The Curse of Skeleton Munroe

Category: Batman

  • NOTES: AUGUST 2022

    Names: (Batman Comics 008, 1941) It was on brand for the Joker to use the aliases “A. Rekoj” and “I. Rekoj” in the last year but I am pretty upset that Batman just used “I. Namtab” and that the Joker fell for it.

    (Blue Beetle Comics 008, 1941) In the Dynamo story he goes up against a guy who calls himself the Crime Dealer, a good name for a bland guy.

    Riddles: (Batman Comics 007, 1941) “When is a Duke not a Duke?” Answer: the Joker is impersonating a Duke.

    One of the more brutal on-panel deaths I have seen:

    (Blue Beetle v1 006, 1941)

    Two gun-wielding boys I encountered in a short period of time:

    (Action Comics v1 033, 1941)

    (Bulletman 002, 1941)

  • NOTES: AUGUST 2022

    Names: (Batman Comics 008, 1941) It was on brand for the Joker to use the aliases “A. Rekoj” and “I. Rekoj” in the last year but I am pretty upset that Batman just used “I. Namtab” and that the Joker fell for it.

    (Blue Beetle Comics 008, 1941) In the Dynamo story he goes up against a guy who calls himself the Crime Dealer, a good name for a bland guy.

    Riddles: (Batman Comics 007, 1941) “When is a Duke not a Duke?” Answer: the Joker is impersonating a Duke.

    One of the more brutal on-panel deaths I have seen:

    (Blue Beetle v1 006, 1941)

    Two gun-wielding boys I encountered in a short period of time:

    (Action Comics v1 033, 1941)

    (Bulletman 002, 1941)

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 092: THE PAINTER OF DEATH

    MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 092: THE PAINTER OF DEATH

    (Detective Comics 042, 1940)

    The Painter of Death (never actually called that in-comic, sadly) engaged in a campaign against the subjects of paintings by up-and-coming portraitist Antal. He first attacked the painting of the person and then killed them in the same manner: via dart, arrow, gunshot etc. Eventually, Bruce “Batman” Wayne commissioned a painting from Antal and used it to set a trap which netted Wylie, an art collector who had invested heavily in Antal’s work and saw the murders as a way to raise the value of his investment via morbid publicity.

    Though Wylie bumped himself off at the end of the adventure, the bullet-riddled Antal portrait of Bruce Wayne sticks around to become one of the minor stock trophies in the Batcave. The Painter of Death or Prophetic Portraits Case is also mentioned a couple of times as Batman and Robin’s “first big case” and the reason for their fame. Does this reflect some attitude of the creators about the story itself or is it just a plot contrivance? I have no idea!

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 092: THE PAINTER OF DEATH

    (Detective Comics 042, 1940)

    The Painter of Death (never actually called that in-comic, sadly) engaged in a campaign against the subjects of paintings by up-and-coming portraitist Antal. He first attacked the painting of the person and then killed them in the same manner: via dart, arrow, gunshot etc. Eventually, Bruce “Batman” Wayne commissioned a painting from Antal and used it to set a trap which netted Wylie, an art collector who had invested heavily in Antal’s work and saw the murders as a way to raise the value of his investment via morbid publicity.

    Though Wylie bumped himself off at the end of the adventure, the bullet-riddled Antal portrait of Bruce Wayne sticks around to become one of the minor stock trophies in the Batcave. The Painter of Death or Prophetic Portraits Case is also mentioned a couple of times as Batman and Robin’s “first big case” and the reason for their fame. Does this reflect some attitude of the creators about the story itself or is it just a plot contrivance? I have no idea!

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 091: THE MASKED MAN

    (Detective Comics 041, 1940)

    A common or garden-variety masked counterfeiter, the Masked Man operated out of an all-boys’ school, leading to him being the first solo foe of an undercover Dick “Robin” Grayson. Mostly. Batman shows up at the end for a punch or two.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 084: BLACKBEARD

    (Batman Comics 004, 1940)

    What makes them a super-villain? I’ve already stated multiple times that pirates get a free pass. Old-timey cosplay pirates get double marks.

    What is interesting about them? Blackbeard is actually a frustrated former actor turned gang boss, and if you don’t think that I don’t want more of that in comics you don’t know me very well. Bring back Blackbeard and make him a method actor.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 083: THE UGLIEST MAN IN THE WORLD

    (Batman Comics 003, 1940) 

    The Ugliest Man in the World, AKA Larry Larrimore, was originally Carlson, a college student who was accidentally injected with a weird fluid during a frat hazing gone wrong. His face mutated and deformed, he lost his friends, fiancé and frat and vowed revenge. Years later, having developed a version of the uglification drug which also rendered its victims’ minds pliant he embarked on a campaign of revenge against both those who had deformed and rejected him and society itself, using his Ugly Mob to destroy beautiful people and works of art alike before being stopped by Batman and gunned down by the cops.

    Neadless to say I think this dude should be brought back. Rejected outsider is great villain fodder and as much as I love this guy smashing Greek marbles at the head of his Ugly Mob a more nuanced take on the relative value of attractive and unattractive people in our society would be aces too.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 083: THE UGLIEST MAN IN THE WORLD

    (Batman Comics 003, 1940) 

    The Ugliest Man in the World, AKA Larry Larrimore, was originally Carlson, a college student who was accidentally injected with a weird fluid during a frat hazing gone wrong. His face mutated and deformed, he lost his friends, fiancé and frat and vowed revenge. Years later, having developed a version of the uglification drug which also rendered its victims’ minds pliant he embarked on a campaign of revenge against both those who had deformed and rejected him and society itself, using his Ugly Mob to destroy beautiful people and works of art alike before being stopped by Batman and gunned down by the cops.

    Neadless to say I think this dude should be brought back. Rejected outsider is great villain fodder and as much as I love this guy smashing Greek marbles at the head of his Ugly Mob a more nuanced take on the relative value of attractive and unattractive people in our society would be aces too.

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 082: THE PUPPET MASTER

    (Batman Comics 003, 1940)

    What makes them a super-villain? The Puppet Master controls the minds of men via drug-assisted mental compulsion. He even mind-grabs Batman for a while – surely a villainous feat.

    What makes them interesting? Aside from the brief end-run on Batman’s mind, the most interesting thing about this guy is I think he’s supposed to be a Cossack? His goons are certainly Cossacks. Have we lost a whole set of cultural signifiers about Cossacks or is this like the day in high school I went to a dentist appointment and missed learning how to cross-multiply and you all know this stuff?

  • MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 081: THE WOLF

    (Batman Comics 002, 1940)

    Batman’s first Jekyll/ Hyde style villain is Adam Lamb, a meek museum curator who gets bonked on the head while reading a murder mystery and thereafter heads out at night to cause mayhem as crimelord the Wolf. Batman eventually figures out that his crimes are following the sequence of those in the book and the Wolf’s career ends with a second, fatal head bonking.