MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 636 UPDATE: THE SERPENT LADY

(Fantastic Comics 016, 1941)

We all remember the Serpent Lady, who lived in an underwater city with a bunch of weird ghouls and used her pet sea serpent to kidnap people for her minions to eat. And we all remember how Sub Saunders showed up and killed her serpent but let her go free for some reason (the reason is because she is a sexy lady who walks around in a gold bikini top). Well, the Serpent Lady hasn't just laid down and given up, no sir. She is back.

So, just how does the Serpent Lady follow up her old operation that revolved around Mephisto the sea serpent, why with the hot new Diablo, a two-headed sea serpent. Surely the only problem with the old plan was that it involved an insufficient number of serpent heads!

Unfortunately for the Serpent Lady, not only does Diablo prove even less effective against Sub Saunders than Mephisto was (Mephisto took a whole four panels to die while Diablo goes down after three), but following his death her lieutenant Luco turns on her and attempts to take over the whole undersea snake thing by killing both her and Saunders.

Though Luca believes himself to be ready for the big leagues this is absolutely not the case, as Sub turns the tables on him and slays him with his own deathtrap with absurd ease. He then spurns the Serpent Lady's overtures of love and toddles off for the surface. BUT he also refrains from blowing her up, so there's still a chance for these crazy kids.

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 636: THE SERPENT LADY

(Fantastic Comics 012, 1940)

We open on Mephisto, the Dreaded Poison Serpent, attacking a small boat and making off with its inhabitants. For a split second I am excited - maybe this is our long-sought criminal animal! - but then I remember the lessons I learned from Cephalopoda the Octopus and rein myself in.

And it's a good thing I did, for Mephisto is a mere tool of the mysterious Serpent Lady, who lives in a golden city in an undersea cave and rules over a population of bald creeps who need blood to live. Maybe? It's possible that they just like blood. Either way, this is why she has been using her cool snake to kidnap surface dwellers: their delicious blood.

Sub Saunders will not stand for blood theft in his god-given ocean. He slays Mephisto and a fair few bald-headed creeps but leaves the Serpent Lady alive and at liberty. Will she be returning? I read ahead a bit and yes she will!

UPDATE 1941