How could I be such a low-lifer and tramp before? It was stupid! Forgive me, sir, for trying to rob you! Crime does not pay! I can see that clearly now! 
- — Jud Hunkle
The Marvel Family #57 is an issue of the series The Marvel Family (Volume 1) with a cover date of March, 1951.
Synopsis for The Marvel Family: "The Marvel Family and The Land that Never Was"
A bandit gang led by Zakka Jorl is raiding the tiny island kingdom of Etan. In desperation, the king of Etan, Khan Lamma, sends a letter to the Marvel Family. Billy Batson opens all mail for the Marvel Family, and after reading it calls Mary and Freddy. They transform into the Marvel Family and fly to Etan, which they see is half fertile land and half mountains. They plan to inquire at a small native village, but find the bandits there are planning on looting the treasury. The Marvels easily defeat them, but Zakka fires an incendiary bullet at a thatched roof, catching it on fire. While working as a fire brigade using the well Zakka escapes into the mountains. The Marvels feel it will take too long trying to find him, so go to Khan Lamma and reveal their problem. Lamma says this is always a problem, half his land is flat, and half is mountainous. For years Zakka Jorl has raided his land and escaped into the mountains. Marvel finds they have looted another village and flies after them. A villager tells him the gang is heading for the Poison Sea, which Cap knows is between them and the mountains. However he cannot find them and realises they must have had a boat waiting, and due to the thick overhanging sea mist they escape to the foot of the mountains, Cap unable to see them. He sits on a rock and tries to think of a different way, and when Jr. and Mary Marvel find him he is laughing.
He asks Lamma if the Poison Sea is of any use, and is told its waters are poisonous and useless. Lamma would not mind if the mountains were gone, as only the bandits live there and his crowded people would have more room to live in. Cap then proposes they move the mountains into the Poison Sea. The Marvel Family first placed the biggest mountain into the sea, and Jr. says he will spread out the water and irrigate the surrounding desert sands. Chemical treatment can easily destroy the Poison and make the sand fertile according to him. The bandits are forced to flee deeper into the mountains, but soon the last mountain is uprooted. For some reason, the Marvels seemed more preoccupied with moving the last mountains then capturing the bandits who are in clear sight. Soon the whole of Etan is flat land.
Jr. finds a gold vein that will make the people wealthy. They go after the galloping horses, but find the bandits left their horses. They think the gold will soon attract the bandits and turn back to the Kids. They watch for the bandits on all sides, but attack comes from above, with the bandits leaping from the trees and knocking the Kids out. The moving of the mountains revealed hot underground springs, and Zakka orders his men to toss the Kids, who have been bound hand and foot and had their mouths gagged, in. If the heat does not kill them they will drown. Billy twists and removes his gag on a jagged rock, enabling him to transform. He removes the gags of the other two and flies them out of the waters, enabling them to transform. They catch the bandits, who did not get far carrying those heavy bags of gold, and take them to Khan Lamma's prison. Khan Lamma knows they do not accept gold or pay, so there is only one way he can show gratitude, by naming the new land Marvel Province.
Appearing in The Marvel Family: "The Marvel Family and The Land that Never Was"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Khan Lamma of Etan
Antagonists:
- Zakka Jorl and his raiders
Other Characters:
Locations:
- Earth-S
- New York City
- The Kingdom of Etan
- The Marvel Province
- The Poison Sea (Destroyed)
- The Etan Mountains (Destroyed)
Items:
Vehicles:
Synopsis for Captain Marvel: "Captain Marvel and The Mystery of the Lost Sense"
Two evil cooks, Clem and Dubner, intend to use the power of the sense of taste to break into the Biddletown Post Office by painting something on the stamps and sneaking them in. The next day, Mr. Morris and Billy Batson head to Biddletown, the Town with the Freshest Finest Food in the World! Mr. Morris, a proto-foodie, has come here to enjoy their guaranteed fresh foods. While they wait at a restaurant, they sign some greeting cards to send back to others. However, after they lick their stamps, the two of them are stunned to find they can’t taste anything! Clem and Dubner, who run the only Canned Goods store in Biddletown, snicker about having used a paralyzing agent in the stamps to make people lose their sense of taste! To solve this, Billy calls SHAZAM and Captain Marvel stops being from throwing dishes and saying the chef and management didn’t do anything and tastes the food himself to find it’s delicious and that they’ve actually lost their sense of taste! Captain Marvel finds many people are going to see Dr. Smith, the local doctor, due to having overseasoned their food so much that they got sick or from confusing sugar and salt (since they can’t taste the difference.) Captain Marvel next heads to the pharmacy to use their laboratory to make an antidote.
