Eight Swaggering Heroes! Eight Men Keen-Witted, Muscular and Daring!
All-Star Comics #15 is an issue of the series All-Star Comics (Volume 1) with a cover date of February, 1943.
Appearing in Justice Society of America: "The Man Who Created Images"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Clarice Winston
- Dian Belmont
- Doris Lee
- Hawkgirl
- Hooty the Owl
- Inza Cramer
- Mary James
- Myra Mason
- Peachy Pet
- Sandy The Golden Boy
- the Thunderbolt
Antagonists:
- Brain Wave (First appearance historically)
- Baldy
- Big John Timberlake
- Big Turk Thompson
- Homer Nelson
- Horatio Morrison
- "Hunky" Pollak
- "Runty" Becker
- Stanley Cord
- Sticker
- "Tiny" Norman
Other Characters:
- Attila the Hun (As an illusion only)
- Charles Shannon
- Edwin Ackerman
- "Fan" Gregory
- Hedda Shannon
- Jason Shannon
- Johnny Spartan
- Julius Caesar (As an illusion only)
- Sir Lancelot (As an illusion only)
- "Lefty" Madden
- Lucy Ackerman
- Mark Nevil
- Rubberman Nevil
Locations:
- Earth-Two
- First Union Bank
- Hudson Valley Mansion
- Industrial Trust Company
- JSA Headquarters
- Morrison Museum
- St. Louis, Missouri
- Salem, Massachusetts
- Sharktooth Bay
Items:
- Amulet of Anubis
- Bracelets of Submission
- Cloak of Destiny
- Doctor Fate's Half-Helmet
- Rostoff Diamonds
- Starman's Gravity Rod
- Wonder Woman's Tiara
- Ticker tape
Vehicles:
- Sandmobile
Synopsis for Justice Society of America: "The Man Who Created Images"
All eight members of the Justice Society fail to show up to the monthly meeting, except Wonder Woman, because each one is trying to finish up their own cases. Each member does send an apology letter. Reading their letters, Wonder Woman realizes the same man is behind each of the eight cases. To show up Hawkman, Wonder Woman plans to crack the case first by rounding up the member's girlfriends and having them dress in their respective boyfriend's costumes and catch the ringleader first.
Each of the individual adventures for the Justice Society are narrated from the apology letter they've written to Wonder Woman. Hawkman is trying to stop murderers who turn invisible when they're touched. He searches a murdered man's apartment, which leads him to the crime boss "Tiny" Norman. However, it turns out Tiny is only working for the Brain Wave, who can make realistic images. Doctor Mid-Nite, as Dr. McNider, is approached by a sculptor that thinks he is going crazy because he sees his statues come to life and talk to him. Dr. Mid-Nite uncovers a plot to steal the sculptor's money by getting him committed to an asylum. After tracking down the leader of the plot, he is informed that the Brain Waver was behind the whole plot. After getting a zero on his naval officer's exam Johnny Thunder has his Thunderbolt force him into a closed museum to do some studying. The museum happens to be where the Brain Wave keeps all of his loot from his robberies. Some of the exhibits come alive, and the Thunderbolt deals with them. Then Johnny and the Thunderbolt find out the truth about the museum from the museum owner. The Atom investigates baseball slugger Johnny Spartan, who has suddenly gotten over his hitting slump, but seems to be making deliberate fielding mistakes. Spartan beat his slump with help from an agent of the Brain Wave, and is throwing games as payback. Learning this, the Atom sends Spartan back to the agent to learn who is behind the gambling operation. Wesley Dodds and Sandy become targets of a criminal racket where people have realistic nightmares about the Sandman, only to be woken up and blackmailed by the Sandman. Knowing it's a trick, Wesley and Sandy defeat the phony Sandman, only to have him disappear. Following the money of another victim, Sandman and Sandy track down the head of the operation, and also learn that the Brain Wave was behind the whole thing. The Starman rescues physicist Edwin Ackerman from little phantoms who have been harassing and attacking him in an attempt to drive him insane. Starman learns that Ackerman has a childhood enemy, Henry King, who has always been able to control images. King vowed revenge when Ackerman later married their childhood playmate, Lucy. Starman pays a visit to King, but without proof of wrongdoing, can do nothing. When Starman returns to Ackerman, he finds two thugs trying to kill Lucy. Upon defeating them, he learns that the Brain Wave is the villain behind the attempted murder. The Spectre has similar trouble with disappearing villains, but after studying the crimes, successfully predicts the next, and forces robbers to turn on their leader. Tracking down the leader, the Spectre also discovers the true mastermind. "Fan" Gregory, a notorious hit-man is trying to go straight after being released from prison, however the ghosts of the men he's killed are haunting him, insisting he gives them the combination to a bank vault. Not knowing what else to do, Fan seeks help from Doctor Fate. Doctor Fate sets a trap at the bank, catching the crooks. Interrogating the crooks further, he finds that the ghosts were created by the Brain Wave. At the end of each adventure, all members set off after the Brian Wave and finish their apology letter to Wonder Woman.
We see the Brain Wave preparing for the arrival of the Justice Society, and reminiscing about his youth, as Henry King. Outcast by society, he finds he has the power to create three-dimensional images of whatever person or persons he thinks of. He becomes the Brain Wave, master criminal and ruler of a network of frightened gangsters. Returning to the present, Wonder Woman and her gang arrive first, but get locked up when they follow Brain Wave's images of the Justice Society. When the Justice Society breaks in, the Brain Wave gasses the girls, but Wonder Woman breaks out of the cell, startling the Brain Wave, who falls backwards out of his tower, apparently to his death.
Notes
- This is Brain Wave's first historical appearance. He first appears chronologically in All-Star Squadron Vol 1 17.
- A Post-Crisis retcon of this story is shown in Starman Vol 2 69, but without Myra Mason and Mary James, although they are shown as daydreams; besides, Earth-Two Wonder Woman is substituted by Hippolyta. Besides, the retcon fixes the script error that implies that Doris Lee and Clarice Winston know the secret identities of Starman and Spectre.
- Published by All-American Comics, Inc.
- Reprinted in All-Star Comics Archives Vol. 4.
- Also appearing in this issue of All-Star Comics was:
- "Death Rays from the Sun" (text story, featuring Hop Harrigan)
- Sandman wears his golden and purple costume, without gas mask.
- In this point of time Johnny Thunder is a sailor.
- Peachy Pet is only a powerless kid in this point of time. She doesn't wear a heroic costume here, but in the retcon, she does.
- In Pre-Crisis, Clarice Winston had no immortality. Then here she is really risking her own life.
- This is Inza's first appearance as Doctor Fate; but she would not adopt the identity again (along with the real magical powers) several years later.
- This IS NOT the first appearance of Shiera Sanders as Hawkgirl; This happened on the issue #5.
Trivia
- No trivia.
