Featuring: Human Torch
Release: February 12, 1963
Cover: May 1963
12 cents
Plot: Stan Lee
Script: R. Berns
Art: Jack Kirby
Inking: Dick Ayers
13 pages
Kirby is back with Ayers inking after 2 issues of Ayers on main art. They will go back and forth some, but Ayers is going to be the more regular artist at this point. This is the second script we’ve seen by “R. Berns”, Robert Bernstein, who just provided the script for the last Iron Man story. We’ll see him in a few more places.
The basic idea of this comic is fun. The Painter has magic paint that makes whatever he paints come to life. The ending is somewhat absurd, and the story has some severe structural problems.
The splash page is pretty heavily expository and overly explains the plot of the issue, when really it should just be teasing it.
We get a couple pages showing how Human Torch regularly helps police capture common crooks. This isn’t the type of thing we see any other FF members doing. It’s a regular activity for Ant-Man and semi-regular activity for Thor.
The Painter spends a lot of time expositing his powers and origin, including his last battle with Human Torch, back when he was an ordinary counterfeiter and Human Torch had a job in a bookstore. People had laughed at his paintings, so crime was a natural next step.
The Painter brings all kinds of crazy things to life: 3-headed gorilla; giant gun; magic carpet; making himself intangible; a flying contraption; gigantic fire hydrant; precious stones; mechanical monsters come to life; tidal wave of sand; the rest of the FF…
The ending makes so little sense. Most of the “clues” Human Torch points to just happened, so couldn’t have clued him in yesterday. He must have found the culprit just from the hydrants.
But then, if you’ve found the magic paint, why not just take it? Seems way too dangerous to leave with the villain. Also, you could have used it to do any number of things smarter than making a decoy.
I wonder if there is some commentary in the Painter’s laziness. That his downfall is his inattention to detail. I don’t know if Kirby has any artists in mind who don’t pay enough attention to detail, or if he’s thinking generally. Or perhaps there is some self-ribbing going on. He’s been drawing so many books each month, that he’s been skimping on some details himself.
I think this is the first time we’ve seen this little artistic trick. A small head next to the narration so you know who’s speaking.
Who pays to repair that road?
Should you be destroying that evidence?
Rating: ★★☆☆☆, 33/100
Characters:
- Wilhelm Van Vile/The Painter
- Johnny Storm/Human Torch
- “Scar” Tobin
Minor characters:
- Ellen (Johnny’s date)
Story notes:
- The other members of the Fantastic Four seem to show up, but are fake versions created by the paintings.
- Human Torch stops hijackers escaping with precious furs
- Johnny’s date to a charity masquerade ball is Ellen.
- Human Torch controls smoke rings like lassos
- Torch reflects on battles against Wizard, Paste-Pot Pete and Zemu
- Johnny had part time job in bookstore while still the Torch.
- In tunnels beneath prison, painter finds mural from a million years ago depicting aliens leaving earth
- The aliens traveled through space by painting their voyages
- Paints allow one to paint extremely fast
- Painter robs jewelry store in corner of Main and Seventh
- Johnny shopping for “hi-fi equipment”
#62 story in reading order
Next: Strange Tales #108, Story C
Previous: Tales to Astonish #43
