young men – Coke ⊕ Comics

PRELUDE: Young Men #24

The Return of… The Human Torch

Featuring: Human Torch
Release: September 11, 1953
Cover: December 1953
10 cents
9 pages

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Marvel Mystery Comics #92	PRELUDE	Human Torch #38, Story D
Fantastic Four #56	Reading order	Fantastic Four Annual 4

…And that’s why I came here… from my grave!

The Human Torch returns!

Carl Burgos is on hand for the cover and draws the figure of the Human Torch on the opening page, but Russ Heath does most of the art for the issue. Notice Heath gives the Torch eyes and a mouth. Roy Thomas speculates that Heath had drawn the Torch on the first page, but an editor, perhaps Stan Lee, wasn’t happy and covered it with a Burgos drawing.

You can definitely see the difference as Heath gives the Human Torch weird eyes and a creepy smile instead of the blank face.

Burgos will return for the next 3 appearances of Human Torch in the pages of Young Men.

Young Men, there’s no need to feel down…

The GCD credits the script to Hank Chapman.

PRELUDE: Young Men #27, Story B

The Return of the Red Skull!

Featuring: Captain America
Release: January 25, 1954
Cover: April 1954
10 cents
7 pages

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Young Men #24, Story B	Prelude
Sgt. Fury #16	Reading order	Tales of Suspense #65

No credits given. The GCD credits Don Rico and John Romita.

With a big sigh of relief, we come to the last Red Skull story from the pre-Marvel era. By my count he made 13 appearances, and we’ve read 11 of them, all to get ready for his triumphant return in 1965. That was more than I meant to read, but there was a particular reason for each choice.

Captain America and Red Skull, now a card-carrying Communist, battle one final time.

PRELUDE: Young Men #24, Story B

Back from the Dead!

Featuring: Captain America
Release: August 19, 1953
Cover: December 1953
10 cents
6 pages

Previous		Next
Captain America’s Weird Tales #74	Prelude	Young Men #27, Story B
Sgt. Fury #16	Reading order	Tales of Suspense #65

No credits are given. The GCD attributes the story to Don Rico and John Romita, except the first panel which it attributes to Mort Lawrence.

It is 1953, 4 years since the final Captain America story, which itself brought and end to the company’s entire line of superhero books, the Human Torch and Sub-Mariner sagas having ended a little sooner.

Marvel’s only nod to the superhero genre in the time since is their science fiction hero, Marvel Boy, whose series lasted 6 issues.

They’re ready to try again. Now generally branded as “Atlas Comics”, the company that had been known as “Timely” and would be best known as “Marvel” offers this superhero revival, bringing back their 3 most successful superheroes of the 40s: Human Torch, Sub-Mariner, and Captain America.

All three return in this very issue. We read the Sub-Mariner story previously. Spinning out of this Young Men series, all three will soon get their own titles as well. Sub-Mariner’s return will last 10 issues, while Human Torch and Captain America each get three issues, before again being consigned to oblivion for another decade.

We read several issues of the Captain America revival to prepare to read Captain America’s lasting return in 1964. Those posts met with the sharpest criticism in the comments section I have yet received. I was called naive, arrogant, ignorant about comics… The internet can be a cruel place sometimes.

PRELUDE: Young Men #28, Story C

The Land Below the Sun!

Featuring: Sub-Mariner
Release: February 25, 1954
Cover: June 1954
10 cents
By: Bill Everett
8 pages

If the Nazis were the favorite enemy in the ’40s, by the ’50s it will be the Soviets. They are portrayed as rather silly here, believing their leader without question, constantly insulting capitalism, and generally being blind lemmings praising their fascist state.

That’s exactly how Soviets talked, I imagine.

Now, we read in Sub-Mariner Comics #1 how the Emperor died. Well, now he’s not dead. In truth, I haven’t read very many comics in the intervening 13 years, but I’ve done some internet research, and it doesn’t seem like the comics had explained this discrepancy. As far as I can tell, this is the first time we’ve seen the Emperor since his death. And nobody remarks on how alive he is. Eventually, we will come to a 1980s series called Saga of the Sub-Mariner that attempts to explain the wonky continuity on display.

PRELUDE: Young Men #25, Story C

Featuring: Sub-Mariner
Release: October 26, 1953
Cover: February 1954
10 cents
By: Bill Everett
8 pages

We’re continuing to sample some of Sub-Mariner’s older adventures to catch us up on his history. We’ve read the start of his self-titled series, the conclusion of his self-titled series, and his return to comics in Young Men #24.

Why this next issue as well? Well, because I have it. I mentioned before that JC Penney put out an odd set of new printings of assorted classic Marvel comics, which I acquired as a young child. Young Men #25 was among the set. So I may as well include it.

PRELUDE: Young Men #24, Story C

Featuring: Sub-Mariner
Release: August 19, 1953
Cover: December 1953
10 cents
By: Bill Everett
8 pages

Young Men, there’s no need to feel down…

I can’t find any credit in the story, but it seems to be pretty clearly by Bill Everett.

The story is a mystery of sunken ships, but the teaser kind of spoils the revelation.

We last saw Sub-Mariner, or any of the superheroes from the company that tends to be called “Timely”, in 1949. In 1953, the company tends to be called “Atlas”, and they’re ready to give superheroes another try. At least briefly. Sub-Mariner will get new stories for about a year or so. This issue also sees the return of two of Timely’s other most popular superheroes.