Next, Clem and Dubner start spreading rumors that food has been poisoned and people won’t be able to taste it now, making everyone worry about the freshness of the food and instead rush to buy a bunch of canned food and that Clem and Dubner are raking in the cash with inflated prices. Captain Marvel figures out what they’re doing and punches over the two goons and they’re soon arrested. Later, Captain Marvel cures everyone in Biddletown and is chef for a barbecue and Mr. Morris eats 10-11 barbecue sandwiches in a row!
Appearing in Captain Marvel: "Captain Marvel and The Mystery of the Lost Sense"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Clem
- Dubner
Other Characters:
- Dr. Smith
Locations:
- Earth-S
- Biddletown
- Biddletown Canned Goods
- Biddletown Post Office
- Dr. Smith's Office
- Biddletown
Items:
- Taste-Paralyzing Stamps
- 10-11 Barbecue Sandwiches
Vehicles:
Synopsis for Mary Marvel, the World's Mightiest Girl!: "Mary Marvel Battles the Collector of Hate!"
Someone calls Mr. Patterson to wake him up and annoy him, who sends a letter to him of hatred at Box 1034. The Hate Collector has already tried putting glue in people's heads, and sending dead fish to people. He then tries to paint the house of people on holiday black, and when Mary Marvel sees someone has broken in due to the light being on and tries to stop him, he blinds her with black paint and escapes. He causes trouble around the area, putting a skunk in a new car, poisoning a dog, and chopping a tree down, leaving notes telling people to send hate letters to Box 1034. Mary Marvel tries to find him by waiting at Box 1034, oddly enough the police have not got the idea, but turns to Mary Batson so he will not stay away. When the Hate Collector sees her watching for him, he gags her by stuffing a letter into her mouth, then kidnaps her, holding his hand over her mouth and holding her hands so she cannot remove the letter, saying people will think she's his daughter who got sick. At his house he binds and gags her, then reveals his biggest plot. He will pretend that seismographs show that an earthquake will destroy the city and it must be evacuated. From his plane he plans to drop the leaflets ordering evacuation of the town, and throws out Mary too. Mary twists about and hooks her gag on an aerial, transforms, and gives the hate of Mary Marvel to the Hate Collector by hitting him. He is then jailed, and apparently hates it.
Appearing in Mary Marvel, the World's Mightiest Girl!: "Mary Marvel Battles the Collector of Hate!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- The Hate Collector
Other Characters:
- Mr. Patterson
- Towser the Dog
Locations:
- Earth-S
- New York City
- The Blaine Family's House
- New York City
Items:
- Fake Earthquake Warning Handbills (Destroyed)
Vehicles:
- The Hate Collector's Plane
Synopsis for Capt. Marvel, Jr.: "Capt. Marvel, Jr. and the Floating Department Store"
Freddy Freeman finds Mrs. Wagner is trying to figure which of two department stores to try out their delivery service. Freddy points out they’re both decent stores as handbills float down from the sky advertising that Maxon’s Department Store promises instant delivery (though it actually takes a few minutes.) Mrs. Wagner tries it out by ordering a coffeepot and it arrives in exactly three minutes and 27 seconds, floating outside on a little parachute being dropped from a blimp via their new Sky Delivery Service! Freddy points out that this makes it look like Maxon’s will now easily beat out their rivals, Daggert’s, but quickly calls CAPTAIN MARVEL when he finds the blimp is almost crashing into an office building! Captain Marvel, Jr. flies in to turn it around and boards the vessel to talk to Martin Maxon and the blimp’s captain, who says that someone must’ve altered the controls while he was off the bridge. Maxon discards the idea that it’s gremlins and shows off that they sell large comfortable furniture on his Floating Department Store and that his rival, Daniel Daggert, will surely be very sore. They hear a loud hiss and find that someone’s cut a hole in the blimp and Junior uses his cape to patch it until the workmen can put a more permanent patch on and Junior calls CAPTAIN MARVEL to return to being Freddy to look around. Freddy soon finds an employee trying to start a small fire next to inflammable items, but the man punches him out and leaves him bound and gagged next to the inflammable boxes, only for Freddy to slip his gag on a bike handle, call CAPTAIN MARVEL and then punch him out as Captain Marvel Junior, finding that it was Daniel Daggert wearing a mask. Daggert cops to trying to sabotage Maxon’s lucrative business blimp. Later, Freddy finds Mrs. Wagner can’t decide if she should return a blue or red dress and is now back to a binary choice...
