MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 964: THE SHARK

(The Face 001, 1941)

"Sparky Watts" was a long-running comic feature in Big Shot Comics and other Columbia publications about the eponymous Sparky Watts, a down-on-his-luck young man whose life turns around when scientist Doc Static gives him super powers using his cosmic ray machine. Having started out as a comic strip, Watts' adventures tend to hew closer to the comic adventurous rather than the super-heroic. Still, every once in a while he encounters a minor super-villain such as the Shark.

The Shark is a crypto-fascist in the truest sense: he clearly started out as a Nazi and his men bear some of the visual tropes of Nazi spies, but between the bizarre formality of his speech (which mimics the mock-Japanese speech patterns of 1940s comics while also being distinct from them) and the names of his underlings (Flitoog, Saber, Egnog, Kabitz) which approach mock-German without really getting there, it all ends up being the mere suggestion of a smear of an Axis pastiche.

The really important thing about the Shark is that he's a shark weirdo. He looks like a shark, he loves sharks, he has shark-themed decor and he bites people's throats out with his "shark-like teeth" or at least threatens to. It's always a joy to see a true oddball find his groove, even if it's as an evil fascist. But preferably not as an evil fascist.

The Shark and his men have heard of Sparky's remarkable strength and have set out to acquire it for themselves, and since Sparky isn't really in this issue (he's off playing baseball tow towns over) they don't have much trouble roughing up his friends to get what they want.

Doc Static, of course, neglects to tell them that absorbing an insufficient charge of cosmic rays means that the power is temporary, and that once the rays leave the human body it shrivels up and shrinks until it is smaller than a grain of sand. The fascists all turn on one another once they achieve any sort of power which occupies them until they shrivel, and then an over-zealous minion (who was not invited along to get super powers) seals the deal by crushing all of the "bugs." The world is safe!

MEDIA IN COMICS 003

We've hit a rich seam of comic book movies this time, by Jove.

Movies:

Eaglets of America is a film about flying cadets, filmed at the same field that aspiring pilot Lucky Byrd trains at. There is some unpleasantness with a lecherous leading man, alas, but it all gets sorted by the end. (Target Comics v1 002, 1940)

The 1933 film the Prizefighter and the Lady, starring boxer Max Baer opposite Myrna Loy, was a real touchstone back during the heyday of boxing comics. Given enough appearances, and boxer would end up in Hollywood in a sports romance with a variably terrible name. Hot Fists and Hot Lips, starring Kayo Ward, might just have the worst title of them all. (Pep Comics 008, 1940)

Much like all those times that two volcano movies or two asteroid movies come out in quick succession, Miracle Movies and Bee Pictures are each working on a "lion picture" at the same time, only while Leo, King of Beasts makes it to theatres o sink or swim on its own merit, Jungle King is never completed due to the fact that its producer resorts to murder to get his movie out first. (Fight Comics 007, 1940)

There's no romance plot (on-panel, at least), but Pardon My Glove starring Kayo Kirby is absolutely another riff on The Prizefighter and the Lady. (Fight Comics 004, 1940)

The Mad Martian may not get anything approaching a plot synopsis, but it has the distinction of being the inspiration for villain Red Dugan to commission the creation of a monstrous minion. (Blue Ribbon Comics 003, 1940)

Though it was announced as being the subject of the next instalment of actress Diana Deane's comic, War Nurse never actually appeared due to the strip being cancelled. A shame as I was really curious about the amount of dripping blood and what that might presage. (Funny Pages v1 004, 1940) 

Like long-running comic strip Minute Movies, the concept of 'Fantastic Feature Films' is that of a series of movies acted by a recurring stable of actors. It's a very fun idea that only lasts a double handful of issues, alas.

