MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 226: THE BLACK BAT

(Feature Comics 043, 1941) 

Another example of the classic combination of someone posing as a spooky local legend-figure in order to scare folk away from a valuable area. In this case one Jean Dupre and his mother are trying to use the legend of the giant Black Bat (that they might have just made up) to scare their step sister/ daughter Marie away from the family ranch, which is just lousy with radium ore.

It's a good attempt, foiled by only a few factors: 1) Marie won't leave and instead calls in the RCMP; 2) Reynolds of the Mounties and his guide/ skáld the Old Timer show up and basically immediately unravel the plot; 3) they both end up dead, from a rock to the head (Madame Dupre) and glider malfunction (Jean Dupre). As usual, the less profitable option of splitting the proceeds of your find with the rightful owner would have been the way to go.

Unless I've been grossly negligent, this mother/ son duo is our first French Canadian representation on the list, so there's that at least.

MINOR EDIT: This is touted as Reynolds' first case in the previous episode, but also he's already a sergeant at the beginning of the story so I don't know when it happened. Some time in the past!

MINOR SUPER-VILLAIN 211: THE MAD MADESPOS

(Crackajack Funnies 038-040, 1941)

It's my favourite Golden Age Batman knockoff the Owl again and this time he's up against the Madespos, a whole family of homicidal maniacs with their very own gorilla pal!

The Madespos had already been collared by the Owl (in an unseen adventure of his civilian guise of Nick Terry, PI) some time earlier, so our tale begins with their escape from Lenmoor Asylum for the Criminally Insane with the help of their well-dressed gorilla friend. 

In addition to the gorilla the family consists of Ma Madespo and her four unnamed, nearly identical sons (one wears glasses and two are taller than the rest. This is not relevant). They're armed to the teeth and have holed up in a fortified mansion supplied by...

The Masked Ambassador! A surprise second Minor Super-Villain 212 (if just barely) and smarter-than-average fifth columnist from Axis-coded Yugonia who has weaponized the Madespos rather than risk his own hide in sabotaging the American military. If he wasn't caught by the Owl literally one panel after putting on his mask he might just be the most effective villain on this list.

Sadly for the Madespos, the Owl soon takes advantage of a police siege of their mansion to befriend the ill-treated gorilla and bring the whole lot of them in.