Small House of Everything

Small House of Everything

Saturday, October 29, 2022

SPEED COMICS #16 (JANUARY 1942)

 First off, what a cover!  An army of Nazi humanoid frogs rising from the sewers to attack the White House, with only Captain Freedom to stop them!  It' too bad there wasn't a story in this issue to support the cover.  At least this issue is chock-full of American heroes giving it to those evil Nazis over and over again -- with 100-page comic books like this against them it's amazing the Germans held out as long as they did.

First off, Shock Gibson (who is really Robert Gibson, the millionaire who has "humanized" electricity, and now goes around in a neat lightning-themed costume and a small mask that does as much to hide his secret identity as Clark Kent's glasses do) enters "The Weird Whirlpool" to "tackle the Nazi bundits who were working a diabolical scheme to wreck the allies naval forces."  A a pecial attraction we have guest appearances from FDR and a certain carpet-eating, wallpaper-hanging madman with a mustache.

(Shock Gibson returns later in the issue with a two-page text story, "Shock Gibson Rides the Airways.")

Next, Captain Freedom (who is Don Wright, fearless publisher) and the Young Defenders (Lefty, Slim, Joanie, and a third boy whose name is never given) come acrros the Hermit of Strange Isle and a "gigantic murderous plot."  Yes, there are Nazis -- plenty o' them.  Yes, there are evil plans afoot.  And there is even graping, muderous Nazi seaweed!

Even the humorous fillers can't get very far from Nazis.  Art Helfant's Biff Bannon, U.S. Marine, uncovers a Nazi spy posing as an instructor at "Marine School."  The most interesting thing about this one is nobody -- including Helfant -- seems to know the difference between a globe and an atlas.

Art Gates gives us a story about Crash, Corky, and Baron -- The Three Aces.  Our heroes are somewhere south of the border and while Crash and Corky are lured away by a beautiful woman and an easily won poker game (respectively) Latino bandit head El Toro waylays the Bron and forces his to fly .his plane to Santa Peato where a band of...wait for it...Nazis (!!!) await to take possession of the aircraft.  The Nazis plan to use the Baron's plane to attack the defenses at the Panama Canal.  But, because they are Nazis, they naturally double-cross El Toro, who joins forces with the Baron, just a sexy Mexican firebrand joins forces with Crash and Corky -- all to defeat the Nazis.

Pat Parker, War Nurse (calf-length boots, super-tight short-shorts. midriff-baring, bazoom-squeezing halter top, and a white handerchief with a red cross logo worn in reverse to mask her identity), battles Nazi invaders in bomb-torn England.  Here she faces the insidious creator ot "The Silent Death,"  An especially virulent type of sleeping gas.  Of course he's a Nazi, but special lagniappe in this tale is that he had been thought dead and was buried by the British; he survived but his body -- well, we only get to see his head -- decayed.  Yucky!

Art Helfant returns with a two-page filler featuring "Bimbo's Beanery."  So no Nazis.  Not much humor either.

Speed Taylor of Clayton College, the famous freshman athlete, go in search of buried treasure.  Professor Brooks has discovered a valuable secret treasure map and now a gang of international theives have threatened to kill the professor and blow up the college is he does not turn it over to them.  Speed manages to find the treasure and defeat the crooks just in time to win the highly anticipated footnall game against Travard (and also winning the girl, red-headed Diane, Professor Brooks' daughter.)  No Nazis in this one, either.

Ted Parrish, Man of Faces, is is a famous Hollywood film star who uses his mastery of disguise to cope with "The Deert Rat."  While filming the movie Bleeding Sands, a hideous, Nosferatu-like character with green skin, claiming to the Desert Rat, King of the Rolling Sands, threatens the film's director -- leave, or the cast dies one by one.  Bad things begins to happen, only to be thrawted by Ted Parrish.  Finally, Parrish disguises himself as the director to allow himself to be kidnapped by the Desert Rat and his men.  Turns out it was all a plot to steal a gold mine. So, any Nazis in this fInal tale in the comic book?  Nope.  Nary a one.

And I sure miss the Nazi frog-beasts marching toward the cellars of the White House...


Check it out.


https://comicbookplus.com/?dlid=83048&comicpage=&b=i


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