In Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #31 (July 1958), Jimmy drinks a serum that temporarily gives him stretchable powers, not unlike Quality Comic’s Plastic Man. Jimmy would go on to periodically gain stretchy powers and help Superman or more often than not, get into trouble. This is a couple of years before stretchy characters like Elongated […]
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Superboy encounters his first fragment of red kryptonite in Adventure Comics #252 (July 1958). The meteor is ejected accidentally from a spaceship intent on invading Earth from another dimension and Superboy has to keep vigil until the invasion is attempted. This kryptonite is “ten times the radiation power of ordinary kryptonite!”, so I guess they […]
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In Superman #123 (June 1958), the creators of Superman test the waters with a prototype Supergirl. Jimmy gains a magic totem that grants three wishes once a century and his first wish is that Superman have a female companion that matches all his powers. Despite all her efforts, she ends up annoying Superman, and in […]
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In Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #30 (June 1958), it is established that Jimmy Olsen is an orphan, so apparently something must have happened to his father since Superboy rescued him years ago. In this story, Superman decides to become Jimmy’s foster father. Wish fulfillment ensues, including Jimmy getting a chance to visit the Fortress of […]
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Showcase #15 (May 1958) introduced the 22nd century character of Space Ranger. Space Ranger was Rick Starr, the son of Thaddeus Starr who owns Allied Solar Enterprise. Rick uses his inherited wealth, his private secretary Myra Mason, and a shape-shifting alien named Cryll to scoot around the solar system as the Space Ranger, solving space […]
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May 1958 brings in yet more expansion of the Superman mythos by Otto Binder and Al Plastino, in Action Comics #242. The villain Brainiac makes his debut, arriving to Earth and stealing the city of Paris (Eiffel Tower and all!), while Clark and Lois are hitching a ride on the first experimental spaceship. Clark sneaks […]
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Although we got our first glimpse at Superman’s “Fortress of Solitude” back in 1949, that story was still a one-off with no attempt to make it a more permanent fixture in the mythos. But “The Super-Key to Fort Superman” in Action Comics #241 (April 1958) goes really deep on the Fortress, including the key to […]
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In February 1958, Adventure Comics #247 introduced a set of heroes from the future that come to taunt Superboy, the Legion of Super-Heroes. Cosmic Boy has super-magnetism, Saturn Girl has “super-thought casting”, and Lightning Lad has “super-lightning” (in this first story he has the name “Lightning Boy”). For future super-pals, they are pretty cruel. First, […]
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In February 1958, the Challengers gain their own book with Challengers of the Unknown #1. In it, they take on a mad scientist who invents a teleporting ray to steal technology. He ends up kidnapping June Walker, who is called both an honorary member of the Challengers and “one of our most highly-regarded young scientists”. […]
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The Flash gains another rogue villain in Showcase #13 (January 1958): Mr. Element. In his youth, Albert Desmond became obsessed with elements, so naturally he turned to a life of crime. In order to beat the flash he designed a costume with the emblem of the carbon atom, and an atmosphere filter to only breathe […]
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