The Curse of Skeleton Munroe

Category: bandit

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 968: THE BLACK RIDER

    (Fantastic Comics 018, 1941)

    The Black Rider is a ruthless bandit chief who has not only terrorized the countryside but has had the audacity to kidnap Bill Carrol, Captain Kidd’s best friend, an unforgivable sin.

    While the Black Rider & Co. might look like they are straight out of a comic set in the American West, Captain Kidd’s 1941 adventures have taken place exclusively in Africa, and given the mention of a city called Tanga above, I think that we can pretty confidently place this comic somewhere in present-day Tanzania, in the part that was then Tanganyika (yes, okay, there’s also a couple of Tangas in Burkina Faso. I just don’t think that they’re the right ones, okay?).

    Though the Black Rider manages to overpower Captain Kidd and stick him in a booby-trapped airplane during their first encounter this is absolutely not enough to dissuade even novice two-fisted adventurer, let alone a grizzled veteran like Kidd. Kidd’s return gambit is to storm the Black Rider’s HQ and machine gun the entire gang.

    The entire gang bar the Black Rider, that is, because it’s time for the dramatic revelation that the Black Rider is… A LADY???!!! Specifically, she is the daughter of the original Black Rider, out for revenge since he was killed by vigilantes but now on her way to a British colonial jail and/or execution. Please note that the Black Rider pulls the old “roughly the same size as an adventure hero until unmasked” trick, going from a burly six foot to a slender 5’6″ in about one panel.

    Categorized in: Colours (Black), Generica (Riders), Origin (Cross-Dressing Characters, Legacy Characters)

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 968: THE BLACK RIDER

    (Fantastic Comics 018, 1941)

    The Black Rider is a ruthless bandit chief who has not only terrorized the countryside but has had the audacity to kidnap Bill Carrol, Captain Kidd’s best friend, an unforgivable sin.

    While the Black Rider & Co. might look like they are straight out of a comic set in the American West, Captain Kidd’s 1941 adventures have taken place exclusively in Africa, and given the mention of a city called Tanga above, I think that we can pretty confidently place this comic somewhere in present-day Tanzania, in the part that was then Tanganyika (yes, okay, there’s also a couple of Tangas in Burkina Faso. I just don’t think that they’re the right ones, okay?).

    Though the Black Rider manages to overpower Captain Kidd and stick him in a booby-trapped airplane during their first encounter this is absolutely not enough to dissuade even novice two-fisted adventurer, let alone a grizzled veteran like Kidd. Kidd’s return gambit is to storm the Black Rider’s HQ and machine gun the entire gang.

    The entire gang bar the Black Rider, that is, because it’s time for the dramatic revelation that the Black Rider is… A LADY???!!! Specifically, she is the daughter of the original Black Rider, out for revenge since he was killed by vigilantes but now on her way to a British colonial jail and/or execution. Please note that the Black Rider pulls the old “roughly the same size as an adventure hero until unmasked” trick, going from a burly six foot to a slender 5’6″ in about one panel.

    Categorized in: Colours (Black), Generica (Riders), Origin (Cross-Dressing Characters, Legacy Characters)

  • GENERIC COSTUMED VILLAIN ROUND-UP 025

    Buncha rude crude dudes for ya. 

    The Rio Kid is after another gang of masked bandits, and this time they’re in league with a crooked sheriff and led by a corrupt political boss aptly named the Boss. Nothing really remarkable here but I do dig the Boss’ hat. (Thrilling Comics 010, 1940)

    Jose Gonzales, star football player for Sornora University of Mexico, is visiting Carson University with two aims in mind: hit the ol’ gridiron and slap on a mask and steal a newly developed super-explosive for his father, a fascist politician back home. Star Carson U quarterback Dan Duffy foils his hopes on both counts. (Thrilling Comics 011, 1940)

    Sneaky, a “notorious” gangster with poor dentition, is featured in the teaser panel at the end of the Firefly story in Top-Notch Comics 009, with the implication that he is going to be a real thorn in the Firefly’s side in issue 010. How disappointing, then, to find that he is a mere flunky working for the murderous scientist Henry Falcon. (Top-Notch Comics 010, 1940)

    Though the “Danny Dash” feature only lasted two issues, it’s pretty clear that creator Erwin L Hess had a lot of medium-to-long-range plans for the story. In the first instalment, Danny and his pal Shamrock “Mac” McGlynn (!!) have a run-in with the the Grey Hordes from the Center of the Earth who have been bombing London for unclear reasons, while the second sets up Charon, an escaped handsome madman who has been roaming Paris murdering people in the belief that he is actually the ferryman of the Styx, ushering souls into the afterlife.