The plot of Dance of Death involves a plot to assassinate a Hitler analog using an exotic dancer's prop bubble that has been filled with gas. Interestingly, the plot is less concerned with making sure that the plot succeeds than it is with trying to foil it so that the dancer doesn't get into trouble. (Target Comics v1 003, 1940)

Devil's Dust concerns an outcast Frenchman whose harsh treatment has made him a misanthrope and who only turns his supply of metal-dissolving dust to the cause of world peace after a gregarious American calls him "pal." (Target Comics v1 002, 1940)

The Maskless Axeman is a very strange film about a tuxedo-clad executioner who works for a Hitler analog and who driven mad by a fake haunting in order to save the life of a dancer accused of spying. (Target Comics v1 001, 1940)

Radio:

I like a good DJ name, and I appreciate just how tired "Stay-Up Dan, the All-Night Music Man" looks. (The Face 001, 1941)

NOTES - MAY 2026

Panel Fun:

Don't know how I could've skipped this the first time I read through these comics, but here we are: Amazing-Man suplexing an angry bull. (Amazing-Man Comics 012, 1940)

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 497 UPDATE: RAMUN THE EVIL ONE

(The Face 001, 1941)

I can't say I'm surprised to see Ramun the Evil One again, given what I said about his supposed death in his last appearance. Ramun trails his old foe Marvelo (Monarch of Magicians, natch) into the desert and replaces his caravan's staff with he and his men in an effort to steal the treasure of Tut-Akum-Aut from them when and if they dig it up. And he does it! He has them at his mercy and the treasure in his sights, and he still manages to screw it up by gassing on about how he's going to use the treasure to make himself a new Pharaoh, which makes his henchmen angry enough to murder him for being too greedy to share with them.

While The Face 001 and Ramun's last appearance in Big Shot Comics 019 were both published in November 1941, this issue feels like the real final appearance for the character, since he is visibly shot to death rather than merely drowning out of sight. Farewell to thee, Ramun.

If I'm honest I was much more excited about the fact that Marvelo's partner in this venture is Professor Scorp, last seen being placed in psychiatric care after stealing the mummy of Tut-Akum-Aut and attempting to resurrect it to learn the location of his treasure. And now he's well enough to seek the treasure in a more conventional way! Perhaps this expedition is even part of his therapy! I'm just so chuffed to see a comic book madman get constructive help and rebuild their life without some narrative about how they can never be fully trusted! Don't get used to it!

DIVINE ROUND-UP 029

Comic book religion. Tricky stuff.

Hercules: 

The thing that really jumps out at you when you first encounter this version of Hercules is that he goes to Valhalla when he dies, which is weird. The second thing is that he is appearing in a Golden Age Marvel comic and so there might be fun storytelling ramifications considering the fact that Hercules is a moderately popular (and alive) Marvel Comics character with appearances from the mid-60s to today. Perhaps the fact that this is a pretty Roman mythology (aside from the Valhalla thing) and Hercules from  the Champions is from a Greek one can play into it.

The third thing that jumps out at you comes on maybe your third reading of the comic in question, when you pay a bit more attention to that first panel in which Hercules is dying and realize that he is not only meant to have survived until some time after the founding of the United States but that the heavy shadowing on the faces of the people in that panel kind of implies that he might have been one of the Founding Fathers? There just aren't enough clues in the art to tell for sure but I know Simon and Kirby's tricks and making George Washington Hercules is just their style.

After spending a while in Valhalla, Herc gets worried about the rise of fascism and decides to reincarnate as a mortal in order to be there to lend a hand when the US needs him (a real snub to his former fave of Rome) so he heads on back to be reborn as Marvel Boy. 

God Style: Real (Daring Mystery Comics 006, 1940)

Jupiter:

Like his son Hercules, this version of Jupiter is very concerned with personal freedom and the fate of the United States in particular. Or maybe he's just a good father who wants to support his son's little projects.

Whatever the reason, he shows up on his reincarnated son's fifteenth birthday to deliver a cool super-hero uniform before making a very cool exit via lightning storm. 

God Style: Real (Daring Mystery Comics 006, 1940)

Father Patriot:

Father Patriot is the brand-new anthropomorphic personification of the spirit of America created by an unknown comics scribe for the origin story of Major Victory. As I have already speculated behind that link, my only real guess as to why they might have done this is to avoid stepping on Quality Comics' toes by using Uncle Sam for the role. I was going to complain about them not replacing him with one the less-used personifications of America like Brother Jonathan or Columbia, but on reflection I can see why they might have wanted to go with an all-new character. If nothing else, this means that they had free reign to add as much patriotic nonsense to his design as they wanted to, like his retinue of patriotic angels or the fact that he can whale on the Liberty Bell to impart strength unto his champion. They also got to design a set of patriotic clothing for him, and while it doesn't quite match up to the classic Uncle Sam look I do appreciate his big gaudy belt buckle.

