Hawkman is an idiot, a mewling kitten. 
Flash Comics #4 is an issue of the series Flash Comics (Volume 1) with a cover date of April, 1940.
Synopsis for The Flash: "The Gambling Ship"
The Flash finds a socialite, Marcia Van Doorn, in the ocean, and after rescuing Marcia from drowning, he runs so fast that her clothes dry in an instant. He learns that she was thrown overboard from a gambling ship. The gamblers have kidnapped her fiance, Jimmy Norton, the son of a steel magnate, in order to force his father to withdraw his support for the passage of an anti-gambling law. The Flash goes undercover as a gambler, cheats at roulette, explores the ship between spins of the wheel, rescues Jimmy, and prevents Mr. Norton from signing the withdrawal. Then he forces confessions from the kidnappers.
Appearing in The Flash: "The Gambling Ship"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- casino gangsters
- ship's crew
Other Characters:
- Marcia van Doorn, socialite
- Jimmy Norton
- Mr. Norton, steel magnate
- Henry, Norton's Chauffeur
Locations:
- New York City Area
- City Docks
- Jay Garrick's House
- Halwood
- Norton's Mansion
- corner of Second and Highland
- Atlantic Ocean
Vehicles:
- "The Seven Seas" Gambling Ship
- motor launch
- motor launch
Synopsis for "Cliff Cornwall, Special Agent: The Stolen Message"
Appearing in "Cliff Cornwall, Special Agent: The Stolen Message"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- corrupt oil magnate
- his fiancee
Other Characters:
- Ambassador From Sofia
Locations:
- Sofia
Synopsis for Hawkman: "The Thought Terror"
Carter Hall saves a man from being run down by a car; the man seems drunk, even to himself, but Hall can smell no alcohol on his breath. It turns out that the man has been hypnotized at the Futurists Club, by a cult leader calling himself "the Thought Terror." Taking with him a gladiatorial net, Hawkman captures and interrogates the driver of the car, and learns about the Thought Terror's racket: he hypnotizes his clients, predicts their fates, plants post-hypnotic suggestions to enforce those fates, and charges them money for it to boot. Hawkman invades the Futurists Club, and encounters some henchmen who have been hypnotized into invulnerability; they overpower and capture him, and lock him in a cell. Hawkman gets free with the help of Shiera, (who packs a handgun), and who smuggles a blowtorch into his cell. Then, using a shield as a mirror, the Hawk hunts the hypnotist in his darkened lair. The Thought Terror puts forth a hypnotic whammy ("Hawkman is an idiot, a mewling kitten") but the Hawk uses his shiny shield Perseus-style, to reflect the hypnotic influence back onto the villain, who loses his wits completely and ends up in a lunatic asylum. This has the follow-on effect of snapping his underlings out of his control, enabling them to return to their own lives.
Appearing in Hawkman: "The Thought Terror"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Thought Terror (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
- Thought-Terror's Hypnotized Minions
Locations:
- Earth-Two
- New York City
- Futurists Club
- New York City
Items:
- Hawkman's Nth Metal harness and weapons
Synopsis for Johnny Thunder: "Johnny Law"
Appearing in Johnny Thunder: "Johnny Law"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Daisy Darling
- Herman Darling (First appearance)
Antagonists:
- Gyp the Jeep
Synopsis for Rod Rian of the Sky Police: "The Deadly Pool"
Appearing in Rod Rian of the Sky Police: "The Deadly Pool"
Featured Characters:
- Rod Rian
Supporting Characters:
- Sky Police
Antagonists:
- dinosaur
- skeleton
- giant snake
Synopsis for The King: "The Stolen Washton Jewels"
Appearing in The King: "The Stolen Washton Jewels"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Myrna Mallon
Antagonists:
- Louie
- English Pete
Other Characters:
- Carla
- Mr. & Mrs. Washton
Items:
- Washton Jewels
Synopsis for Flash Picture Novelette: "Where There's a Will"
Appearing in Flash Picture Novelette: "Where There's a Will"
Featured Characters:
- Will Lawson, cowboy
- old prospector
- June, neice
Synopsis for The Whip: "The Plundered Peons"
Appearing in The Whip: "The Plundered Peons"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Animals:
- King, The Whip's Horse
Antagonists:
- Ambrose Grede
Notes
- Published monthly by All-American Comics, Inc.
- The Flash:
- When the Flash swims at super-speed the water behind him turns to steam.
- The Flash does cheat at roulette, but he gives away all the money he wins.
- Flash: The Gambling Ship is reprinted in Golden Age Flash Archives Volume 1.
- Hawkman:
- First issue for Sheldon Moldoff art.
- Carter Hall has a butler, but we never learn his name.
- Although he never reappears in another story, the Thought Terror is the first Hawkman villain to remain alive at the end of the story that introduces him.
- Hawkman: The Thought Terror is reprinted in The Greatest Golden Age Stories Ever Told and Golden Age Hawkman Archives Volume 1.
- Johnny Thunder: Johnny Law is reprinted in The JSA All Stars Archives Volume 1.
- Johnny punches the villain, Gyp the Jeep, into next week, literally.
- The Whip:
- First issue for Homer Fleming art.
- Prior to the events of this issue's story, The Whip already had local lawmen and vigilantes after him; after kidnapping and enslaving these wealthy landowners he now would seemingly have both state troopers and FBI agents looking for him.
- Also appearing in this issue of Flash Comics was "Adventure in a Time Warp, Part 2" (text story) by Gardner F. Fox
See Also