The Human Torch Battles the Sub-Mariner as the World Faces Destruction!
Featuring: Human Torch Release: October 8, 1941 Cover: Fall 1941 10 cents 60 pages (!)
The comic gives no credits. I’ll point you to the GCD, which notes work from Carl Burgos, Bill Everett, Jack D’Arcy, Hank Chapman, Mike Roy, Harry Sahle and George Kapitan. That’s… a lot of names. I will make no attempt to untangle who did what.
Counting to 5
Let’s get the confusing part out of the way. We are looking at Human Torch #5, with a cover date of Fall 1941.
The previous issue of Human Torch was… Human Torch #5, with a cover date of Summer 1941. Why? I have no idea. I think somebody counted wrong.
The Result of the Most Famous Battle in Comic Magazines Featuring: Human Torch and Sub-Mariner Release: June 15, 1940 Cover: August 1940 10 cents Credits: Bill Everett, Carl Burgos, and John Compton 1 page
No credits appear on the page. The art reminds me most of Burgos’ style. I borrowed the credits from the previous issue; the GCD agrees.
The finale of the epic is a single page. A single page.
That’s it?!?
Betty Dean finally gets her way and convinces Torch and Namor to call a truce. It makes sense for the fight to end in a draw, to disappoint neither set of fans. But letting Namor go is entirely unsatisfying. He crashed a train, flooded a tunnel. Who knows how many people died on his rampage?
The Battle of the Comic Century! Featuring: Human Torch vs. Sub-Mariner Release: May 17, 1940 Cover: July 1940 10 cents Credits: Bill Everett, Carl Burgos, and John Compton 22 pages
It’s not quite clear how Everett and Burgos split up the art duties. I’m sure they both pulled their weight, though most of the issue reminds me of Everett’s work.
Very classy title page
John Compton is most likely on hand to assist with scripting. I don’t know my Golden Age creators well, so can’t tell you much about John Compton. And Google at a glance doesn’t know much more than me.
One thing to note about the very fancy title page is the phrase, “Marvel Comics Presents”. Almost seems anachronistic, as the company wasn’t yet called Marvel Comics (it still isn’t necessarily, even in 1963; every cover has that “MC” on it, but the word Marvel isn’t evident). Though it was the name of the first issue of this series, before the word “Mystery” was inserted. But it’s a very prescient phrase.
As I reflect, that title is a bit hard to parse. “The Battle of the Comic Century”. “Comic Century”. I might think they mean that this is the battle of the century told in comic form, or perhaps that this is the battle of the century, at least within comics. But it doesn’t really say either of these things. Perhaps they mean that the 20th century is the century of comics. Or perhaps that of the current century the comics are depicting, this is the great battle.
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.
I really think that repairs can wait, Torch…
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.
Sets the stage for the first Marvel Universe crossover!
Featuring: Human Torch Release: March 20, 1940 Cover: May 1940 10 cents Credits: Carl Burgos 11 pages
After a pretty complex first adventure, Human Torch has settled into the routine of being a fairly standard superhero. Each issue has had its own adventure where the Torch foils some plot. He’s adopted the identity of Jim Hamond in civilian form, and made friends with a fellow named Johnson.
The one oddity comes from the beginning of Marvel Mystery Comics #2. A newspaper article tells us that the Torch burned down Horton’s home, killing him. We hadn’t seen anything like that in the previous issue. But the Torch defends–rather than denies–the killing.
The Torch did what?
A note to quell any confusion. Human Torch and Sub-Mariner were introduced in Marvel Comics #1. That series has continued, but it was renamed to “Marvel Mystery Comics” beginning with issue #2. Each issue has featured both a Human Torch and Sub-Mariner story, among others. Other regular features include Angel, Masked Raider, and Ka-Zar.
My main goal is to read the Marvel Universe as a series of comics which began with Fantastic Four #1. But the company had 22 years of comics prior to that, some of which have bearing on the stories. I’ll occasionally peek at those. As we just met the new Human Torch, reading the origin of the original Human Torch seems relevant.
It’s a great cover by Frank R. Paul. Well-remembered for being the first cover of the company that would eventually take on the comic’s name. I like how the melting steel and bullet just radiate heat.
The story is by Carl Burgos, the pen name for Max Finkelstein.
This is a good science fiction tale. Plenty of good plot elements and character here. Professor Horton is a genius; he’s created a near-perfect synthetic man– but the man bursts uncontrollably into flame when exposed to oxygen; hence, the Human Torch. Horton is convinced to seal the Torch away until the condition can be cured. Time passes, and the Torch escapes. A mobster tries to control him for an extortion racket. But the plan backfires and the mobster dies in battle with the Torch. Through exposure to nitrogen, the Torch at last gains control of his flame and straightens things out with the police. He is ready to return to Professor Horton until we learn Horton also just wants to exploit him for profit. The Human Torch goes off to carve out his own destiny.
