Is it live, or is it Memorex?

I may have bought this less on the name-brand strength of the story, than somebody on Twitter saluted the funny little alien monster in the corner box for this series. Still, it's a good one, if not what you think! From 1973, Worlds Unknown #3, "Farewell to the Master!" Adapted and edited by Roy Thomas, pencils by Ross Andru, inks by Wayne Howard, based on the story by Harry Bates. Cover by Rich Buckler, with John Romita alterations.

In Jeopardy format, category "Classic Sci-Fi Movies," "'Farewell to the Master' has been adapted in 1951 and 2008, but not under that title." I didn't know either, but you might after this: the Day the Earth Stood Still! I've probably seen the '51 version a dozen times...and seen bits of the '08 about the same even if I can't recall ever watching it at once. But, this version is more closely based on the original story by Harry Bates, as Roy Thomas explains in an editorial that really should'a come at the end of the story! For one thing, instead of "Gort," the robot's name is Gnut. Also, the humanoid visitor, Klaatu, is shot dead by a crazed lone gunman (cue conspiracy theories!) about five seconds after first showing his face.

Klaatu had seemed cool, and even the most warlike hawks would have to admit that kinda thing could make earth look pretty bad. He is buried nearby, by which I mean his body is put in a crystal coffin, which could be seen as just displaying it like a trophy and not an act of contrition; while the immobile Gnut and their ship has a museum built around it. But Gnut may not be as immobile as he seems, and that's the least of his secrets. Two reporters notice the robot may be moving very slowly, then encounter a sparrow, a gorilla, and two copies of the newsman that first broke the aliens-landing story: all of which lurch out of the spaceship, and die in short order. The robot is encased in solid "glasstek," which--surprise! Does nothing. Gnut visits Klaatu's coffin, but instead of recovering the body, only takes tapes of his landing declaration: "I am Klaatu...and this is Gnut."

Gnut's unbelievable technology--unbelievable in the sense that it might as well be shouting abracadaver and sacrificing a goat--is able to reconstitute a living creature from an audio recording. But, due to imperfections in the tapes, his test animals and Klaatu were all short-lived. The reporters promise to get the best possible version, the originals, to Gnut; and upon doing so say they hope the robot will tell its master how sorry they were about, y'know, the murder and all. Cue twist ending, which I won't spoil, but as Thomas mentions, is vastly different than the "misbegotten message" of the '51 movie; as well as a bit ominous. (Thomas also uses "misbegotten message" to describe the ending of 1957's the Incredible Shrinking Man; which surprised me a bit. The original story may have ended on a more secular note, though.) Anyway, in honor of the '51 movie, we were going to wrap up with some theremin music that reminds me of it: the classic "Humming" from Portishead...which doesn't actually feature 'thereman' but instead uses a monophonic synth. Well, still a great, great song; and maybe you've learned two things today!