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.
The Marvel Universe starts to take shape as two of its greatest champions meet in battle.
The Human Torch and Sub-Mariner meet!!! Featuring: Sub-Mariner Release: April 24, 1940 Cover: June 1940 10 cents Story and art: Bill Everett (uncredited) 10 pages
Hard to believe something as significant as Human Torch meeting Sub-Mariner didn’t even get top billing on the cover. I guess Angel battling some monster was more exciting.
Usually, Bill Everett’s signature appears on the first page of each Sub-Mariner story, but I’m not finding it here.
“…for having attempted to electrocute him after he had promised to lend his powers to his cause…” I guess you can see why he might be miffed.
It really all begins here. Eight months after the respective debuts of Human Torch and Sub-Mariner, the characters meet in conflict. The Marvel Comics series becomes more than independent stories in an anthology. The seeds of a universe sprout. So it is that 23 years later, Sub-Mariner can battle the Fantastic Four with a new Human Torch, while that same Fantastic Four battle Hulk and Spider-Man in other stories. So it is that 80 years later, a movie studio can throw dozens of superheroes up on the big screen in a epic big-budget battle.
I think this is one of the most significant pages in Marvel history.
The highlight of the story, the reason we’re here, is short. The final 2 pages of a 10-page story tell of the meeting between Human Torch and Namor. The Torch quickly gains the upper hand and Namor retreats.
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 Hammond in civilian form, and made friends with a police officer 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.
…on that day of my freedom in 1939, this world had its first confrontation with the fantastic. The golden age of miracles would begin, and in the years to come, the world would know the presence of the unnatural and extraordinary as part of reality.
To remind my readers, the goal here is to start with Fantastic Four #1, and read the Marvel Universe in order from that point forward. It may get confusing because this is my third post and I’m not yet at Fantastic Four #2. I first wanted to jump back in time with the first in an irregular series of “Prelude” posts to talk about the introduction of the original Human Torch in Marvel Comics #1. That inspired me to now jump far forward for the first of an even less regular series of “Postlude” posts, that pull in comics from the future.
Marvels is a 4-issue limited series published by Marvel in 1994. After the conclusion of the series, this was released, a behind-the-scenes “Issue Zero” which includes some concept artwork, commentary from the creators, and a story from the original pitch for Marvels, originally serialized in Marvel Age #130-133. It’s that story we consider here.
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. 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.
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.
In 1989, I was in Walgreens and my mother suggested I pick out a comic book from the newsstand. Thirty years and some 40,000 comics later, she has had time to regret that moment. On that day, I began a hobby which has consumed a large amount of my life’s attention and energy.
The comic was Avengers #309. I think I picked it out because I recognized some of the characters from cartoons I had seen. Thor, Captain America, Sub-Mariner. Perhaps I recognized She-Hulk. The other two characters on the cover were new to me.
The issue begins in the middle of events. Our characters stand atop a giant crater. The top reads, “Stan Lee PRESENTS: The MIGHTY AVENGERS!” Then in bolder letters, “TO FIND OLYMPIA!” Olympia is written is this cool gold font.
The story doesn’t end with this comic any more than it begins. By the final page, Thor is the only Avenger left standing and facing off against Blastaar. We get a little blurb which reads, “Next: The end of the Eternals? The end of the Avengers? You must not miss… Death in Olympia! In 30 days!!” The word ‘Death’ is written in this cool blood-dripping font.
