Popeye #12
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freePopeye #12 (April/May 1950, Dell) is a standout issue in Bud Sagendorf's early run on the series, notable for bringing together three of E. C. Segar's most beloved supporting characters — the Sea Hag, King Blozo, and the kingdom of Spinachovia — in a single comic-book package for the first time in that ongoing series. The lead story, 'Witch Whistle,' is one of the most reprinted and critically praised tales from Sagendorf's Dell tenure, demonstrating how he deepened Segar's fantasy-adventure world by weaving the Sea Hag's supernatural villainy directly into Spinachovia's political troubles. The issue also showcases the ensemble format that defined the early Dell run: a full-length lead adventure anchored by Popeye, backed by shorter strips spotlighting Wimpy, Swee'Pea, and other cast members, establishing a template that would persist for the series' entire 171-issue run.
In "Witch Whistle or Toot! Toot! Tweet!!! or Rings, Witches, and Radishes!! or Pity a Radish Farmer on a Night Like This!", the Sea Hag unleashes her magic whistle to send vultures swooping through Spinachovia, snatching up the town’s farmers. When the chaos reaches Olive Oyl and Wimpy, Popeye is drawn into the madness—ready to fight for his friends, one spinach-powered punch at a time.
In "The Map!", Popeye stumbles upon a mysterious treasure map in his backyard, only to be outsmarted by Snagg, who tricks him into parting with it. But the real surprise? The map was just one of Swee'Pea’s toys all along—no gold, no adventure, just a classic case of mistaken treasure.
In "The Double Mooch!", Wimpy strikes a deal with Poopdeck Pappy to help haul in his fishing line, expecting a share of the catch—only to discover Pappy’s not after fish at all, but junk to sell to the junkman. The unlikely partnership leads to a series of misadventures as Wimpy’s hunger and Pappy’s odd fishing tactics collide in classic comic fashion.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The Dell Popeye series launched in February 1948 with Bud Sagendorf — who had been E. C. Segar's teenage assistant since around 1931 and who witnessed the creation of characters like Swee'Pea, Poopdeck Pappy, and Alice the Goon firsthand — as the sole writer and artist. By issue #12, Sagendorf had settled into a confident creative rhythm, producing self-contained stories rather than the serialized newspaper-strip format, and actively reintroducing Segar-era characters like the Sea Hag and King Blozo who had faded after Segar's death in 1938. Dell published the series in partnership with Western Publishing, and this issue — a 52-page, full-color book at the standard ten-cent cover price — appeared while Sagendorf was still relatively new to solo command of the franchise, making the assured quality of 'Witch Whistle' all the more remarkable.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Published April/May 1950 by Dell Comics; 52 pages, full color, 10-cent cover price.
- All cover and interior art, as well as all scripts, are by Bud Sagendorf, who had been E. C. Segar's sole assistant from approximately 1931 until Segar's death in 1938.
- The lead story, 'Witch Whistle,' sends Popeye back to the kingdom of Spinachovia, where King Blozo's farmers are mysteriously vanishing; the villain is the Sea Hag, who deploys an army of giant vultures against the kingdom.
- A second major story, 'Trap Island,' features the Sea Hag operating a floating island as a trap designed to lure and defeat Popeye.
- A third story, 'Desert Pirates,' has the Sea Hag kidnapping Wimpy — exploiting his legendary appetite as bait — to draw Popeye into a desert ambush.
- The issue thus features the Sea Hag as the antagonist across multiple stories, making it a showcase issue for Popeye's most formidable comics nemesis, a character created by Segar in 1929–1930 who had largely disappeared from official material after Segar's passing.
- Supporting cast present includes Olive Oyl, Swee'Pea, Poopdeck Pappy, Wimpy, and King Blozo of Spinachovia — virtually the full Segar-era ensemble.
- The issue's lead story, 'Witch Whistle,' was later reprinted by IDW Publishing in their ongoing Popeye Classics series (issue #30, 2015) and collected in the Popeye Classics Volume Three hardcover, edited by Craig Yoe, under the title 'Witch Whistle and More.'
Cast · 7 characters
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Reprints
Reprinted in Popeye the Sailor #76 (1965), Cap'tain présente Popeye (spécial) #35 (1967), Skippern #1/1981 (1981), Super Popeye Géant #2 (1987), Classic Popeye #12 (2013), Popeye Classics #3 (2014), Popeye #4
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