Featuring: Human Torch
Release: April 24, 1940
Cover: June 1940
10 cents
Credits: Carl Burgos
12 pages
The Human Torch has many nicknames for Namor: “water bug”, “water beetle”, “water rat”. Namor calls him “fire bug”. You can tell they’re not going to get along.
This story is a bit disappointing, as one may have expected it to continue the last one. It does not. It instead tells the events of the last two stories from the Torch’s point of view. But Torch is the less interesting character, and Burgos is the less talented artist.
The Human Torch spends most of the story on the trail of Sub-Mariner, one step behind. So we see him repairing much of the damage Namor caused in the previous two Sub-Mariner stories. He repairs the El tracks and gets the zoo animals back in their cages.
Human Torch does meet Betty Dean, who tries to urge a peaceful resolution, but is ignored.
Then the final two pages mimic (not quite identically) the final two pages of the Sub-Mariner story, telling of their same meeting and Namor’s retreat.
Rating: ★★½, 47/100
Characters:
- Jim Hammond/Human Torch
- Betty Dean
- Police Commissioner
- Prince Namor/Sub-Mariner
Minor characters:
- Frank (an officer)
Story notes:
- Concurrent with previous two Sub-Mariner stories, showing Torch’s point of view
- Human Torch’s boss is referred to as the Chief, but I think he’s the same person usually called the Commissioner of Police.
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