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[MarkWarner]

Last week's Two-Bit the Wacky Woodpecker received a luke warm reception so let's hope for better things this week with an earlyish book from 1940.

Amazing Man Comics #11 can be found at https://comicbookplus.com/?dlid=24360, and the story we are concentrating on is .. well actually I thought as there were a few good candidates .. choose your own .. or read the lot as I intend to do!

[narfstar]

I have a coverless copy of this book. It was my posting of Amazing Man and some Fiction House stuff that, I was told, inspired the once premier site PRESCRIPTION FOR EXCITEMENT.

[Morgus]

You have to love these oldie goldies...from the scripts with words like 'swell', and 'zounds', to the art that is just this side of anarchy. They were still making the rules and "Uncle Joe" was probably hoping for something really big like Superman...lots of fun, and a hell of a bargain for a dime.

[crashryan]

I'm a sucker for super-early comics. Their youthful vigor (not to mention their often bizarre concepts) makes up for some crude art and weak writing.

Bill Everett developed early as an artist, but in the Aman strip he isn't quite there yet. Nevertheless you see glimmers of greatness. Aman sure looks like Sub-Mariner, though. Everett's script reads well. It's much tighter than those of the other features. Funny, Everett drew that off-the-shoulder torn blouse repeatedly throughout his career (or at least whenever the Code let him). I enjoyed this one.

I also enjoyed Chuck Hardy. Not because it's good, like Amazing Man, but because it's wonderfully weird. How can one resist pigmy lobster men?

The Iron Skull is rather ugly. I can't figure out how much of the guy is iron, and therefore invulnerable, but I simply can't take seriously a guy who breaks down doors by head-butting them. And why is the story set in 1971, when everything in both script and art is just like 1940?

Minimidget has a certain appeal because of its strangeness, but it's a bit too crude for me. It's interesting seeing a tiny superhero who doesn't have the strength of a full-size person. Unfortunately that means he can't accomplish much without help. I don't understand Ritty. She seems every bit as capable as MM and could have helped overcome the pirates. But all she does is watch admiringly and later tell him how wonderful he is.

Zardi is ho-hum. His going back and forth from old to young is unique but his main "power" is basically a super-bullwhip.

The Shark is a complete mess. Though his art isn't that much worse than that of other beginners in the issue, it's hard to believe "Lew Glanz" developed into Lew Glanzman, world-class illustrator. The script reaches new heights of ineptitude. I love that last panel, where a talking puddle tells us the guy who was tortured to death was really just in a coma and he'll be fine. But what can you expect from a guy who spends most of his time channel surfing to find the bad guys? Despite all this, The Shark delivers the best line in the book:

"The quicker belligerent countries find out America don't want war the better off they'll be. Americans won't fight unless America is in danger and America won't be in danger if Americans stay American!"

Mighty Man is nothing special but the story is appealingly odd. I don't remember any other comic characters who turned into Coal Men because they were forced to eat coal to survive.

You can almost see John Giunta's mature style in some panels of "The Magician from Mars." The script has major problems. If the good Martians already had an impenetrable force field why didn't they use it the first time they attacked the rebels? Does Jane have super-strength or does her vague "magic" let her swing a tank by its barrel? The crowning glory is the finish. I sincerely hope this was a chapter of a serial. Otherwise Auntie came totally out of left field. This is fanzine stuff.

Summing up: Despite its crudity I found this comic an entertaining blast from the childhood of the comic book.

[SuperScrounge]

Actually read this back in 2011, and posted nits I found in it over at NitCentral (http://nitcentral.philfarrand.com/cgi-bin/discus/discus.cgi)

Purification! - Bill Everett's last Amazing Man story, also the first one to have his "costume" and the first appearance of Zona Henderson, girl hostage. As stories go it's a breezy sort, fixing problems that had come up during the earlier stories and setting the stage for future stories as well as making him look more like a superhero.
Problems... he flew from Tibet and somehow ended up over Louisiana? Aren't there thousands of miles of America on either side of that state?
Man, had Bill Everett even seen a panther before?

Chuck Hardy - Nice & breezy again. I like the Chuck Hardy series, but they do do tend to zip along through the Land Beneath the Sea like tourists. ;-)

The Iron Skull - Ah, the far future year of 1971. I wonder what things will be like then? ;-) Okay story.