    Charon’s latest victim is the future brother-in-law of Dash’s friend Georges Barnett, and the never-seen third Danny Dash adventure would have involved them searching for Charon and, if I’m any judge of Golden Age plots, finding a connection between him and the Grey Horde. Alas, it’s just another thing we will likely never know. (War Comics 002, 1940)

  • GENERIC COSTUMED VILLAIN ROUND-UP 025

    Buncha rude crude dudes for ya. 

    The Rio Kid is after another gang of masked bandits, and this time they’re in league with a crooked sheriff and led by a corrupt political boss aptly named the Boss. Nothing really remarkable here but I do dig the Boss’ hat. (Thrilling Comics 010, 1940)

    Jose Gonzales, star football player for Sornora University of Mexico, is visiting Carson University with two aims in mind: hit the ol’ gridiron and slap on a mask and steal a newly developed super-explosive for his father, a fascist politician back home. Star Carson U quarterback Dan Duffy foils his hopes on both counts. (Thrilling Comics 011, 1940)

    Sneaky, a “notorious” gangster with poor dentition, is featured in the teaser panel at the end of the Firefly story in Top-Notch Comics 009, with the implication that he is going to be a real thorn in the Firefly’s side in issue 010. How disappointing, then, to find that he is a mere flunky working for the murderous scientist Henry Falcon. (Top-Notch Comics 010, 1940)

    Though the “Danny Dash” feature only lasted two issues, it’s pretty clear that creator Erwin L Hess had a lot of medium-to-long-range plans for the story. In the first instalment, Danny and his pal Shamrock “Mac” McGlynn (!!) have a run-in with the the Grey Hordes from the Center of the Earth who have been bombing London for unclear reasons, while the second sets up Charon, an escaped handsome madman who has been roaming Paris murdering people in the belief that he is actually the ferryman of the Styx, ushering souls into the afterlife.

    Charon’s latest victim is the future brother-in-law of Dash’s friend Georges Barnett, and the never-seen third Danny Dash adventure would have involved them searching for Charon and, if I’m any judge of Golden Age plots, finding a connection between him and the Grey Horde. Alas, it’s just another thing we will likely never know. (War Comics 002, 1940)

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 832: SIR GILBERT, THE SUN KNIGHT

    MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 832: SIR GILBERT, THE SUN KNIGHT

    (Top-Notch Comics 005, 1940)

    Sir Gilbert is the evil knight who Galahad sets out to vanquish on his first official Knights of the Round Table mission. He’s got all the requisite qualities of an evil Arthurian knight: a cool name, a rakish attitude toward kidnapping and menacing women, and designs on the lands near his castle. And like most if not all non-Mordred evil knights in comic book Arthuriana, he’s a completely original character, which is always a bit confusing because there are ever so many villains and scumbags to choose from in the source material.

    Canonicity aside, Sir Gilbert is a good first foe for any character. He’s got a good name and a bit if a reputation, and he provides just enough challenge to be a credible threat before being defeated so thoroughly that he can be repurposed into an improvised missile.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 811: QUEEN RANA

    MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 811: QUEEN RANA

    (The Spirit Section, 14 July, 1940)

    Queen Rana is the bearer of the Amulet of Ra, a mystic artifact that grants immortality and invulnerability to the one who wears it. Rana’s one ambition in her immortal life is to have a “huge rock of gold” and to that end she has established herself as the ruler of a jungle tribe and turned them to banditry. Is this a good use of eternal life? No it is not. Is it likely to result in her getting a huge rock of gold? Almost certainly not. Is this the sort of ambition that, when achieved, is going to leave her feeling kind of hollow inside? Absolutely.

    Mr Mystic, at the behest of the council of Lamas who empowered him, sets off into the jungle to put a stop to Queen Rana and to destroy the Amulet of Ra, and here is where I personally developed a deep affection for Rana as a villain, because she approaches being immortal, invulnerable and, it turns out, immune to Mr Mystic’s magic as license to be just a complete roughneck brawler. She tackles Mystic and nearly cuts him in two while your typical comic book immortal would still be delivering their opening monologue about how lonely they get. It’s frankly the sort of behaviour we should see more in the immortal community.

