Whiz Comics – Captain Marvel

Fawcett Publications, 1941

Paper Stock: glossy cover, newsprint interior, saddle-stitched binding

26.7 x 19.7 cm

Purchased from Toronto Comic Con, 1990

Personal Collection

Whiz Comics, published by Fawcett Comics from 1940-1953, was a monthly anthology series of comic books best known for publishing the superhero Captain Marvel, more commonly known by modern audiences as “Shazam”. Interestingly, National Comics Publications (NCP), the direct predecessor of DC comics and publisher of the first American superhero, Superman, found Captain Marvel’s character too similar to Superman in terms of the tight costume and power such as flight and strength. DC consequently sued Fawcett Comics for copyright infringement and they eventually ceased publishing anything.

Their termination greatly impacted the Golden Age of Comic Books, an era of American comic books from 1938 to 1956, as Captain Marvel was the best-selling superhero title during that period. For these reasons, this particular Whiz Comics comic book titled “CAPT. MARVEL Knocks Out a Tank!” is valuable and became a collectable that my father passed down to me. The story behind this specific comic and its significance is told directly by the cover art designed by American cartoonist, Charles Clarence Beck, and quite literally illustrates what was happening in the world during the time it was created in 1941. The Second World War was a global conflict that lasted from 1939 to 1945, and this comic chose to portray the battle between Germany and the United States.

This particular issue depicts American soldiers as superheroes combatting the Nazis, which served to make those that were enlisted feel proud to be American during the war effort. This comic book symbolizes hope and promotes an ideology of positivity that Americans would return victorious. It is also connected to an underlying theme of unity in that soldiers would return to and unite with their country and loved ones. Given that this comic book was created during World War Two, it commemorates the fallen soldiers. It also serves as a site invested with cultural meaning that is part of the shared history of Americans, highlighting the idea that Pierre Nora called “sites of memory”. In addition, this comic also resonates strongly with the United States and its people, especially the families of the soldiers, emphasizing Benedict Anderson’s concept of an “imagined community” which describes a shared sense of belonging, visible in countries around the world during the pandemic. This object is identified with the past, not only because of the war, but also because during that era comics were a popular form of media, and as such the message of a dedicated, unified, and triumphant country was reinforced.

Anjali Roychaudhuri