Already having published several pulp magazine devoted to action and adventure, sci-fi and of course, sex, Goodman founded Timely Comics. Then taking the name for one of his publications, Marvel Science Stories, Goodman hired Funnies Inc. to produce a book's worth of new material for his first ever comic book called Marvel Comics.
The first and third stories are tales that I know by heart. They introduce a yin-yang pair of anti-heroes who will lay the foundation for the plethora of heroes that will define the Marvel Age of Comics and beyond. Carl Burgos kicked things off with an android that bursts into flames when exposed to oxygen. First deemed a menace to society, exposure to natural elements corrects the design flaw allowing the Human Torch to control his flammable powers. Then Bill Everett takes readers to the icy waters off the coast of Antarctica where a human-Atlantean hybrid is the underwater kingdom's newest weapon in a proposed attack against the land breathers.
Compared to Carl Burgos work, Bill Everett's Sub-Mariner was year 3000 stuff. Compared to the adventures of Superman over at National, the first 3 stories starring Prince Namor was year 3001 material. Why Bill Everett isn't given the level of love and respect of Jack Kirby or Wil Eisner is beyond me. Dying in 1973 at a young age of 55, I think Everett's lesser body of work compared to other super stars of the golden age of comics is to blame for this.
The rest of the material in issue #1 along with the other 3 issues contained in this collection are the stuff of the pulps. The overly powerful un-super powered Angel is much like the Shadow, taking on the dregs of the criminal underworld; only he's decked out in a blue leotard. Ka-Zar, who one day will become lord of the dinosaur filled Savage Land, got his start as a pulp hero. Much like Tarzan, Ka-Zar is able to communicate with the animals and acts as their protector from the greedy white men and fierce natives that seek African wildlife for game and sport. Rounding things out was a Western starring the Masked Rider, a clone of the Lone Ranger, who wore a full black mask in the desert heat as his took on cattle rustlers and claim jumpers.
A name change comes in issue #2. Marvel Comics became Marvel Mystery Comics, perhaps to further differentiate the comic book from the pulp title. A new character debuts in the second issue. 'Perry Webb, American Ace' is a young lad who is traveling throughout Central Europe in his small propeller plane. The fictitious leader of a small European nation has amassed a small but formidable war chest and is about to begin a massive campaign to rule the world. Poor Perry Webb arrives in the first nation to come under attack and soon finds himself injured and with a wrecked air ship. As Perry recovers, the American Ace talks of needing to fulfill a special mission. Sadly readers will never discover just what that mission was as Issue #3 was Perry Webb's last appearance in Marvel Mystery Comics.
Younger readers will hate these books. The artwork is considered by many, including foreword author Roy Thomas, to be quite primitive. Because of the newness of comic books, that detriment can be overlooked. What many readers might not be able to excuse is the level of violence towards women, stereotypes of Asians and Africans, and other outdated portrayals that were overtly glorified in the pulps. Yet, with Martin Goodman's Marvel Mystery Comics, there's a level of respect towards minorities and females as well as aptitude to point out the sinful faults of white men that foreshadows a lot of groundbreaking stuff that Stan Lee will be championed for doing differently than the Distinguished Competition in the 1960s and 70s.
If you wish to see what was the essential blueprint of 'Stan's Soap Box', these golden age collections are the things to read. Without them, there would be no Fantastic Four, no Black Panther, and definitely no Marvel Age of Comics. As for getting my hands on the other 6 volumes of this collection, I would love to read the rest. I don't think I'd want to add them to my collection as these books aren't really items I have on my wish list. I got this book in a grab bag years ago and Marvel Masterworks books are not cheap- hardcover or trades. Especially, since you only get 4 issues in each volume! But if I found further books for a good price, I would acquire and read them before trading for something else that I really needed to have on my bookshelf.
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.
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