthorized work on his Dimension Connector. He decided to move to a secluded cabin in South Dakota to work on his machine. The Dimension Connector created a portal to another dimension and gave the "Electrans" access to Earth. Lynwood was helpless to stop the invaders, but the "Electrans" were frightened away by something outside and returned to the Dimension Connector to go back to their home dimension. Afterward, Lynwood grabbed an ax and destroyed his machine, then went outside and saw giant footprints leading to Mount Rushmore; as he looked up at the four stone faces, he could only wonder...
The Dimension Connector apparently used electromagnetic energy to create a gateway from Earth to other dimensions.
--Strange Tales I#80/3
.
Apparently the national monument somehow brought to life, the giants frightened the invading "Electrans" away from Earth.
--Strange Tales I#80/3
images:
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Strange Tales I#80/3, p1, pan1(3 "Electrans" levitating Lynwood
Other Appearances: None
Last updated: 04/27/10
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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