TROPHY ROOM – CAPTAIN MARVEL
(Captain Marvel Adventures 001, 1941) Captain Marvel has a whole-ass spaceship that he took off a guy (though it does get blown up this ish).
MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 139: IVAN BORLOFF
(Adventure 061, 1941) Ivan Borloff is a strange combination of things: a scientist with a super airship (the Cylindecraft) and a metal-destroying ray, he rains destruction down on New York City in pursuit of his goal of conquering the US (and by implication, the world), but also, it’s implied that he is affiliated with *foreign powers*, ie, fascists – possibly ones who didn’t quite know what they were getting into. His name ringing more Russian might mean that he is…
MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 138: DR DOOG
(Adventure 061, 1941) Starman’s first foe is also his first super-foe: the diabolical Dr Doog. Doog (and nothing is ever made of his name being Good, backward) has stolen a device called to Ultra-Dynamo from Professor Davis (above right) and is using it to disrupt electrical power across North America in service to his dreams of world domination. Doog brings in deathtraps, a hollowed-out mountain base and perhaps most importantly, a group of henchmen with the excellent name the Secret…
MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 137: THE SHADE
(Action v1 043, 1941) Vigilante’s first super-foe has the misfortune to share his name with a certain Flash villain beloved of James Robinson, so it’s just as well that he’s nothing more than a gang boss who uses stage illusions to conceal his real identity because he is never seeing the light of day again. He did manage to make a second appearance in the Golden Age, so at least there’s that.
MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 136: THE LEGION OF THE MASKED
(Adventure Comics 058, 1941) The Barry O’Neill serial in Adventure Comics had basically been about Barry battling the dastardly villain Fang Gow (Minor Super-Villain 001) from its inception in 1935 to his death by sea mine six years later and evidently someone thought that it could continue as more of a free form adventure strip despite losing that structure (as well as its setting, having started as a comic set in Paris that had quietly moved to London about the time…
MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 135: THE PURPLE
(Action Comics v1 040, 1941) Yet another foreign agent looking to weaken America, the Purple does so by forming what is supposedly a patriotic society but in reality is a collection of fervent dupes that can be aimed at whatever target he wishes. Mr America steps in and lays out the truth for the Purple Gang but I fear for the future of a community filled with that many dim bulbs. As always, massive appreciation for a villain who dresses…
MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 134: THE GHOST
(Action Comics v1 039, 1941) The Ghost is one of Superman’s earliest superpowered foes, being Brett Bryson, a chemist who was accidentally irradiated while conducting an experiment and, having found himself with both a burning radium touch and a short time left to live, set out to steal enough in the time he had left to provide for his family once he was finally gone. But there is a twist to the Ghost’s story! The lab accident? Planned by Bryson’s…
MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 133: THE BIG BOSS
(Action Comics v1 037) Just a society playboy who puts on a mask to run his crooked casino empire. He might just be my new example of the bare minimum that I need to consider someone a super-villain – nobody is even surprised when his identity is revealed, but he has the barest film of anonymity along with a secret boat dock and a moderately cool name. Also he gets hit by a boat.
MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 132: THE REED
(Action Comics v1 036, 1941) Another day, another spy from no specific nation striking at the US military for uncertain reasons. This one is even less successful than usual, as he almost blows up an Army convoy and almost blows up an artillery range. But what can I do: I’m a sucker for a monocle, a guy who throws poisoned darts and a neato name.
MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 131: THE ADDER
(Action Comics v1 035, 1941) Yet another spy encountered by Clip Carson, the Adder was interested in blowing up the Panama Canal for unclear reasons. Much more interestingly, he took his name from a snake-shaped ring which both fatally poisoned those he punched with it and left a cool snake mark on the spot he hit, and evidently he used it enough that his men spoke of him in hushed terms as “the Child of Death,” which is an amazing…