World's Finest Comics #5
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeWorld's Finest Comics #5 (Spring 1942) is a genuine crossroads issue for DC's Golden Age, packing several significant character milestones into a single 96-page quarterly. Most notably, it hosts the very early appearances of T.N.T. (Tex Thomas) and Dan the Dyna-Mite, a teacher-and-student duo whose atomic-power concept anticipated the superhero science-fiction turn that would define postwar comics; the two books in which they debuted hit newsstands within two days of each other, making the duo effectively simultaneous discoveries for Golden Age readers. The issue also contains Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson's 'Crime Takes a Holiday,' distinguished as the first Batman story not drawn — even nominally — by Bob Kane, marking a visible shift in the creative DNA of DC's most important franchise. For fans of Wesley Dodds, the Sandman segment 'Gems of Jeopardy' closes a specific chapter of that character's history: it is the last Golden Age appearance of both his original mystery-man business suit and fedora-and-gas-mask costume and his partner Dian Belmont, two elements that would not resurface for decades and that later writers treated as a defining creative rupture worth explaining in retroactive continuity.
In "The Tower of Terror," Batman and Robin face a city-wide crime spree in Gotham City, where a sudden "crime holiday" has the mobsters running wild—only to uncover a twisted scheme where rival gangs are impersonating one another to frame their enemies. Written by Bill Finger and illustrated by Bob Kane with inks by George Roussos, this 1942 classic blends early noir tension with the dynamic duo’s sharp detective work, all framed by Fred Ray’s striking cover art.
In "The Tower of Terror," industrialist Brent Matthews finds himself targeted after acquiring a sacred Indian tower, unaware that an ancient manuscript hints at hidden treasures within its walls. As mysterious forces conspire against him, he must unravel the tower’s secrets before it’s too late—especially as the sinister Lemuel P. Potts seems to know more than he should.
In "Gems of Jeopardy," Gay Thompson faces a dangerous threat when her ex-convict brother, driven by greed, sets his sights on her husband's priceless diamond collection—and her young son. With the Sandman stepping in to protect them, the stakes rise as a tense game of wits unfolds between justice and revenge.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The issue was edited by Whitney Ellsworth — credited in the indicia as W. F. Ellsworth — and published by the World's Best Comics Co., the DC imprint name that had itself just changed with issue #2. Per Copyright Office filings, the on-sale date was February 3, 1942, though an advertisement in More Fun Comics #77 lists February 13; the cover date reads Spring 1942. The creative roster was exceptionally broad for a single issue: Bill Finger scripted the Batman story with art by Jerry Robinson and George Roussos (signed as Bob Kane); Mort Weisinger wrote the T.N.T. feature with pencils attributed to Al Carreno; Gardner Fox wrote both the Zatara and The King segments; and Jerry Siegel is credited on the Red, White and Blue story with Harry Lampert on art. Fred Ray produced and verified the cover, a wartime cinema image depicting Superman, Batman, and Robin saluting before aircraft on a movie screen.
Trivia · 8 facts
- The T.N.T. ('The Crime Clown') story in this issue is the second published appearance of T.N.T. (Thomas N. Thomas) and Dan the Dyna-Mite (Danny Dunbar), created by Mort Weisinger; their first appearance was in Star Spangled Comics #7, which had a copyright date of February 1, 1942 — just two days before this issue's February 3, 1942 copyright date.
- The two characters are unique in DC's Golden Age for their 'positive/negative atomic charge' power mechanic: when Tex Thomas and Danny Dunbar touch their specially designed rings together, they gain enhanced strength, speed, and energy-generating powers.
- This is the only story in which Dan the Dyna-Mite wears a chest emblem, a visual detail that never reappeared in later publications.
- 'Crime Takes a Holiday,' scripted by Bill Finger with pencils and inks by Jerry Robinson (signed as Bob Kane, with backgrounds by George Roussos), is identified by the DC Database as the first Batman story not drawn by Bob Kane — a significant production-history milestone for the character.
- The Sandman segment 'Gems of Jeopardy' (art by Cliff Young) marks the final Golden Age appearance of Wesley Dodds in his original green double-breasted business suit and gas-mask costume; the look would not be seen again until Justice League of America #46 in 1966.
- The same Sandman story also marks the last Golden Age appearance of Dian Belmont, Dodds's girlfriend and crimefighting partner; she did not return in a Golden Age context until All-Star Squadron #18 in 1983, where Roy Thomas provided a retroactive explanation for her absence.
- This issue contains the final appearances of both The Crimson Avenger (Lee Travis) and The King (King Standish) in the World's Finest Comics title.
- The T.N.T. story 'The Case of the Crime Clown' was reprinted in DC's 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-18 (July 1973); the Batman story 'Crime Takes a Holiday' has been reprinted in Batman: The World's Finest Comics Archives Vol. 1 and Batman Chronicles Vol. 6; Superman's 'The Tower of Terror' was collected in Superman: The Golden Age Vol. 4.
Cast · 25 characters
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Reprinted in 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-18 (1973), Batman: The World's Finest Comics Archives #1 (2002), Superman: The World's Finest Comics Archives #1 (2004), Superman: Cover to Cover #[nn] (2006), The Batman Chronicles #6 (2008), Batman: The War Years 1939-1945 #[nn] (2015), Superman: The Golden Age Omnibus #2 (2016), Batman: The Golden Age Omnibus #2 (2016), Take That, Adolf!: The Fighting Comic Books of the Second World War #[nn] (2017), Batman: The Golden Age #3 (2017), Superman: The Golden Age #4 (2018)
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