SUPER-HERO FILE 002: CAPTAIN MARVEL JUNIOR

(Whiz Comics 025, 1941)

After the vile Captain Nazi is knocked into New York Fawcett City Harbor during a battle with Captain Marvel, he is pulled from the water by young Freddy Freeman and his grandfather and immediately rewards their good deed by murdering them both. Or so he thinks! It turns out that Freddy is merely grievously injured, and Captain Marvel is able to bring him to a hospital for care.

Informed that Freddy is not expected to live through the night, Billy Batson makes the decision to bring him to the secret underground realm of the wizard Shazam in hopes that he might be able to do something for him. The wizard's shade is summoned via an apparently mystical brazier (and hey, I think that this is Shazam's first appearance since he was squashed by that huge block of stone during Billy's origin!) but rather than help Freddy, Shazam places the onus of doing so on Captain Marvel's shoulders.

In practical terms, this means that rather than SHAZAM, the newly-minted Captain Marvel Junior says "Captain Marvel" to transform, which as many have pointed out before me means that he cannot actually say his own name without changing identities. Does the fact that Captain Marvel can do this ever come up again? Perhaps it ties in to the more modern conception of him as a sort of larval being who will eventually evolve into a new wizard, but I'm not sure if it come up in the intervening decades.

Perhaps my favourite thing about Captain Marvel Junior is that since his comics were not drawn by CC Beck they have a different style to them and that when the Marvel Family are all together they emphatically do not adjust this. Everyone else (except perhaps Mary Marvel) is running around with that clean art style with those little black eyes and Cap Jr just keeps on looking like a young Elvis. It's always fun!

UPDATES: 

SUPER-VILLAIN 002 UPDATE: CAPTAIN NAZI (1941)

Our second full-fledged super-villain is the odious Captain Nazi, and he had a short but busy run in 1941:

After being deployed by Adolf Hitler himself as a foil to the threat of the American super-hero, Captain Nazi makes a very public appearance in Times Square in order to issue a challenge to Bulletman. This also attracts the attention of Captain Marvel, leading to the second Fawcett Comics character meetup of 1941 as they decide to team up and kick his ass together.

In contrast to the bluster of his challenge, Captain Nazis' activities in NYC are more sneaky sabotage than high-stakes public super-combat. Specifically, an attempt to derail a subway car is foiled by Captain Marvel, while an attempted Ferris Wheel disaster is effectively countered by Bulletman.

Loathe as I am to praise Captain Nazi  I must admit that he is an effectively ruthless villain - if he didn't have the misfortune of being pitted against two of the more powerful superhumans available he would be riding roughshod over US infrastructure instead of taking child-hostages and escaping into the shadows.

After attempt to blow up the Brooklyn Naval Yards - foiled by Captain Marvel, natch - Captain Nazi demonstrates the trademark Fawcett character semi-awareness that he is in a comic book and leaves a note declaring his intent to come over to Whiz Comics to make life difficult there. (Master Comics 021, 1941)

Sure enough, Captain Nazi returns as promised and continues his campaign of sabotage against a dam and an experimental aircraft.

After being hurled into the ocean by Captain Marvel, Captain Nazi commits the act that he is most well known for as he repays the kindness of young Freddy Freeman's grandfather by murdering him and making off with his boat, leaving Freddy himself for dead. This of course is the origin of Captain Marvel Junior, as the only way that Freddy survives is by being imbued with a fraction of Captain Marvel's own power.

Thus, the villain once again creates his own nemesis.

(Whiz Comics 025, 1941)

BODY COUNT: 3+

END-OF-YEAR STATUS: At Large