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When a recent request for more golden age characters came, I immediately thought of this guy, who's actually appeared in various comics in the modern age, including a webcomic called Heroes Inc. and even had a bit of a shout-out by Grant Morrison in Multiversity. I'm not sure why this character always stuck with me. Maybe it's because I like the name, maybe I find his costume simple but memorable, maybe it's because I like the idea of a patriotic hero with Superman level powers. Or maybe it's because his origin really, really should have just killed him.
But don't take my word for it. Take a look at his origin yourself.
Warning for female abuse.
From Thrilling Comics #19, copyright August 1941, now in public domain. Creators unknown, but possibly Kin Platt and Ned Pines, who are credited as artist and editor of this issue respectively.


















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Date: 2017-03-05 12:48 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-05 12:57 am (UTC)*giggles like a ten year old*
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Date: 2017-03-05 09:00 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-05 01:13 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-05 01:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-05 02:51 am (UTC)I feel like this applies to the Crusader. You got a pretty solid superhero setup here. The Crusader himself is an obvious Superman knockoff, but that is a very distinctive and memorable costume design. I'd say it's conceivable that he might've been a bigger deal had he been published by DC or Marvel's predecessors.
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Date: 2017-03-05 04:35 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-05 09:14 am (UTC)It's interesting how quickly he goes from "Mercy--I shouldn't have done that! I lost my temper" after (justifiably) punching out the mugger to, as you say, casually blowing up the conspirators.
Also--psst, astronomy professor: It's "planetesimal," not "planetissimal."
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Date: 2017-03-05 12:59 pm (UTC)And the Crusader has been brought back a few times. There's the Heroes Inc. webcomic mentioned above, but Alan Moore also used in his Tom Strong comics where he lived on a duplicate Earth called Terra Obscura with other public domain heroes.
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Date: 2017-03-05 05:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-05 05:49 am (UTC)This is delightful, thanks for sharing :D Did the Crusader have more adventures?
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Date: 2017-03-06 02:49 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-05 06:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-05 09:28 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-06 02:52 am (UTC)I mean, at least the Hulk was created thanks to espionage.
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Date: 2017-03-05 03:57 pm (UTC)Wow, so the gentle prof is really quite the casual killer! That mug he knocks off the building presumably went splat, and he kills all the conspirators.
I do like him buying his costume piece-by-piece. :)
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Date: 2017-03-06 12:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-03-08 11:17 am (UTC)Yes, how dare you perform an incredible inhuman feat! Why, I oughta run you in for breaking the laws of physics!