Minimidget - These stories were always a bit odd, they seem to take a more leisurly pace than the rest. At this point he helps out when he can, but hasn't fully embraced the superhero schtick and inexplicably gained superstrength yet. Okay, but not as good as the Iron Skull story.

Three-Ring Death - An Amazing Man text story. Okay. Clearly the illustrator drew this before the new costume was designed or hadn't seen it yet.

The Eternal Man - Eh. Interesting ideas, but it just didn't grab me.

The Shark - Okay.

Mighty Man and the Coal People - Probably the worst Mighty Man story.

The Magician from Mars - Not a bad wrap-up to the series.

I notice that the GCD has the stories in a different order than this. Which is correct?

[bowers]

This one was just a lot of fun! Wonderful to see some art by Everett, Frank Thomas, and Lew Glanzman.
Loved the first story- strange as it was. Chock-full of pirates, a damsel in distress (with a ripped bodice), hungry crocs and of course, The Great Question. Where did he get that costume?
                                                                                                                                                             Chuck Hardy was pretty good, too. Funny comic-strip cartoony style by Thomas but it fit the story well. Pygmy lobstermen versus frogmen, a giant riding-turtle, and lots of good old-fashioned mayhem. Thumbs up.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Zardi had a nice gimmick, but it was a little confusing. Pretty much a Mandrake knockoff.
                                                                                                                                                             Now, The Shark is a guy who means business! A masked, bulletproof knifeman who throws baddies across the room and then leaves a puddle on the floor as his dramatic exit! Ultra-silly, but fun to read.

Mighty Man and Magician of Mars were both rather good, easily better than The Iron Skull and Minimidget tales.In Mighty Man, the coal people idea was priceless.In Magician of Mars we got some great Martian battles.

Absolutely enjoyed this one- a kid got a lot for his dime in this issue! Cheers, Bowers

[MarkWarner]

Turning the cool cover we find a message from Uncle Joe (the editor), offering free gifts for filling in a simple survey. Is it simply a readership survey, or is he after addresses? I am not sure if there was much unsolicited mail back then.

The Great Question has a cool outfit, love the question mark on his forehead! Aman (aka Amazing Man) is certainly not an eco-warrior, it was not very green killing all those crocs! The story is a serial and consequently we jumped in and back out of the plot, but it was great! Story line is cool and I like the art and layout style of the "older comics".

Next is Chuck Hardy in Land Beneath the Sea (BTW our book and the GCD entry do not agree about story positions). It is CRAZY: "This is Jumbleskustanikan". I also guess for evil two heads are better than one: "They are many, and are directed by their two-headed master, the cunning Toga!!"

Wow that was even cooler, but again it's part of a serial. This book can't fail now, it's a hit no matter what. Iron skull continues the awesomeness of the book. Minimidget - The Super-Midget confirms this is the book that just keeps giving!

"Minimidget and Ritty, two supermidgets, the size of a human hand. Find adventure around the world.  They flew to Africa in a 3 foot rocket ship, and now are about to leave by boat"

Minor point, someone needs a lesson in apostrophes and when not to use them "up with you're hands", "the boat is on it's way"

The two page text story was amazingly bad (good) trash. Blimey, whoever wrote this be having a laugh with their friends. Next up the seemingly immortal Zardi who among other things saw the pyramids built and the red sea parted. Question is will he live long enough to see Google, Starbucks or Amazon paying taxes?

The Shark is an isolationist, whose grammar and punctuation (or lack of it) leave a lot to be desired!

"The quicker belligerent countries find out America don't want war the better off they'll be REAL wont fight unless America is in danger and America won't be in danger if Americans stay American"

O and also providing Japan doesn't decide to sneak up behind you and blow a big hole in your fleet. I am not very keen on The Shark. I am hoping better for "Mighty Man and the Coal People". And he is good, maybe slightly suspect, but good!

We are in the final leg with The Magician From Mars, who appears to have stolen Flash Gordon's spacecraft, despite being told: "Sorry I cannot let anyone have a spaceship, even a distinguished person as you" And what a fitting finale. The Magician (a beautiful blonde called Jane) was the best of a good bunch!

Verdict: A certain hit, and the realization I prefer our "older comics". If you haven't already then this is a MUST READ!

[narfstar]

I can not objectively evaluate these Centaur comics. This was one of my earliest GA comics to own. They are just plain cool. That is all I can say.