Time for some good old-fashioned aliens.

Space Men:

These aliens, clad in the classic comic book green/purple colour scheme, come to Earth after just wandering around the universe for an unspecified amount of time – the implication being that they are some sort of space explorers. Though the fact that they mention being outside of their galaxy of origin means little given the state of astronomical knowledge among 1940s comic book writers, I am going to count them as our first extragalactic species in the absence of any conflicting information.

The true spirit of scientific inquiry exists in these Space Men, inspiring them to grab a passing ocean liner for study, then start blasting people with lightning globes when they object to this maltreatment (worry not for the cruise-goers, however, for despite the text box’s declaration that the globes “kill instantly” they are all later shown to have survived).

It is at about this point that Doctor Fate catches wind of what’s going on and shows up, Inza Cramer in tow, to show these aliens that Earth is a planet that believes in disproportionate response, as he wastes little time in blowing up their spacecraft and leaving them to perish in our atmosphere. Any time you read a comic set on Earth Two remember: there is a pile of alien skeletons (or possibly exoskeletons) bleaching on a beach somewhere in Oceania. (More Fun Comics 059, 1940)

Octopus Men:

Like so many scientific milestones in comics, the launching of Professor Sterling’s space rocket is marred by an attempt by international spies to steal his creation. Thanks to the heroic intervention of pilot Rocket Riley and the Professor’s daughter Griselda, spy von Stengle and his henchman are staved off and the rocket is landed on a large asteroid rather than dashed to flinders on its surface.

Just when things start to calm down, the rocket passengers learn that the asteroid is home to a seemingly-endless horde of Octopus Men who mean them harm. I really appreciate the weird baby heads that these guys have as they are very evocative of an octopus’ mantle and also because of the two little siphon/ears they have on top. It’s a very cute detail on an otherwise thuggish face. Also, as with so many of these seemingly mindlessly-hostile alien species one is left wondering: just where do they get their little briefs?

The rocket manages to escape but not without some effort, and Rocket Riley ends up having to drag one of the Octopus Men into the ship with him. There is some talk of bringing him back to Earth for study but unfortunately the series ends before we are able to see how this plays out. Poor imprisoned Octopus Man. (Rocket Comics 001, 1940)

People of the Moon:

“Kingdom of the Moon” is a very strange story about the royal family of the European kingdom of Verdina choosing to flee their country in an experimental spacecraft rather than be captured when their country is invaded by an Axis analog. Making their way to the Moon, they discover that the Divine Right of Kings does not just apply to Earth and they end up in charge there as well despite the fact that the scientist Nerim is in fact responsible for any actual success King Vito and his family have had.

The People of the Moon come in two distinct flavours: firstly this very humanoid, big-eared, pin-headed form as represented by the erstwhile Ruler of the Moon.

Secondly we have these fellows, who resemble nothing so much as a rejected design for a third-wave He-Man figure, from when they introduced all those snake guys. The Ruler of the Moon says that Moon People are mostly dummies, but it is unclear whether he is just talking about his own style or including these guys as well, and sadly the “Kingdom of the Moon” installment from Cyclone Comics 004 that might give some more insight on that is currently lost media. (Cyclone Comics 003, 1940)

Plantaliens:

The Plantaliens act as secondary antagonists in the “Colossus 2640 AD” strip and sadly for us alienheads that means that facts about them are pretty thin on the ground. Here’s what we know about them: they come from somewhere outside of our solar system, the attacked Earth somewhere around 2580 CE, they are probably a plant-descended species given their name, and their fleet, though mighty, is not up to the task of defeating an enormous man. (Colossus Comics 001, 1940)