    Unfortunately for me and my love of fun characters, the fact that Rana viewed immortality merely as an increased chance to get ahold of that big gold she coveted so much really did point to her being a dummy. Mr Mystic has basically no trouble at all in getting her to trade the Amulet of Ra for a big pile of gold that he, a man who she has seen create illusions mere minutes before has created out of thin air, and after that it’s all over, as Queen Rana’s two centuries of unaging catch up to her all at once. A sad end to a real scrapper of a character.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 811: QUEEN RANA

    MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 811: QUEEN RANA

    (The Spirit Section, 14 July, 1940)

    Queen Rana is the bearer of the Amulet of Ra, a mystic artifact that grants immortality and invulnerability to the one who wears it. Rana’s one ambition in her immortal life is to have a “huge rock of gold” and to that end she has established herself as the ruler of a jungle tribe and turned them to banditry. Is this a good use of eternal life? No it is not. Is it likely to result in her getting a huge rock of gold? Almost certainly not. Is this the sort of ambition that, when achieved, is going to leave her feeling kind of hollow inside? Absolutely.

    Mr Mystic, at the behest of the council of Lamas who empowered him, sets off into the jungle to put a stop to Queen Rana and to destroy the Amulet of Ra, and here is where I personally developed a deep affection for Rana as a villain, because she approaches being immortal, invulnerable and, it turns out, immune to Mr Mystic’s magic as license to be just a complete roughneck brawler. She tackles Mystic and nearly cuts him in two while your typical comic book immortal would still be delivering their opening monologue about how lonely they get. It’s frankly the sort of behaviour we should see more in the immortal community.

    Unfortunately for me and my love of fun characters, the fact that Rana viewed immortality merely as an increased chance to get ahold of that big gold she coveted so much really did point to her being a dummy. Mr Mystic has basically no trouble at all in getting her to trade the Amulet of Ra for a big pile of gold that he, a man who she has seen create illusions mere minutes before has created out of thin air, and after that it’s all over, as Queen Rana’s two centuries of unaging catch up to her all at once. A sad end to a real scrapper of a character.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 806: THE SCOURGE

    (The Funnies 050, 1940)

    The Scourge is a bandit chief operating in the nonspecific Medieval-pastiche England of the Black Knight, and let me tell you, he is a terrific villain. His amazing look is one thing – just how many Golden Age villains have the confidence to use eye makeup to accentuate their air of menace? – but on top of that I have seldom seen a villain so eager and joyful to torture a peasant woman. Just an amazingly hateable guy, with a really top-notch crew of evil oafs to boot.

    Though the poor woman’s husband and sons set out to avenge her, they prove no match for the Scourge and his band of ruffians, and it falls to the Black Knight and a local hunk to get the job done. 

    It does of course turn out that a good look and a bad attitude will only take you so far, particularly when your follow-up to a a successful heist is to get drunk in the woods for a week straight. The Black Knight and his unnamed and shirtless assistant make quick work of the lot of them once they are able to approach them on equal footing, and the Scourge meets his end by the Black Knight’s Blade.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 659: THE MASKED ARROWS

    (Jungle Comics 005, 1940)

    As far as being minor super-villains goes, the Masked Arrows are all right: a group of cloaked bandits who manage to run circles around the local forces of law until they push their luck too far and are wiped out.

    The far more interesting thing about the Masked Arrows is the fact that they appear in a story that highlights just how literal the title Jungle Comics is, that virtually all of the stories that appear within take place in an undifferentiated jungle setting that is probably meant to be in Africa but which freely incorporates elements from Southeast Asia such as tigers and Indian-style palaces. 

    The Masked Arrows’ foe is Captain Terry Thunder of the Congo Lancers, a unit of a French Foreign Legion style outfit that I wasted a fair amount of time trying to parse before I realized that “Congo” in this instance was nothing so crass as a geographic indicator but simply meant “jungle” again. To this end, though Fort Death, Thunder’s command, is located in a Foreign Legion desert setting it is never more than a days ride from the deepest jungle (and indeed is sometimes in the deepest jungle) and is just as likely to be attacked by South American tribes as desert nomads. Similarly, the Masked Arrows are simultaneously desert and jungle bandits.Wild stuff.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 658: THE ANT WOMAN

    (Jungle Comics 005, 1940) 

    Conceptually, I love the Ant Woman, a ruthless bandit who lives in a giant anthill and sends swarms of venomous ants out to kill and loot for her. I particularly love her little ant tiara – is it the source of her preternatural ability to control the beasts? I cannot say for they did not go into that. 

    (these pics are a bit more racist than I usually go for but they really front loaded it on this one. Just one of the reasons that jungle comics are inferior to other comic genres)

    The Ant Woman makes a solid go of trying to dispose of the Red Panther but he ultimately gets the upper hand by the simple method of setting her anthills on fire and once again the old saying is proven true: you live by the swarm of venomous ants; you die by the swarm of venomous ants.