Sure-Fire Comics #1
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeSure-Fire Comics #1 (cover-dated June 1940, on sale mid-April 1940) marks Ace Magazines' formal entry into the nascent comic book field, and in a single issue it introduced a remarkable cluster of Golden Age characters — most notably Flash Lightning (later Lash Lightning), whose Egyptian-mystic origin, complete with the Amulet of Annihilation bestowed by the Old Man of the Pyramids, predates the first-told origin of DC's Doctor Fate by more than a year. The issue also inaugurated The Raven and X, the Phantom Fed, both direct comic-book adaptations of well-established Ace pulp heroes (Moon Man and Secret Agent X respectively), giving the title a rare, documented pulp-to-comics lineage that reflects how the earliest superhero publishers bootstrapped their four-color lines from pre-existing prose intellectual property. Together, these debuts established the template for what would become the short-lived but historically meaningful Sure-Fire / Lightning Comics run — the title that gave Flash Lightning enough commercial momentum to compel a full rebrand of the series after only four issues.
An anthology featuring multiple superhero stories, including "Flash" Lightning's battle against enemy agents and saboteurs threatening America's coast, and Ace McCoy's adventure in the Sargasso Sea where he and Regan discover a mysterious island and encounter enemy submarines and aircraft while searching for a legendary lost fleet. The issue also introduces characters such as X-the Phantom, The Raven, and Buck Steele, along with other new superhero characters. The stories emphasize wartime action and espionage themes typical of 1940s comics.
In "Ambassador of Doom," the U.S. holds back a deadly shock ray, but the Green Mask steals its plans to turn the weapon against the nation. Now, the Phantom Fed must rely on his mastery of disguise to infiltrate the villain’s ranks and stop the device before it’s too late.
In 1940, "null" from Sure-Fire Comics #1 introduces Robert Morgan, a daring explorer transformed into the lightning-wielding hero Flash Lightning by the Old Man of the Volcanos. Tasked with rescuing Mary Barton’s father from the clutches of the Green Mask in a Central American jungle, Flash proves unstoppable—each challenge, from treacherous terrain to deadly foes, falling before his power.
In this 1940 tale from Sure-Fire Comics #1, the mysterious Raven swings between crime and charity, stealing from the wealthy to aid the needy—until his double life threatens to unravel when his girlfriend, Lola Lash, nearly uncovers his secret identity. With the stakes rising and his heart caught between duty and love, the Raven must outwit both the law and his own conscience.
In this 1940 adventure from Sure-Fire Comics #1, Marvo the Magician swings into action when he rescues young Nancy Bentley from thugs, only to find her father—a government official—already deep in a hunt for a dangerous gang of counterfeiters. When Marvo and Nancy are captured by the gang and brought before their mysterious leader, Namnoc, the magician must rely on his clever illusions and his loyal marmoset Tito to outwit the criminals and bring them to justice.
In "null," aviator Ace McCoy and his friend Bill Regan race against time to stop a hidden German operation using a sea of sunken ships in the Sargasso as a secret U-boat refueling base. With the skies and seas in danger, the duo takes to the air and the waves in a high-stakes mission that tests their courage and quick thinking.
In this lighthearted 1940 gem from Sure-Fire Comics #1, Jo finds herself tangled in a comedic caper when a pair of bank robbers hijack her car—only to be outsmarted by her quick thinking and a surprising lapel flower that doubles as a pepper spray. Written with a wink and drawn in the playful spirit of the era, the story captures the absurd charm of a small-town hero stumbling into the spotlight.
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Ace Magazines was the comic book arm of the publishing operation run by Aaron A. Wyn and his wife Rose Wyn, who had been producing pulp fiction under the Periodical House and A. A. Wyn imprints since 1928; Sure-Fire Comics #1 was their debut comic book title, launched in 1940 alongside Super-Mystery Comics. Rather than staffing an internal art department from scratch, Wyn contracted a packaging studio run by Pat Lamar, whose firm supplied the scripts, artwork, lettering, coloring, and logos for the first issue — a fact established through records from a New York Supreme Court hearing held in December 1941. The Flash Lightning lead story, written by Robert Turner and drawn by Harry Lucey, was itself partly derived from source material in Ace's own pulp stable: the plot's villains and key story beats were adapted from the Captain Hazzard pulp story of May 1938, while the X, the Phantom Fed strip drew on a 1934 Secret Agent X novel.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Flash Lightning (real name Robert Morgan), created by writer Robert Turner and artist Harry Lucey; the character debuted under that name before being renamed Lash Lightning in a later issue of Lightning Comics to avoid potential confusion with DC Comics' The Flash.
- Flash Lightning's origin — an American explorer trained in Egypt by an ancient mystic called the Old Man of the Pyramids, who grants him the Amulet of Annihilation and superhuman lightning-based powers — predates the first-told origin of DC's Doctor Fate (More Fun Comics #67) by over a year.
- First appearance of The Raven and his supporting cast including Lola Lash and chauffeur Mike; The Raven's first story was directly adapted from the inaugural Moon Man story published in Ten Detective Aces (June 1933), itself an Ace pulp publication.
- First comic book appearance of X, the Phantom Fed, a comics adaptation of Ace's own Secret Agent X pulp hero (1934–1939); the debut story adapted Paul Chadwick's 'Ambassador of Doom' (May 1934 Secret Agent X), and the strip continued through four issues of Sure-Fire Comics and one issue of Lightning Comics.
- The issue was packaged for Ace by the Pat Lamar Studio, a comic book production shop; this arrangement was documented in testimony from a December 1941 New York Supreme Court proceeding, with Lamar's studio credited for scripts, artwork, coloring, lettering, and logos.
- Sure-Fire Comics ran for only four issues (June–October 1940, including two issues numbered #3) before being renamed Lightning Comics with issue #4, a retitling understood to capitalize on Flash Lightning's role as the title's breakout character.
- Several feature strips in the issue were based on prior Ace pulp plots: the Flash Lightning plot derived from the May 1938 Captain Hazzard pulp story, and the Raven's first story adapted a 1933 Moon Man prose tale — making this issue an unusually well-documented case of systematic pulp-to-comics story recycling.
- Both Flash Lightning/Lash Lightning and The Raven were later revived in Dynamite Entertainment's Project Superpowers #0 (2008), where they appeared (with The Raven retitled Mr. Raven to sidestep a DC trademark conflict) as part of the public-domain Golden Age hero revival associated with Alex Ross.
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