Pep Comics #17
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freePep Comics #17 (July 1941) holds a singular place in comic book history as the issue in which the first superhero ever died on the page: The Comet (John Dickering), who had appeared since Pep #1, is gunned down by gangsters while rescuing his brother — making this the medium's earliest recorded permanent superhero death, a story device that would not become a routine narrative tool for decades. That same story simultaneously delivers the first appearance and origin of The Hangman (Robert Dickering), giving the medium one of its earliest examples of a hero motivated entirely by grief and vengeance rather than by altruism or patriotic duty. The issue also marks the visual changing of the guard on Pep's covers: starting with this number, The Hangman — not The Shield — commands the front of the book, a dominance he would hold through issue #42. Together, these two narrative events in a single issue — a superhero killed and a darker, more vengeful successor born from that death — established a template for continuity-driven character succession that the superhero genre would revisit repeatedly throughout its history.
In "The Case of the Kid Lookout," a 1941 issue of Pep Comics, the mysterious Iola ensnares Carl Jensen in a web of deception and madness, leading him down a dangerous path of crime and despair. Written by Joe Blair and illustrated by Harry Lucey, this gripping tale unfolds with a chilling twist that redefines everything seen before. The cover by Irv Novick captures the eerie allure of the story’s central mystery.
In "null," John "The Comet" Dickering’s heroic sacrifice when he’s killed trying to save his brother Bob sets off a chain of vengeance that reshapes their lives. Bob, driven by grief and fury, becomes the enigmatic vigilante known as The Hangman, taking justice into his own hands when the legal system fails to deliver. The story unfolds with raw intensity, tracing the transformation of a brother’s loss into a relentless pursuit of retribution.
In "The Corruption of Carl Jensen," a chilling tale from Pep Comics #17 (1941), a man torn between love and temptation falls under the spell of a mysterious woman named Iola, who appears in a slinky dress and whispers promises of pleasure. As Carl Jensen’s life spirals into extravagance and violence, his descent into crime and betrayal is driven by a dark force he can’t escape—until the horrifying truth of Iola’s true form finally reveals itself.
In a poignant 1941 tale from Pep Comics #17, newlywed Kayo flees his wedding day after a devastating burn scars his face, vanishing into the rails as a hobo. On a train journey, he forms an unexpected bond with a fellow traveler battling tuberculosis, and when the man’s health worsens, Kayo takes on a local fighter in a desperate bid to raise money for treatment.
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Pep Comics was published by MLJ Magazines, the precursor to Archie Comics, and had been edited since its launch by Abner Sundell, who held that role through issues #22–23. The Comet feature had been launched in Pep #1 by the prolific Jack Cole, who drew the character through approximately issue #8 before moving on; once Cole departed, the strip lost momentum and fell out of its secondary slot. The Hangman's origin story in issue #17 was written under the house pseudonym 'Cliff Campbell' — a pen name that, according to the Grand Comics Database and researcher Jerry Bails' Who's Who, was used by both Sundell and writer Harry Shorten during this period, leaving the precise authorship uncertain — and drawn by George Storm, an experienced cartoonist who had previously created the Bobby Thatcher newspaper strip and the DC character The Whip. The cover was penciled and inked by Irv Novick, the series' primary cover artist.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance and origin of The Hangman (Robert 'Bob' Dickering), created by writer 'Cliff Campbell' (a house pseudonym) and artist George Storm; published cover date July 1941 by MLJ Magazines.
- Death of The Comet (John Dickering) — widely recognized across multiple sources as the first superhero death in comic book history; the character had run continuously since Pep Comics #1 (January 1940).
- The Comet was originally created and drawn by Jack Cole — later famous for Plastic Man — who handled the strip through approximately issue #8 before departing; by the time of his death in #17, other hands had been writing and drawing the feature.
- The Hangman's origin is directly tied to The Comet's death: Bob Dickering witnesses his brother John die in his arms while saving him from Big Boy Malone's gang, and vows revenge, adopting a dark vigilante identity inspired by the gallows.
- The Hangman took over Pep Comics' cover slot starting with this issue and held it through issue #42 — a run of 26 consecutive covers — before Archie Andrews eventually displaced the superhero cast.
- The issue's 68-page anthology also includes a Shield story scripted by Harry Shorten with art by Irv Novick, a Danny in Wonderland story, a Sergeant Boyle installment drawn by Charles Biro, a Fireball story, a Kayo Ward story by George Storm, and a Bentley of Scotland Yard installment.
- A panel at the end of the Hangman's debut story directly solicits reader mail to gauge interest in a standalone Hangman magazine — and that magazine materialized within the year as Special Comics #1 (Winter 1941), which became Hangman Comics from issue #2.
- The issue was reprinted in its entirety as Flashback #16 (DynaPubs Enterprises, May 1974), and key stories from it have appeared in Gwandanaland Comics' 'The Hangman: Volume 1' (#179, April 2017) and 'The Golden Age Firsts of MLJ Comics: Volume 1' (#2006, June 2018), as documented in the Grand Comics Database.
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Reprinted in Flashback #16 (1974), Golden Age of Comics #5 (1983), Chilling Adventures of Sabrina #3 (2015), Chilling Adventures of Sabrina #1 (2016), Gwandanaland Comics #179 (2017), Gwandanaland Comics #1952 (2018), Gwandanaland Comics #2006 (2018), Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Occult Edition #[nn] (2019)
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