The Curse of Skeleton Munroe

Category: minor super-villain

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 125: THE GORILLA MAN

    (Slam-Bang Comics 005, 1940) 

    A jewel thief who dresses up in a gorilla costume to commit crimes, what really stands out about the Gorilla Man is that he does so for no real reason? He just likes it?


    Hell, if anything it makes him more likely to get caught since he has pulled this sort of job before and the gorilla costume is a bit of an attention getter. Is it reasonable to call this fictional character from more than 80 years ago a furry? Perhaps not, but I shall leave the question open to debate.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 124: MARIA, QUEEN OF THE VAMPIRES

    (Slam-Bang Comics 005, 1940) 

    I quite like Maria. Firstly, she is a vampire with bat wings, which is a feature that hardly ever shows up any more. Also she sleeps in a coffin filled with the bones of her victims, which is not a bit of vampire lore that I am familiar with but which does rule. She hangs out in a castle somewhere in the US and vampirizes random motorists in anticipation of the day that she has enough minions to take over the world. She even manages to turn Diamond Jack briefly but he manages to resist the full transformation due to being good and pure.

    She has these weird minions that may or may not be another kind of vampire? They kind of look like bipedal panthers with bat wings. I love them.

    Like I said she manages to vamp Diamond Jack, which she achieves by pretending defeat, offering to kiss his ring and then biting out the magic diamond. A clever move, but ultimately undone when the gem refuses to act against Jack and returns to his ring.

    Ultimately, Maria ends up turned into a skeleton and her cool looking castle is transformed into a cemetery for the other vampires, who I guess were less redeemable than Diamond Jack.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 124: MARIA, QUEEN OF THE VAMPIRES

    (Slam-Bang Comics 005, 1940) 

    I quite like Maria. Firstly, she is a vampire with bat wings, which is a feature that hardly ever shows up any more. Also she sleeps in a coffin filled with the bones of her victims, which is not a bit of vampire lore that I am familiar with but which does rule. She hangs out in a castle somewhere in the US and vampirizes random motorists in anticipation of the day that she has enough minions to take over the world. She even manages to turn Diamond Jack briefly but he manages to resist the full transformation due to being good and pure.

    She has these weird minions that may or may not be another kind of vampire? They kind of look like bipedal panthers with bat wings. I love them.

    Like I said she manages to vamp Diamond Jack, which she achieves by pretending defeat, offering to kiss his ring and then biting out the magic diamond. A clever move, but ultimately undone when the gem refuses to act against Jack and returns to his ring.

    Ultimately, Maria ends up turned into a skeleton and her cool looking castle is transformed into a cemetery for the other vampires, who I guess were less redeemable than Diamond Jack.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 123: THE DRAGON

    (Slam-Bang Comics 004, 1940)

    What makes them a super-villain? Why, that snazzy outfit! Comics are full of people who run opium smuggling rings but very few look as good while doing it.

    What makes them interesting? It depends on your definition of interesting, but this is the first costumed criminal on our list whose disguise includes pretending to be another race – specifically, the Dragon is a white hardware store owner named Jones who passes himself off as a Chinese master criminal until Jim Dolan, heroic magazine editor gets involved.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 123: THE DRAGON

    (Slam-Bang Comics 004, 1940)

    What makes them a super-villain? Why, that snazzy outfit! Comics are full of people who run opium smuggling rings but very few look as good while doing it.

    What makes them interesting? It depends on your definition of interesting, but this is the first costumed criminal on our list whose disguise includes pretending to be another race – specifically, the Dragon is a white hardware store owner named Jones who passes himself off as a Chinese master criminal until Jim Dolan, heroic magazine editor gets involved.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 122: THE GREEN DEVIL

    (Slam-Bang Comics 003, 1940)

    I really like the Green Devil. He has a lot going on! He has an army of the living dead, an island base, and a hurricane generator. He’s conservatively 10 ft tall and looks like the Devil (with green skin, natch)

    His main scheme is to disrupt the laws of magic, which not only weakens his enemy Diamond Jack’s magic ring but also for some reason causes regular stage magic and stuff like snake charming and sword swallowing to turn deadly in some of the more low-key gruesome panels I’ve read recently.

    Finally, in classic magic villain style he meets a pretty ignoble end as he is transformed into a book and then blown up along with his HQ and zombies. A solid showing! I’d love to see the Green Devil BRUNG BACK to vex magic folk again.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 122: THE GREEN DEVIL

    (Slam-Bang Comics 003, 1940)

    I really like the Green Devil. He has a lot going on! He has an army of the living dead, an island base, and a hurricane generator. He’s conservatively 10 ft tall and looks like the Devil (with green skin, natch)

    His main scheme is to disrupt the laws of magic, which not only weakens his enemy Diamond Jack’s magic ring but also for some reason causes regular stage magic and stuff like snake charming and sword swallowing to turn deadly in some of the more low-key gruesome panels I’ve read recently.

    Finally, in classic magic villain style he meets a pretty ignoble end as he is transformed into a book and then blown up along with his HQ and zombies. A solid showing! I’d love to see the Green Devil BRUNG BACK to vex magic folk again.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 121: THE WITCH

    (Slam-Bang Comics 001, 1940)

    On the one hand the Witch uses smoke-dragon magic in an attempt to kill Diamond Jack for some thugs. On the other, she’s an old woman who Diamond Jack strips of her power and leaves weeping in her slum hovel. Still… technically a villain?

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 121: THE WITCH

    (Slam-Bang Comics 001, 1940)

    On the one hand the Witch uses smoke-dragon magic in an attempt to kill Diamond Jack for some thugs. On the other, she’s an old woman who Diamond Jack strips of her power and leaves weeping in her slum hovel. Still… technically a villain?

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 120: THE BLUE DEVILS

    (Nickel Comics 006, 1940)

    A costumed gang that managed to take over a small town under the direction of head devil Lucifer. Not the most distinguished costumed gang ever but you gotta give them credit for trying. And not only do they have devil horns on their hood but there’s a skull-and-crossbones on both the hood and the chest! Sartorially speaking, they’re years ahead!

    Anyway, most of them get drowned by Bulletman.