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Month: August 2026

DIVINE ROUND-UP 034

DIVINE ROUND-UP 034

Here come some more gods and god-adjacent beings for you. the Golden Skull: While I must of course frown and shake my head at the concept of human sacrifice, you really have to hand it to the worshippers of the Golden Skull (who is, yes, very much not golden and also not especially skully), for giving their god a name that guarantees that a constant stream of American and European treasure hunters would arrive on their doorstep in search of…

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MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 997: THE ZOMBIE WITCH

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 997: THE ZOMBIE WITCH

(Jungle Comics 024, 1941) The Zombie Witch (aka the Queen of the Zombies, aka Celie) is, as the name suggests, a witch with a penchant for raising the dead – often while they are still actively being mourned. She demonstrates a few other magic powers (e.g., scrying in a bowl of water, crocodile charming) but the zombie thing is her bread and butter. So what, specifically, does she want a bunch of reanimated corpses for? Well! I won’t say that…

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MONSTER, CRITTER AND CREATURE ROUND-UP 001

MONSTER, CRITTER AND CREATURE ROUND-UP 001

I’ve threatened to do it for long enough, it’s time for the creatures to have their day. Alligator Men: Our very first creatures are also our first tough call. Steel Sterling fights these Alligator Men in Brazonia, South America while on the trail of Dr Yar (aka the Black Knight), and with any group of intelligent humanoids there is the question: did our villain make them using the power of mad science, or did he find them in the jungle…

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MINOR SUPER-HERO ROUND-UP 102

MINOR SUPER-HERO ROUND-UP 102

You won’t believe what I just found: more super-heroes! the Liberty Scouts: When fascist forces armed with high-tech weaponry begin attacking targets calculated to cripple US war capacity, they are repeatedly driven away by a trio of anonymous heroes who leave behind Liberty Bell calling cards. Both the fascists and US officials are eager to learn just who these so-called Liberty Patriots are, but President Roosevelt is the one who actually gets to find out, thanks to his association with…

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MINOR SUPER-HERO ROUND-UP 102

MINOR SUPER-HERO ROUND-UP 102

You won’t believe what I just found: more super-heroes! the Liberty Scouts: When fascist forces armed with high-tech weaponry begin attacking targets calculated to cripple US war capacity, they are repeatedly driven away by a trio of anonymous heroes who leave behind Liberty Bell calling cards. Both the fascists and US officials are eager to learn just who these so-called Liberty Patriots are, but President Roosevelt is the one who actually gets to find out, thanks to his association with…

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MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 996: THE BIRD KING

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 996: THE BIRD KING

(Jungle Comics 022, 1941) Zuko, aka the Bird King, is in a lot of ways a very classic minor super-villain. He has an obsession with birds and has both a flock of trained vultures and a set of working bird wings for personal flight that he uses in the pursuit of crime. He also has an obsession with diamonds that makes him jealously guard the ones that he has collected, and stop at nothing, including kidnapping and murder, to acquire more. The…

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MEDIA IN COMICS 012

MEDIA IN COMICS 012

It’s a very literary day here in Media in Comics Land. Books: There are many potential reasons to get into super-science and super-crime, but “reading a get-rich-quick scheme in a book” is one of the better ones, as demonstrated by Wizard Wells foe Mota here and his copy of Cash in Chemistry. (Crack Comics 010, 1941)  Crime in the Afternoon (A J.J. van Snyde Detective Novel), enjoyed here by Nickolas, henchman to Black Condor foe the Sophisticated Lady. (Crack Comics 010, 1941)…

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MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 995: ORG

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 995: ORG

(Jungle Comics 015, 1941) Org is a fellow with a gift – the power to play the drums hypnotically – and also the knowledge of the location of a hidden valley full of giant spiders. He combines these two factors as a part of his scheme to conquer “all of Jungleland,” which probably means Africa and possibly means India but in my heart will always mean a humid pocket dimension summoned into being by Fletcher Hanks and his fellow Jungle writers’ lack…

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DIVINE ROUND-UP 033

DIVINE ROUND-UP 033

The theme today is animal gods. Joboloa the Elephant God: Joboloa the Elephant God is invoked by Fantomah to punish the evil M’Dibo by means of a horde of spectral pachyderms. Honestly he is an odd choice for the job, as while M’Dibo’s crimes involve elephant ivory it’s not so much that he’s killing elephants to get it as stealing it from other people. Is Joboloa cool with elephant hunting as long as a proper chain of possession is maintained?…

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MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 994: AKINA

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 994: AKINA

(Jungle Comics 015, 1941) Akina is the hereditary ruler of the African kingdom of Lomar, and as such she has just inherited the mystical Stone of Hanniban. As a newly invested magical being, she falls into the very common trap of deciding that she must be the very best and most powerful of all magic users right away, and immediately sets out to prove herself by challenging Tabu, Wizard of the Jungle to a death duel. This goes poorly. Tabu defeats the inexperienced Akina…

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