Daring Mystery Comics #7
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeDaring Mystery Comics #7 (April 1941) stands as one of the most debut-dense single issues of the Golden Age, introducing five distinct Timely Comics characters in a single anthology package: the Blue Diamond, the Fin, the Thunderer, the Silver Scorpion, and the Challenger. The Silver Scorpion is particularly noteworthy as one of the earliest female superheroes published by the company that would become Marvel, predating Wonder Woman's comic-book debut by roughly eight months. Bill Everett — already the architect of the Sub-Mariner — contributed the Fin, adding a second aquatic hero to Timely's roster and deepening the mythology of undersea adventure that would define much of the publisher's Golden Age identity. The Blue Diamond's origin, forged in a Nazi attack on an Antarctic expedition, proved durable enough that Roy Thomas revived the character thirty-five years later as a founding member of the Liberty Legion, anchoring his concept of a coherent wartime Timely universe.
In the shadowed streets of 1941, Jerry Carstairs channels his radio expertise into a thunderous defense as the Thunderer, shielding his friend Eileen from the hidden threats of Nazi spies—facing danger by night while urging caution by day.
In the frostbitten reaches of Antarctica, Professor Elton Morrow uncovers a massive blue diamond—only to have it shattered during a Nazi attack on his return voyage. When the fragments embed themselves in his body, he discovers his entire form has become as unyielding as diamond. Now, with a new, unbreakable strength, he steps into the shadows to protect his city, donning a costumed identity to fight crime.
In "The Benefactor," a kind-hearted millionaire named Mr. Million quietly aids a determined boy striving to afford medicine for his sick mother—only to find the boy refuses any help that isn’t earned. The story unfolds with gentle wit and heart, following their unlikely connection as the boy insists on proving himself, and Mr. Million finds creative ways to support him without breaking his promise.
In "Meet the Challenger," Bill Waring, driven by the memory of his father’s murder during a failed attempt to expose a criminal conspiracy, returns from years of global training as the masked vigilante known as the Challenger—determined to confront those who betrayed his father, one by one.
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Issue #7 arrived after a publishing gap of several months — the Grand Comics Database records a hiatus between issue #6 and issue #7 running from roughly October 1940 to March 1941 — during a period when Timely's first in-house editor, Joe Simon, was steering the anthology's final installments. Simon co-created the Captain Daring feature within this very issue alongside Jack Kirby, in an eight-page sci-fi adventure, though the art attribution is debated: researcher Harry Mendryk credited the pencils to Kirby alone, while others have suggested Simon also inked. The cover was penciled and inked by Joe Simon, though notably it reverses the red and blue color scheme of the Thunderer's costume from what actually appears in the interior story. Vincent Fago served as editor on the Blue Diamond story, per the Marvel Appendix's creator credits confirmed against the Masterworks reprint.
Trivia · 10 facts
- First appearance of the Blue Diamond (Elton T. Morrow), created by writer-artist Ben Thompson: a professor whose body is infused with diamond fragments after a Nazi U-boat attack on his Antarctic expedition, granting him diamond-hard skin and superhuman strength.
- First appearance of the Fin (Peter Noble), written, penciled, and inked by Bill Everett in a 10-page solo story titled 'Introducing the Fin': a Navy lieutenant who survives a submarine disaster, discovers he can breathe underwater, defeats the ruler of the hidden kingdom of Neptunia, and adopts the Fin identity.
- First appearance of the Thunderer (Jerry Carstairs), created by writer John H. Compton and artist Carl Burgos: an FCC radio operator who builds a sonic-amplifying costume to fight Nazi fifth columnists, with his cover color scheme (red and blue reversed) being an error flagged in GCD notes.
- First appearance of the Silver Scorpion (Betty Barstow), drawn by Harry Sahle under the pen name 'Jewell': a secretary who stumbles into crime-fighting while wearing a costume en route to a masquerade, using jiu-jitsu skills — one of the earliest female superheroes in Timely's history.
- First appearance and origin of the Challenger (Bill Waring), penciled by Charles Wojtkoski under the pseudonym Nick Karlton: a formerly timid man who circumnavigates the globe mastering every form of combat to avenge his father's murder by corrupt politicians and criminals.
- Eight-page Captain Daring story by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby (art attribution disputed between Kirby-solo and Simon-inked), set in the far future — the next issue establishes his adventures take place in the mid-31st century.
- The issue went on sale February 6, 1941, per the Catalog of Copyright Entries, with a cover date of April 1941, published by Timely Comics, Inc. at 330 W. 42nd St., New York.
- Content from this issue has been reprinted in Marvel Masterworks: Golden Age Daring Mystery Vol. 2, and the Fin's debut story was included in Timely's Greatest: The Golden Age Sub-Mariner by Bill Everett – The Pre-War Years Omnibus (2019); the Thunderer story was collected in Timely's Greatest: The Golden Age Human Torch by Carl Burgos Omnibus (2019).
- The Blue Diamond was revived by writer Roy Thomas in Marvel Premiere #29–30 (April–June 1976) as a founding member of the Liberty Legion, a team of WWII home-front heroes, and has since appeared in All-Winners Squad: Band of Heroes (2011) and New Invaders (2004–2005).
- The Thunderer appeared in the 1990s Spider-Man animated series five-part episode arc 'Six Forgotten Warriors,' voiced by Hansford Rowe in the present day and Brett King in flashback.
Cast · 14 characters
Full credits
Reprints
Reprinted in Marvel Masterworks: Golden Age Daring Mystery #2 (2010), Marvel Firsts: WWII Super Heroes #[nn] (2013), Golden Age Captain America Omnibus #1 (2014), Timely's Greatest: The Golden Age Sub-Mariner by Bill Everett - The Pre-War Years Omnibus #[nn] (2019), Timely's Greatest: The Golden Age Simon & Kirby Omnibus #[nn] (2019), Timely's Greatest: The Golden Age Human Torch by Carl Burgos Omnibus #[nn] (2019), Atlas Creator Collection #3 (2026)
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