Though the big development for the Human Torch in 1941 is of course the fact that he gets a sidekick in the person of Toro, there are one or two other things worth noting about that year in his history: In Marvel Mystery Comics v1 016, the very non-La Guardia Mayor of NYC forms a new, anti-fifth column law enforcement department, calls it the Suicide Squad, and places the Human Torch in charge of it. The Suicide Squad does not…
Every planet has some aliens on it. That’s the rule. Seal People: These ancient enemies* of the Atlanteans become the allies of the evil Daka after he usurps the throne of Atlantis. Sadly they do not figure into modern day Marvel Comics continuity, as there being an intelligent species native to Antarctica would really shake up the ol’ geopolitical arena. (Marvel Mystery Comics v1 024, 1941) *For “ancient enemies,” the Seal People do seem to be suspiciously nice and helpful…
(Human Torch v1 002, 1940) Toro is of course the sidekick to the Human Torch, and is also known as the Flame Kid, the Flaming Kid and the Flaming Torch Kid. Also the Flamingo Kid but only to me specifically thanks to a typo in Jeff Rovin’s Encyclopedia of Super-Heroes, though I never could figure out why he might be called that. Perhaps, I reasoned in my youthful confusion, he wears a pink uniform under the flame. One recurring theme on…
*smacks hood of post* You’ll never believe how many monsters, critters, creatures – and more! – we can get into one of these things! the German Invasion Wall: Are ludicrous war machines like this technically creatures? No, but I like them and they are close enough to giant robots that I will shelve them here rather than make up a whole other kind of post to put them in. The German Invasion Wall is just what it sounds like: an…
Following the inconclusive finale of the great Sub-Mariner vs Human Torch battle, Namor is shamed by his people for failing to complete his sworn goal of destroying NYC, and while this might seem to be a bit harsh, we must remember that this was an entirely self-directed international incident. Namor was convinced that he could take on the entire United States population and he failed, and perhaps a little time for self reflection is the thing he needs at this…
We all love aliens here. And so forth. Antons: The Antons are the inhabitants of the wandering planet Torsa, which spins out of space one day and takes up an orbit around the Earth. Soon the Antons are raining down on our planet in a full-fledged invasion, though it is never made clear if this has all been a series of cosmic coincidences leading to these two inhabited spheres being in such close proximity or if the Antons have employed…
Presented for your delectation: some very minor super-heroes. Mantor the Magician: Mantor the Magician is a magic-using hero in the classic mold. He has a single Golden Age appearance in which he helps a damsel in distress, gets knocked out once and foils a plot by some fake ghosts. Years later (about two years ago as I write this) he is brought back and killed off as an easy way to raise the stakes on a super-threat. It’s all so…
(Marvel Mystery Comics v1 014, 1940) We open on our poor Werewolf as he approaches the great occultist (but apparent werewolf-skeptic) Dr Martin Keller in search of a potential cure for his affliction. This is the werewolf-as-victim, as someone just as much at the mercy of his bestial alter ego as those he kills. Should I even place him in the category of super-villain? The answer, I think, is yes, if only because anyone so careless as to come into…
(Marvel Mystery Comics v1 013, 1940) The Vision! Solid second-tier Golden Age Marvel Comics super-hero who must forever languish in obscurity thanks to his much more well-known namesake! According to the story I just read and have no reason to doubt, Roy Thomas wanted to bring him back for the Avengers and was told no, and that’s why we have the very similar-looking android we all know and love who looks quite a bit like the extradimensional smoke man who…
Have you seen any of these aliens (and so forth)? Onees: The Onees are a light-sensitive underground-dwelling race that, this being the Marvel Universe, have probably been retroactively declared some type of Deviant subspecies. Whatever they are, they have a plan: to pull all the iron on the surface of the Earth underground with their suction-ray and use it to throw the planet into an orbit further from the sun, thus allowing them to conquer the newly-dim planet. Their unnamed…