Sunday, September 4, 2022

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 143: THE CAMERA EYE

(Adventure 066, 1941)

Mr Cuthbert Cain, the Camera Eye (and I call him that because it's what he himself signs on an ominous note - at various points in the story he is called the Camera Fiend and the Camera Criminal) is part of a long tradition of super-villains who take a recent technological or cultural trend and extrapolate it into a criminal gimmick - in this case, candid photography.

Using black magic and photographic equipment, Cain captures souls and enslaves folks to his will, embarking on a minor crime wave. He falls afoul of Starman when he enthralls his friend FBI agent Woodley Allen and subsequently dissolves into the netherworld after a struggle that ends with him accidentally taking his own picture with his black magic camera.

SHOULD THEY BE BROUGHT BACK? Absolutely! Not only is Cuthbert Cain exactly the kind of smug little shit that makes a perfect villain but the idea of a black magician who faces the price for their power and then comes back is a really great seed for a story. Particularly as the last time he was seen he had become a photo negative version of himself.

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