MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 833: THE MASTER

(Top-Notch Comics 005, 1940) 

The Mosconians, stand-ins for Nazi-allied Russia (or possibly just Russian-flavoured stand-ins for Nazi Germany) have a lot more stick-to-itiveness than your typical gang of foreign espionage agents, to the extent that they manage to not only bedevil the Wizard for three whole issues but also the Shield over in Pep Comics, leading to what is touted as the first super-hero crossover in comics (as previously seen here). The Master is the shadowy figure behind the Mosconian schemes and as seen above he even managed to kidnap the Wizard's brother Grover! A decent showing for a crypto-fascist, considering how ephemeral they usually are.

The actual crossover-precipitating plan is an attempt to blow up the military academies at Annapolis and West Point, thus shutting off the supply of officers to the US armed forces and incidentally killing off a portion of the country's political officials as they attend a ceremony at the latter. The actual crossovers between the Wizard and the two students is fairly ships-in-the-night - he basically waves at them as he leaves to beat up Mosconians at a second location.

The Mosconians and their Master return in Top-Notch Comics 006 with an attempt to blow up Boulder Dam*, which is one of those plots that would be pretty horrifying in real life but is not so exciting or unusual in a comic book. This is also the point at which the Mosconians start to get really German.

*Hoover Dam, which I just learned was in a state of naming limbo for years and only officially became Hoover in 1947! 

The Mosconians next plot, in Top-Notch Comics 007, involves an attack on the Golden Gate Bridge. The Wizard manages to track them down to their staging area in British Columbia, where the Master is finally unmasked and revealed to be the Mosconian ambassador to the United States (not much of a surprise). This is also the point at which the Wizard is chemically blinded, leading him to change his costume to a more standard super-heroic one with no noticeably different eye protection. So attired, he rounds up the plotter in San Francisco with the aid of the Shield.

NOTES - DECEMBER 2024

Drawn Without Reference: 

The Rocket and the Queen of Diamonds find themselves facing a very off-model spider in the lad of the Batmen. (Pep Comics 003, 1940)

Cops Shooting at Fleeing Suspects:

I was briefly tempted to give the cops of the MLJ universe a pass on shooting at the Comet because he did after all kill a bunch of them while mind controlled but then I remembered that a) that's still no excuse to gun someone down in the street, and b) it's still bad that they're just blazing away at a flying man in the middle of a large city full of other people. (Pep Comics 004, 1940)

 And they do it again... (Pep Comics 005, 1940)

 And again... (Pep Comics 006, 1940)

... and again (in a crowded state legislature building!) (Pep Comics 008, 1940)

Louisiana cops try to blow away Naval Academy Midshipman Lee Samson for escaping jail and stealing a police car. (Pep Comics 006, 1940)

Crossovers:

Oft touted as the first super-hero crossover in comics, the Shield shares a total of four panels with the Wizard as they both set out to foil some dastardly Mosconian spies. (Pep Comics 004, 1940)

Less frequently mentioned are the brief encounters between the Wizard and Lee Samson, aka the Midshipman and the Shield and Keith Kornell, aka the West Pointer, two very similar and very dull military academy students from different branches of the military-industrial complex. And they are less interesting, so that makes sense.

The next issue features another appearance by the Wizard, this one less highly touted as it's the second time it happened plus he just shows up to loan the Shield a plane. I personally think that that's remarkable, as Golden Age crossovers tended more toward the one-off. (Pep Comics 005, 1940)

Minutia: 

The Shield briefly pitches pro baseball under the name the Masked Marvel, as part of an investigation into a protection racket targeting players. (Pep Comics 007, 1940)

REAL PERSON ROUND-UP 004

More of those pesky real people have gotten into my comic books!

Andrew Jackson:

Character Keith Kornell, aka the West Pointer, is a descendant of Andrew Jackson, something you would perhaps be more proud of in 1939 than today. (Top-Notch Comics 001, 1939)

Benito Mussolini:

He's a fairly oblique reference to Benito Mussolini but I reckon that up-and-coming Filipino dictator Remy Mussoni fits the brief. (Wonderworld Comics 008, 1939)

Billy the Kid:

Appears in a questionably true story told by character Windy Parks (Western Picture Stories 004, 1937)

the Dionne Quintuplets:

"Ad-Ventures at the Circus" was a recurring feature throughout the life of Star Comics (1937-1939), and it's a fascinating artifact of the time that someone more qualified than me should write about some day. Long story short it was a twee little comic about advertising mascots going to the circus to watch other advertising mascots perform. There's maybe a 75/25 split between the Surprisingly Familiar and Surprisingly Unfamiliar mascots with regular appearances by Surprisingly Racist ones. It's a bit like a Neolithic Foodfight!. 

Everything about this feature is weird, from the slightly uncanny valley illustrations by Raphael Astarita to the fact that it doesn't really seem to be sponsored content (other than a command appearance by NRG, mascot of heavy Star Comics advertiser Baby Ruth). And then the final extant installment comes around and we get the weirdest advertising mascots of all as the Quaker Oats Man leads the Dionne Quintuplets onto stage - five living humans given the same status as the Crackerjack kid or Mr Peanut or some anthropomorphic orange who used to work for Sunkist. It's a grim reminder of just how commodified those poor kids were, right down to their "act" being a pantomime of them going about their day, just like they did in the weird zoo they grew up in. (Star Comics v2 007, 1939)

Gene Autry:

An adventuring version of the singing cowboy in modern times (the Funnies 030, 1939)

George VI of England:

This here visit by King Arnold and his unnamed Queen is certainly meant to evoke the 1939 tour of Canada and the US by King George VI of England and Queen Elizabeth, the future Queen Mother. (Wonderworld Comics 005, 1939)

George Washington:

Not quite an appearance by Washington as adjacent to him, but the fact that one of the Wizard's ancestors is given credit for a key part of the history of the American Revolution is worth noting. (Top-Notch Comics 001, 1939)

FDR:

Misc Minor Appearances: Thanks secret agent K-51 for saving foreign royals (Wonderworld Comics 005, 1939) 

the Mona Lisa:

As the "Lona Dizzi", painted by "Lombardo da Ginki" ("Dixie Dugan" strip, 1931)

Paul Revere:

Ride witnessed - and hide saved - by American Revolution-era child-patriots the Liberty Lads. (Champion Comics 008, 1940)

Robert E. Lee:

Wizard ancestor Thomas Whitney accepts the surrender of Robert E Lee at Appomattox, whether in place of Grant or prior to his showing up cannot be said. (Top-Notch Comics 001, 1939)

Tom Mix:

Like Gene Autry, Tom Mix was a movie cowboy who starred in adventure comics as a larger-than-life version of himself having rootin' tootin' Wild West adventures. Unlike Autry, Tom Mix generally starred in stories set in the Old West, as himself but in the past. Tom Mix also holds the special distinction of appearing in comics from this earliest example (that I have found, at least) to at least the early 50s, long after he had died in October, 1940. (The Comics 001, 1937)