Buck Rogers v. The Fiend From Space, 1940

Artwork by Lt. Dick Calkins, Story by Phil Nowlan - Whitman #1409, Little Big Book ©1940 John F. Dille Co. (via Hake's)

Cover Artwork: Lt. Dick Calkins

Back Cover Artwork: Lt. Dick Calkins

Flash Gordon - In the Water World of Mongo, 1937

Artwork by Alex Raymond, Story by Don Moore - Whitman #1407, A Big Little Book, ©1937 King Features Syndicate, Inc.  (via Hake's)

Cover Art: Alex Raymond

Back Cover Art: Alex Raymond

Before There Was BATMAN there was BATSOWL

Richard Boucher posted this piece about an early bat-man character, Batsowl, from 1918. The conversation following the post is pretty interesting too. If you want check it out click here.

The notion of costumed 'bat-men' didn't originate with Bob Kane's creation. One such earlier character was Batsowl, who starred in a series of prose stories in the British comic Illustrated Chips in 1918.

I'm not suggesting for a moment that there was any connection of course. Bob Kane was born in 1915, so it's highly unlikely he'd have seen a British comic when he was three years old. However, there are some interesting similarities between the two characters, not least being the costume.

Like Batman, Batsowl's other identity was a wealthy figure. In this case, an Earl, Desmond Devance...He also had a secret underground laboratory, not dissimilar to the Batcave...and his appearance struck terror into people...

Sadly, like most British comics of the time, Batsowl is uncredited. I don't know how long the serial ran as I only have one episode, which is the one I'm showing here. It's from Illustrated Chips No.1477, dated December 21st 1918. This was one of the comics presented as a facsimile in 1972 in the Six Comics of World War One collection...It's highly likely that both Batman and Batsowl were both partially influenced by The Phantom of the Opera, written in 1909, and The Scarlet Pimpernel (which was adapted as a very popular London play in 1905).

Stardust The Super Wizard: He's Just That Kinda Guy

Yes, that's Stardust on the left - he's a big guy. On the right is De Structo - the image is a preview of what's to come. Meet De Structo - a man with a plan...

So, the megalomaniac sets off his plot to exterminate everyone who holds any power: congress leaders and cabinet members, publishers of newspapers and magazines, members of the FBI, the Secret Service and military intelligence, big bankers, industrial leaders everywhere, the army and navy officers and the enlisted men as well, city and state police. Basically, De Structo's list is pretty much a who's-who of persons who are quite unpopular with numerous folks today.

Things go pretty much according to plan until Stardust 'bursts out of space,' destroys De Structo's tech with his supersolar disintegrating ray, and restores order with his powerful counter-acting ray.  There's just one more detail to work out...

And now comes the strange...

Stardust is harsh...he's a karma man...

Wait for it...

THE END...

Comic can be found at Comic Books Plus: Big 3 #2, Winter 1941