Namor75: Namor the Sub-Mariner Readathon

[Reviresco]

Also that month of December 1940 he starts being published as a backup of the Human Torch comics. I don't have access to those reprints, wish somebody else could start putting highlight scans of those at the same time so we had the complete chronology. The image below is an add published in Marvel Mystery Comics #14 announcing the Sub-mariner adventures in Human Torch comics.



Per Marvel Comics Index besides Marvel Mystery Comics Namor appears in:
Quote:
"
Sub-Mariner 1-42
Human Torch Comics 1-33, 36-38
All Winners Comics 1-19, 21 and second series #1
All Select Comics 1-5, 10
Blonde Phantom Comics 13-15, 17-22
Daring Comics 9-12
Captain America Comics 20, 68 and 70
Young Men 24-28
Men's adventures 27, 28
Namora Comics 1-3
Kid Comics 4

For a total of 292 Golden Age stories (as counted by Mike Nolan in his handy Timely Comics Index, now long out of print)."

That house ad is fantastic! I like the negative image of Namor and Torch on the sides. If you see anymore with Namor, could you post them too? That one tells us exactly where the Human Torch 2 story fits in.

I do have those, so I'll see if I can do a write up for it.

I'll have to see what I have off that very helpful list. I do have the Atlas and All Winners stuff. Not sure about the Blonde Phantom or Daring Comics though. Or Namora! I wonder if those have been reprinted?

[Thor-El]

That house ad is fantastic! I like the negative image of Namor and Torch on the sides. If you see anymore with Namor, could you post them too?

I sure will.

That one tells us exactly where the Human Torch 2 story fits in.

I do have those, so I'll see if I can do a write up for it.

That would be awesome!

I'll have to see what I have off that very helpful list. I do have the Atlas and All Winners stuff. Not sure about the Blonde Phantom or Daring Comics though. Or Namora! I wonder if those have been reprinted?

We can probably figure out the chronology by the cover month.

[Reviresco]

I sure will.

Thank you!

That would be awesome!

Well, I'll try.

We can probably figure out the chronology by the cover month.

The Torch book started out quarterly, so it says Fall, IIRC. That's why your ad was so great, since it gave the on sale date.

[Abe]

Where the Human Torch comics Sub-mariner stories drawn by Bill Everett? I know he was drawn in those other comics like All Winners Squad etc. with a real ugly triangular face, very weird and extremely alien looking, almost like a Manta Ray. His body was extremely buff too almost like a Hulk but with a smaller waist and wrists. I don't think that was Everett drawing. I've seen some of those stories and there is some big inconsistencies with them, in some of them Namor seems weaker and I think he even gets wounded with a gunshot in one of them.

The weird triangular face can be seen also in the Sub-Mariner Comics magazine at a time, while in the first issues of All Winners Everett draws the Sub-Mariner stories (like the one with Strong Gal). Haven't Everett had a time in the army that led to a change of artist ?

[Abe]

That is an interesting choice of names ... though maybe it had something to do with his odd horned gas masks. Emphasis on ODD.

We'll have to get a translation from Abe on the little bit of French.

Wow, you've got good eyes! I didn't realize that was an octopus. Of course, I just figured out that I should use 'view image' on the montage pic to see it full sized.

I don't see Namor as a fast food, grab his food on the run, kind of guy. He can stand the cold, but there's plenty of other 'weather' that he might want to avoid. Especially on the surface. I think the sun would be more of an issue. Plus, there's the element of privacy and some protection while one sleeps -- especially with Dorma with him.

How about that business of Dorma being able to breathe air via surgery? I think that got dumped later also.

I've said this before, but since we see it again here, I'll repeat. We see Namor interacting and dealing with women (Fen and Dorma) in an everyday, positive fashion, much more than in other books, where the "side-kicks" and companions are male.

I can do that ! But nothing really interesting :

Dépéchez." Hurry up.

"Qu'est-ce que c'est ?" What is that ?

"C'est bon." That's good.

I like the French guys : how they look or react. Mustaches and kinda of different take on the character of Namor. Really funny ! But I'm troubled by the island. In one of the stories we can see palm trees is the background... So it must be a Caribbean island... But it doesn't really look like that Still not really realistic but tasting a little bit more like Martinique or Guadeloupe, a few years later Howard Hawks will give us that :

[Abe]

That IS a great story! I love Namor hauling a chained line of subs to another island. Pure awesome.

I also love how polite Namor is in French. LOL!

Yes ! Both are awesome !

I'm not sure if all the stories for the next couple of years, but even the war stories are not all just simple war stories. I remember one about the dreaded Nazi Zombie Menance! Duh duh duuunnnnn!

There's a team of killer swordfishes too - linked to a strange cult or secret society IIRC... It's just : wow!!!