Appearing in Capt. Marvel, Jr.: "Capt. Marvel, Jr. and the Floating Department Store"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Daniel Daggert
Other Characters:
- Martin Maxon
Locations:
- Earth-S
- New York City
- Mrs. Wagner's Boarding House
- Maxon's Floating Department Store
- New York City
Items:
- A Coffeepot
- A Red Dress
- A Blue Dress
Vehicles:
- The Sky Delivery Service Blimp
Synopsis for Captain Marvel: "Captain Marvel Battles the Runaway Genius"
Prof. Joel Jackson is a renowned professor who is suddenly mugged by a drifter, Jud Hunkle, pulling a knife on him. Billy Batson, walking by, calls SHAZAM to summon Captain Marvel to stop him, punching him over. However, Prof. Jackson says he’s intent on teaching him how to be a good citizen with “thoton” therapy. Inviting Captain Marvel back to his lab, he reveals “thotons” are some kind of physical unit of thought and blasting him with a thoton ray that will make him smarter and therefore, stop being a drifter. Jud realizes that he’s been wasting his life and that crime won’t pay off in the end and, though Captain Marvel warns it could wear off in hours, Prof. Jackson insists that he take care of Jud until tomorrow at least. The next day, Captain Marvel meets a changed Jud, who now dresses like Johnny Thunder and is now a polite lab assistant. Captain Marvel is impressed and hopes to return tomorrow to see if Jud becomes something of a genius. The next day, Captain Marvel finds that Jud is now so smart that Prof. Jackson gave him his own lab and now he’s made a painting, wrote a short opera, made an exquisite clay model and is painting art now. Suddenly, Jud flings paint at Prof. Jackson for disturbing his work, but Captain Marvel chalks it up to temperamental nature of geniuses. Jud quickly goes back to work and Captain Marvel again warns that Jud may become troublesome with too much of a good thing, but Prof. Jackson insists it’ll be fine. A day further still, Billy arrives to find that Jud is now the smartest person in the world and has already become smarter than Einstein, demanding more pressing problems and ranting how he’s smarter than everyone else by far. He decides now that the human race is stupid for not being as smart as him and he has created a formula for a doomsday weapon far more powerful than the atom bomb. When Billy goes to say his magic word, Jud cold-cocks him and Billy wakes up bound and gagged next to a similarly bound and gagged Prof. Jackson. Jud shows off his new disintegration ray that he intends to use to attack the world one person at a time and then destroys the Thoton Projector, so no one can become as smart as him. The blast cuts off Billy’s gag with a shard of glass and calls SHAZAM to summon Captain Marvel to punch Jud over and arrest him. Captain Marvel finds that his genius has given way to madness and that he’s now too smart to be understood by others. Prof. Jackson destroys his thoton research forever, saying it is too dangerous to use.
Appearing in Captain Marvel: "Captain Marvel Battles the Runaway Genius"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Professor Joel Jackson
Antagonists:
- Jud Hunkle, the Runaway Genius
Other Characters:
Locations:
- Earth-S
- New York City
- Prof. Jackson's Laboratory
- New York City
Items:
- Jackson's Thoton Projector (Destroyed)
- Hunkle's Disintegration Ray (Destroyed)
Vehicles:
See Also