Adventure Comics #51
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeAdventure Comics #51 is a representative snapshot of DC's rapidly consolidating Golden Age superhero anthology at a critical moment in early 1940, when two Justice Society founding members—the Sandman and Hour-Man—shared pages in the same book just months before they would join the JSA together in All-Star Comics #3. The Sandman story 'The Pawn Broker,' scripted by Gardner Fox with art by Creig Flessel, proved durable enough to be reprinted four separate times over the following decades, attesting to its standing as one of the stronger early tales featuring Wesley Dodds and Dian Belmont. The Hour-Man chapter adds a notable wrinkle to Rex Tyler's mythology: it depicts him mixing and ingesting a second dose of Miraclo within the same day—an early, understated signal of the drug-dependency undercurrent that later writers would develop into one of the character's most compelling long-term storylines. As part of the run collected in Golden Age Sandman Archives Vol. 1, the issue has remained accessible to new readers well beyond its original print run.
In "The Wax-Double Killers," a mysterious threat emerges from a seemingly harmless wax sculpture, plunging a small town into fear—though the true danger may lie not in the figure itself, but in who’s behind it. This 1940 adventure, illustrated with sharp, expressive detail by Joe Shuster, features a chilling mystery that unfolds in the shadow of a nationwide radio sensation. The cover by Creig Flessel captures the eerie tension of the tale, while the back-page ad for the Superman radio show—sponsored by Force cereal and airing across eight states—adds a nostalgic touch to this early classic.
In "The Wax-Double Killers," a deranged scientist unleashes a terrifying experiment, animating wax figures of three criminals with a synthetic heart and lifelike plastic skin to commit crimes and murder. The story unfolds as the line between man and machine blurs, leaving only the chilling question of who—or what—is truly alive.
In "The Van Leew Emeralds," the Sandman uncovers a cryptic pawn ticket while hunting for the stolen gems, prompting him to switch to his identity as Wesley Dodds, team up with Dian, and unravel a mystery that ties the emeralds to something far more personal than treasure. The story blends classic detective work with the Sandman’s signature mystique, as a simple clue leads to a deeper enigma.
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The issue was edited by Whitney Ellsworth and published by Detective Comics, Inc. (the corporate predecessor to DC Comics) with a cover date of June 1940 and an on-sale date of April 1940. The Sandman feature was the work of writer Gardner Fox—co-creator of the character—and artist Creig Flessel, who drew the bulk of the early gas-mask-era Sandman stories and is sometimes listed as a co-creator of the character, though the character was created by Fox and artist Bert Christman in issue #40. The Hour-Man story was produced by the team of writer Ken Fitch and artist Bernard Baily, the same pairing that debuted Rex Tyler just three issues earlier in Adventure Comics #48. The Superman/Clark Kent feature was written by Jerry Siegel with art by Chad Grothkopf, rounding out the book's multi-feature anthology format that was standard for the title throughout the Golden Age.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Cover-dated June 1940 (on-sale April 1940); published by Detective Comics, Inc., edited by Whitney Ellsworth.
- The Sandman story—'The Pawn Broker'—was written by Gardner Fox with art by Creig Flessel; it features Wesley Dodds and Dian Belmont tracking escaped felon Mad Maddon and the stolen Van Leew Emeralds.
- The Hour-Man story—'The Wax-Double Killers'—was written by Ken Fitch with art by Bernard Baily; Hour-Man (Rex Tyler) battles a mad scientist who animates wax replicas of criminals using an artificial heart and reviving fluid.
- Hour-Man takes a second dose of Miraclo within the same day in this issue, an early on-page hint at the drug's potentially addictive and physiologically complex nature.
- The Superman/Clark Kent feature was written by Jerry Siegel with art by Chad Grothkopf; additional features include Steve Conrad: Adventurer, Barry O'Neill, Cotton Carver, and Socko Strong.
- The Sandman story 'The Pawn Broker' has been reprinted in Justice League of America #99, The Greatest Golden Age Stories Ever Told, DC's Greatest Detective Stories Ever Told, and The Golden Age Sandman Archives Vol. 1 (which collects Adventure Comics #40–57).
- The issue contains an in-book advertisement for Superman #5 and a half-page ad promoting The Adventures of Superman radio series, documenting the cross-media expansion of DC's characters at the time.
- Hour-Man (first appearance: Adventure Comics #48, March 1940, created by Ken Fitch and Bernard Baily) and the Sandman (first appearance: Adventure Comics #40, July 1939, created by Gardner Fox and Bert Christman) both appear here; neither character makes their debut in this issue.
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Reprints
Reprinted in Justice League of America #99 (1972), The Greatest Golden Age Stories Ever Told #[nn] (1990), Golden Age Sandman Archives #1 (2004), The JSA All Stars Archives #1 (2007), DC's Greatest Detective Stories Ever Told #[nn] (2021)
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