This is an in-universe article with out-of-universe material.
Tales of the Unexpected #73 is an issue of the series Tales of the Unexpected (Volume 1) with a cover date of October, 1962.
Synopsis for "The Convict Defenders of Space"
The scene begins at the Space Patrol Center as three figures are on trial. Ron Graham, Dula Murkol and Njamo Kees stand convicted of conspiring with criminal elements. They are sentenced to five years prison on planetoid 9 and they are further dishonorably discharged from the Space Patrol. They are led to a space transport where one of the prisoners notices that they are traveling with a deadly creature known as a Saturnian Gol. As the three figures travel through space on their way to prison, they are attacked by a pirate ship. Their vehicle is hit and crash lands on an inhabited asteroid. The three prisoners survive but so does the creature known as the Gol. The three fight off the creature as it commences to attack them. Two of the prisoners decide to help their captors and protect them from the Gol but the prisoner Njamo seems reluctant and feels that they should just run off leaving their captors to fend for themselves. Dula and Ron then find that Njamo has fled with a control box that gives him the ability to give commands to the Gol. He uses the box to get the Gol to smash through a bank. Njamo then steals the cash and runs off. Ron and Dula try to convince Njamo to turn himself in and stand trial. As they speak, a space raider lands. The former patrol members then get the idea of having Njamo turn the Gol on the Pirates to capture them but they find out that Njamo has been part of their gang all along. The evidence that convicted the three of them had belonged to him. Ron and Dula then fight to get their hands on the control box to use the Gol and turn it on the pirates. The Pirates see that they cannot fight the Gol and surrender. Ron and Dula are then able to prove that the marked money that was in their lockers actually belonged to Njamo and they are reinstated back in the Space Patrol
Appearing in "The Convict Defenders of Space"
- Appearances not yet listed
Synopsis for "Aliens For Hire"
Peters Interplanetary Employment Agency is famous for hiring aliens that fit the need of particular companies. One particular alien is anxious to get hired. His name is Shloob from the panet Jorxia. He has the ability to melt and flood an area very quickly. Unfortunately his skills do not seem to be in demand unlike Balloon man who has the ability to rescue a spacecrew by floating an entire ship in an emergency. Plastic men are also in demand for places such as the Plutonian City Project. The agency also dispatches Metal Men who use their special abilities to mine diamonds. Peters then transports a group of Metal Men into a spaceship to deliver them to their jobsite. Unbeknownst to him Shloob stows away on the ship as well. The metal men commence to drill. As the metal men set forth on their work, they are attacked by a ship of bandits. The criminals use a giant magnet to immobilize the metal men and render them useless. At this point, Shloob reveals himself and uses his special skills to flood out the invading aliens who seem helpless against all the water. They immediately surrender and Shloob gets hired by Peters as his personal assistant.
Appearing in "Aliens For Hire"
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Synopsis for "The Demon Sorcerer of Saturn"
Space Ranger and his friends pay a visit to Prince Lyoto who in the midst of rebuilding his planet but he is having difficulty with Kjorsta the Sorcerer. Kjorsta foretells coming disasters and tells the people that the Princes machines have angered the gods. As they speak, they are bombarded by flaming spheres that seem unstoppable. Space Ranger attempts to blast the spheres with his disintegrator ray but is unsuccessful. Kjorsta then appears and announces that only he can dispatch the flaming spheres. He utters an incantation and the spheres retreat back into the sky. Space Ranger suspects that Kjorstas magic is fake. Kjorsta overhears the Rangers suspicions and challenges him to a duel the next day in Gylobor Canyon. Space Ranger then uses the planets library to research all the information he can on Kjorsta. Space Ranger concludes that Kjorstas magic is a combination of chemistry and mass hypnosis. He arrives at the Canyon the next day for the duel and he is immediately besieged by flying projectiles that explode. Space ranger is able to hold off the bombardment with his invisible force field but he is eventually caught in a rockslide and supposedly perishes. Space Rangers two friend Myra and Cryll mourn the passing. Cryll announces that they have to make it look like Space ranger is still alive in order to defeat Kjorsta. They construct a Space Ranger robot that has the ability to face Kjorsta and his magic. The robot holds his own against Kjorsta until its circuits are shorted out by liquid metal from his spear. Cryll then uses his powers to transform himself into a Mercurian firebird but he is shot in the wing by a frigi beam from Kjorsta. The villain then uses a disintegrator ray to finish off Cryll but he inadvertently releases the real Space Ranger from the rubble of the rock collapse. Space Ranger subdues Kjorsta and gets him to confess that he has no magical powers.
Appearing in "The Demon Sorcerer of Saturn"
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