I'm not sure ... Despite the Cap 75th Anniversary Special's claim, Everett was the first at Timely to have a superhero fight Nazis ... back in MMC 3 or 4. But there was definitely a large portion of the US that didn't want to have anything to do with the war -- until Pearl Harbor, of course. So maybe Everett was covering both bases?

But it also works as an attitude of Namor as an outsider / 'utopian' society who doesn't understand the 'madness" of the surface dwellers.

I'm still intrigued by the SS Recovery boat in the first issue... But I love over interpreting things...

[Thor-El]

Marvel Mystery Comics #15 Namor returns to the United States to abduct Lynne and claim her as his wife. Luther comes along and gets operated to become a human submariner like Lynne. They both attempt to escape but are easily re-captured by Namor.



The above are selected scans that highlight the main points of a story to generate discussion in a forum. You can read the complete story by purchasing the Marvel Masterworks: Golden Age Marvel Comics Vol. 4 (Marvel Mystery Comics #13–16) or any other available reprints.
http://www.amazon.com/Marvel-Masterw...KV8Z84HAT78TE3

[Reviresco]

The whole Lynne and Luther thing was weird to me. Like what was Fen thinking??? It seemed completely counter to her plan to make Namor more Atlantean than any other Atlantean. Especially when you have Dorma RIGHT THERE. Maybe this is where Parker got the idea for the secret genetics council ... another idea I found weird.

[Thor-El]

The whole Lynne and Luther thing was weird to me. Like what was Fen thinking??? It seemed completely counter to her plan to make Namor more Atlantean than any other Atlantean. Especially when you have Dorma RIGHT THERE. Maybe this is where Parker got the idea for the secret genetics council ... another idea I found weird.

The only thing that makes sense to me is that Fen was wanting to experiment trying to create a stronger super soldier by mixing to a third generation hybrid. If Fen was first generation hybrid and had some special qualities, then Namor a 3/4th human like he says had some super strength maybe Fen was thinking more human in the mix means more superhuman.

[Reviresco]

The only thing that makes sense to me is that Fen was wanting to experiment trying to create a stronger super soldier by mixing to a third generation hybrid. If Fen was first generation hybrid and had some special qualities, then Namor a 3/4th human like he says had some super strength maybe Fen was thinking more human in the mix means more superhuman.

Yes, that plays into the Parker secret eugenics program. But I don't think that really fits Silver Age Fen ... or even later Golden Age Fen. Of course, the idea of continuity was just being established (mostly by Everett), as well as the characters. I view this storyline as Everett playing around with stories and ideas.

[Thor-El]

Yes, that plays into the Parker secret eugenics program. But I don't think that really fits Silver Age Fen ... or even later Golden Age Fen. Of course, the idea of continuity was just being established (mostly by Everett), as well as the characters. I view this storyline as Everett playing around with stories and ideas.

What is the Parker secret eugenics program?

[Reviresco]

What is the Parker secret eugenics program?

It was a big retcon that occurred in Jeff Parker's 2nd Agent of Atlas book. He said there'd been a secret eugenics council for 100s or 1000s of years, that had manipulated the royal family in a breeding program with air breathers to make super powered Atlantean rulers, of which Namor and Namora were the results. They were supposed to marry and have the ultimate Atlantean ruler. He also made Namora's father an adopted kid into the royal family, adopted for her genetics, apparently. Plus, that would mean Namora and Namora weren't actually blood related instead of 2nd cousins or something.

[Mantis Girl 94]

OMG, this one had me LMAO!!!!!!

Queen of the Sharks?! Fen sure does have a lot of titles LOL
Annual religious ritual "birth of the seal"?!
Princess of Aquaria?
Namor as a cop?
Luthor stabbing the poor doctor and saying he is; "Not dead, just out of circulation"? Heck, ever heard of the circulatory system Luthor....you bleed too much you die! LOL
and best line of all of course; "Greetings Chicken"!!!! LOL

All in all my favorite scan to date... I so want an omnibus of ALL of the GA stuff now... this stuff is priceless!

Thank you sooooooooo much for posting it Thor-Ey!

[Mantis Girl 94]

...also,

Are all GA comics this Great?!!!! If so, I am going to have to get Superman and Batman's stuff, plus any Marvel stuff I can get my hands on.

The Silver age is great, but nothing like the GA has made me LOL is quite a while!

[Reviresco]

Greetings, Chicken! is hilarious and one of the things I love about Namor's Golden Age appearances.

...also,

Are all GA comics this Great?!!!! If so, I am going to have to get Superman and Batman's stuff, plus any Marvel stuff I can get my hands on.

The Silver age is great, but nothing like the GA has made me LOL is quite a while!

Hmmm. I don't know. I've only really read the Namor stuff, and I get the feeling that he's more amusing than others. Definitely haven't read any DC stuff, but I bet the Wonder Woman stuff is a lot of fun.