Those who also ran, we salute you. Karl the Hermit: Karl, as his name implies, is a mean ol’ hermit who lives atop a mountain. He has has got himself a critter called the Thing that Walks Like a Man that he uses to act out his misanthropic impulses, such as when he sends it to kill his cousin Rushman. What is his motivation for doing all this? Don’t worry about it – he’s a crazy old hermit! Karl’s actions…
(Dynamic Comics 001, 1941) Lucky Coyne, private detective and man with the most complicated publishing history in comics* is hired by heiress Helen Jordan to solve a ghost problem in the mansion she has just inherited. The ghost in question, called the Evil Eye, obligingly makes an appearance just as she mentions him, with his signature “Weeeee… ha ha ha!” laugh. *Lucky Coyne appeared in comics by half a dozen publishers over the years, and operated as a police sergeant,…
(Dynamic Comics 001, 1941) Scientists across the US are going missing, kidnapped by the magical madman known as the Yellow Spot! This brain-draining crime spree inspires the magical scholar Professor Moore to create the super-hero Dynamic Man, which in turn inspires the Yellow Spot to murder Professor Moore. He is just a wee bit too late, however, and instead of preventing the creation of Dynamic Man he merely provides him with a bit of extra motivation in the form of…
Just when you think that there couldn’t be any more super-heroes, another batch appears. Major Victory: After an unnamed soldier stationed at US Army Camp Courage dies in an attempt to prevent the camp’s arsenal from being bombed, his body is hauled away by angelic figures and ushered into the presence of a star-spangled old man. This, it turns out, is Father Patriot, a new and legally distinct anthropomorphic personification of the spirit of the United States. Were the folks…
Where are we going to put all of these aliens? Undergrounders: I want to call these guys mole men who invade the surface world in the year 3050 CE, but looking at the battle scene and the remainder of this adventure I reckon that Abovegrounders of that particular future also look all bald and gangly. It’s a whole world of mole men! Science adventurer Captain Daring kills the Undergrounders’ underground Fuehrer and installs his own ladyfriend as the new Queen…
(Daring Mystery Comics 008, 1942) The Groom is but a simple gang boss who dresses up in a bridegroom’s outfit complete with top hat while doing crimes. While he absolutely gets his ass handed to him by comedy characters Rudy the Robot and his creator the Li’l Professor I simply must hand it to a crook with such commitment to a theme. Categorized in: Accessories (Minions – Gangsters), Family (Grooms), Locations (New York)
To continue my recent trend, 3/4 of these characters are very unlikely to appear in a modern Marvel comic and the fourth is decently likely to. Mr Million: Mr Million is kind of what everyone yaps about wanting Bruce Wayne to be: a rich guy who uses his money to help people instead of beating people up, and while that might be better for society in this completely fictional version of New York City it’s pretty boring to read about….
Every once in a while I hit a particularly dense seam of aliens and so forth and this week is one of those times. Neptunii: The Neptunii (and that name is a guess based on the fact that one guy uses “Neptunus” as a singular version of the noun) live in Neptunia, an underground kingdom that could be described as “a big cave” at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. There, they seem to just kind of fly around shouting,…
If the last group of minor Marvel super-heroes had a tiny chance of appearing in a modern comic book I would say that this group’s chances are tiny-plus. Like a further 5% chance. Except for Dynaman. Dynaman: Dynaman, aka Lagaro, which means “Dynaman”, was born in the ancient super-advanced Kingdom of Korug, located somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean. Endowed with super strength, a photographic memory and enhanced intelligence, the ability to fly and a general superiority to even his peers in the…
Once again we bring you some aliens. the Tribe of Gurban: The Tribe of Gurban come down out of “the upper valley of the Nile” and clash with the ancient superhuman Dynaman in his one Golden Age adventure, and there’s a part of me questions whether it’s even worth noting groups like this who are just humans but bigger (about eight to ten feet tall if I’m any judge). But no: giants in caveman singlets who attempt to conquer Egypt…