Speaking of those mysterious angelic servants: does this indicate that the glories of to American Heaven are not exclusive to the mythology of Captain Fearless?

God Style: Real (Anthropomorphic Personification) (Dynamic Comics 001, 1941)

Maloo:

No non-white and non-monotheistic group is immune to the threat of Golden Age comics just making up some random god that they supposedly worship, and the Aboriginal Australians are no exception. Maloo is a giant, vicious kangaroo who the Face is nearly sacrificed to but who ends up dead instead. Sorry, Maloo. Sorry, Aboriginal Australians.

God Style: Animist (The Face 001, 1941) 

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 963: THE GENTLEMAN

(Exciting Comics 015, 1941)

The Gentleman, "the most elusive jewel thief in the country," is after the fabulous Orloff Necklace, and District Attorney Tony Colby, aka the Mask, is on the case.

I initially had my money on the goateed gallery manager being the Gentleman in a classic double bluff, but once this comically-affronted old lady showed up it became clear that my instincts were wrong. The Gentleman's modus operandi turns out to involve a combination of disguise and smuggling gems out of places in his dog's hollow collar, a very specialized grift indeed, considering that you need a place that allows dogs and that also has small, high-value items to steal.

Is the masculine name/ feminine disguise an intentional attempt at misdirection or merely a coincidence? Sadly this is not addressed in the text and so we must take it as equally likely that the Gentleman dresses up in a variety of disguises as it is that he always cross-dresses.

Categorized in: Accessories (Dogs), Origin (Cross-Dressing Characters), Royalty (Gentlemen)

GENERIC COSTUMED VILLAIN ROUND-UP 041

Mamas lock up your radium, because the z-tier villains are back in town.

the Fuhrer of Brazil:

Larry North is a US Naval Reserve Lieutenant and airline pilot who turns hand to Nazi spy-hunting when he and his companion Betty Harmon are hijacked by fascists in Rio di Janiero. They spend their first few adventures dismantling a scheme to conquer Brazil, and when in the course of this the traitorous and toothbrush-mustached Doctor Sanchez mentions a figure called the Fuhrer of Brazil, I naturally figured that he would be the final boss of the saga. No dice, it turns out, as he never personally appears and  probably dies when the Brazilians bomb all of the Nazi bases using North's intel. (Exciting Comics 012, 1941)

Billings:

Billings, along with four other men (Hawkins, Griffith, Stanton and Carton) own the zoo of the as-yet-unnamed city that the Black Terror calls home, I think? They own a zoo, at any rate. Perhaps it is in direct competition with the city's.

The thing is that Billings a) holds the mortgage for the zoo and b) is broke while the others are wealthy and c) wants to change that by foreclosing on the zoo and selling the land for a huge profit. He probably could have accomplished this with a bit of underhanded business trickery or possibly by admitting to his three friends that he needs the money, but as is so often the case in comics he instead chooses to put on a mask and murder the other four. Confusingly, he does a pretty good job of framing Carton for killing the other three before attempting to murder him as well. We'll never get a chance to see how he was going to spin this because it is at this point that the Black Terror knocks his block off. (Exciting Comics 013, 1941)

Al Walsh:

This masked blackmailer is actually reporter Al Walsh, who digs up dirt on people in the course of his job and then makes them pay big bucks to keep it under wraps. The Mask settles his hash, but not before getting one of his victims killed in an ill thought-out plan. (Exciting Comics 013, 1941)

Dr Cobra:

Dr Cobra is the recurring enemy of Ted Crane, who is one of those 1940s adventurers who compulsively seeks out action and excitement and today would probably be an extreme freeclimber or something like that. Given that he appears seven or eight times and that I have not read most of those issues, I might be selling him short when I say that his cool name is all that he has going for him, but I'm willing to risk it. (Exciting Comics 014, 1941)