He is wearing a green mask. So his name is at least accurate.
Mystery Men Comics #5
Fox Publications, Inc (December, 1939)
It’s been awhile since I’ve gotten to read this comic. I started reading this anthology for the Blue Beetle stories, but I didn’t want an anthology, just the Blue Beetle, in sync with his namesake getting his own movie. I just wanted to follow the history of the character pre-DC since I don’t own any of Jaime Reyes’ comics and these were public domain.
And then The Blue Beetle turned out to be another anthology comic. Then he got new owners who made lamer stories. Then he went back to his old owners, who didn’t get writers nearly as good as the first one. Then Charlton totally reimagined him, leading to Ted Kord and the version DC bought and later replaced themselves with Jaime.
So we’re back to the original Blue Beetle and…I can’t really say “his friends” since Golden Age anthologies didn’t have continuity even within the same book. Still will be nice to see proper Blue Beetle, and I’m ready to read about all the other characters since I’ve been reviewing Golden Age anthologies now. So this comic is back in rotation!
The Green Mask by Walter Frame
A man leaves millions of dollars to his children, but one of them wants all of it and murders two of the clan. As they go after the third the Green Mask follows to Africa to stop a murder. So remember what I just said about continuity? The Green Mask is now carrying a weapon from the previous issue created by the villain. It’s been so long I’m taking the caption box’s word for it (Mr. Caption Box wouldn’t lie to us), but you have to wonder why he’s running around with evidence just so he can have a nonlethal weapon…even though the killer dies thanks to random occurrence. Otherwise, it’s a good story that fits the page count well. Wish I saw more of that out of the Golden Age comics I’ve been reviewing. May it be a trend here. The only real complaint besides random arrow to the back is that Green Mask ponders why the money was so unevenly distributed between the heirs but that never comes up in the story and probably won’t matter with only one kid left.
Rex Dexter: Interplanetary Adventurer by Dick Briefer
Okay, it fits the page count but…what the hell was this story? Rex and Cynde (we’re told it’s pronounced “Sin-Dee” and this is the least weird thing in this story) pass a luxury liner warning them of a galactic storm ahead and somehow their small ship is having a harder time stopping that a spacefaring luxury liner. If they’re anything like their water counterparts, the ship Rex and Cynde use is barely a yacht and they can’t turn as fast? They end up on a planet where Rex will get old and die in a day but the leader will stop Cynde from aging because…hot girl???? All Rex has to do to leave with her is uncover the secret of what happened to the robots on robot planet. Look, you’re going to have to click the link and read the story because it just gets dumber from here. And I grew up with Saturday morning cartoons that gave science a wedgie. This just made no sense and didn’t even make up for it by being fun.
Chen Chang by Cecelia Munson: “River Lily & The Purr Of Death”
The return of everyone’s favorite bad Chinese stereotype seeking world domination and the not-title white man who somehow keeps getting involved. This time Chen and his assistant Lily want to kidnap an ambassador’s wife. Not for the ransom, because that would be smart and not require her to be drowned in plastic and made into a mold, and Lily’s jealous because she thinks the white woman is too pretty, but will steal her party dress. It was also really nice of Chen to randomly yell out the address of his hideout to his assistant, who lives there, so Kendal could beat one of the ambassador’s servants (who isn’t working for Chen) for the information. Look, when “it’s better than the previous story” is the only positive thing you have to say, and the last story was Rex Dexter on Robot Planet, it’s not exactly a compliment.
Wing Turner: Air Detective by Floyd Kelly
Wing is in an plane race, but when he has engine trouble he’s forced to land, fight off crooks while his mechanic fixes the plane, allowing him to avoid bad winds and win the race anyway. We’re told the engine was sabotaged by the opponent but we’re taking his word for it. With more time this could have been a good story. I’m starting to think the Green Mask story was a fluke, but at least this was more entertaining that the last two stories. Barely.
Lt. Drake Of Naval Intelligence by F. Klaus
Opium, the go-to drug of the day, and this story finds Drake slowly break up the entire ring. I won’t spoil the story past that. It’s just Drake taking on bad guys and winning, but not without a challenge interesting enough to read. Things are getting better. Too bad next is another lame comedy and a text story that seems to have it’s own mystery man superhero called…”Mystery Man”. Is that where the title comes from? His enemy is almost as weakly named, Dr. Death. How original. (That’s sarcasm, by the way.) Anyway, next comic.
Captain Savage: Sea Rover by Arthur Reddy
Chinese pirates (because of course they’re Chinese in this comic) pillage an ivory shipment, and Savage will happily bring him in for the government…in return for half the stolen ivory. Our hero. Unlike our last seaman Savage and crew have no trouble capturing the pirate and escaping the government. I see our quality has started going down again.
The Blue Beetle by Charles Nicholas: “A Trap For The Blue Beetle”
A gang comes up with a plan to trap the Blue Beetle. You know, like the title says. Beetle and Franz come up with a disguise for him but it doesn’t really do anything one way or another. Mike is just there to be there, apparently the Beetle armor CAN take a blow to the head if one of the good guys hits him. These are distractions in an otherwise fair short story.
Inspector Bancroft Of Scotland Yard by Art Franklin: “…Smashes A Spy Ring”
It works better when you pair the titles: “Inspector Bancroft of Scotland Yard Smashes A Spy Ring”. And that’s what he does, after one of the saboteurs has a deathbed confession when he’s locked in with his own explosive. This is a story heavy on action and light on dialog…and given the dialog that’s probably for the best.
D-13: Secret Agent by S.R. Powell
Egyptian radicals want to get the Brits out of Egypt so of course the colonel stationed there asks an American spy to help. He immediately points out the enemy in their midst, exposes their plot, and captures the villain…who will be transported next issue. More continuity. Also nice of “Dick” to break the fourth wall to tell the readers when to get the next issue. I didn’t even know D-13 had a name.
Denny Scott Of The Bengal Lancers by L. Mayor
A tiger is attacking natives and our heroes go to kill it. The real hero of the story turns out to be the elephant. Again, an action story but a pretty good one.
Zanzibar The Magician by Geo. Tuska: “Marooned At The South Pole”
You know, I was expecting a wilder ride than I got considering this is our occulting magic user to end the comic. Zanzibar is on a boat looking for the “walrus people”. Unconnected to him is a man and daughter with the same goal, and the trio are the only survivor when the boat hits an iceberg. I’m guessing the only reason Zanzibar didn’t just magic the boat repairs is that the plot needed to happen. Of course the walrus people show up, of course the chief wants the pretty girl, and of course the magician just solves everything with magic. The weirdest part is Zanzibar fainting from a flesh wound from an arrow and letting us think he was dead. For a character like this that’s an odd thing to be the weirdest part. I was expecting madness, not minor weirdness!
overall
I can see why I stopped reading it at the time due to my mindset going into the Blue Beetle history, but I’m also glad I came back with the proper mindset. Some stories don’t hold up well, some are a product of the time, and a few were actually enjoyable. About part for the course in this time period.
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