Top Notch Comics #9

(October 1940)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 1)

Black Hood / comic story / 13 pages (report information)

Script

Abner J. Sundell (under house name Cliff Campbell)

Pencils

Al Camy (signed)

Inks

Al Camy (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

Howdy, Kip, how's tricks today?

Genre

superhero

Characters

The Black Hood [Kip Burland] (introduction, origin); The Hermit (introduction); Mrs. Sutton (introduction); Barbara Sutton (introduction); David Seymon (introduction); The Skull (villain, introduction)

Synopsis

Policeman Kip Burland is framed by the Skull, resulting in Kip being discharged from the force in disgrace. He is taken "for a ride" by the Skull's minions and left in the woods to die. He is discovered by an old hermit -- a self-taught scientist and philosopher, who had also been wronged by the Skull. The Hermit ends up turning Kip into a super crime fighter by putting him through rigid training, teaching him science and all knowledge. The Black Hood then confronts the Skull at a masquerade party. The Skull kills a young girl with a poison pill before being unmasked and escaping.

Reprints

• in Gwandanaland Comics (Gwandanaland Comics, 2016 series) #2006 - The Golden Age Firsts of MLJ Comics: Volume 1 ([June] 2018)

[The Earning of the Magic Sword] (Table of Contents: 2)

Galahad / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Harry Shorten (signed)

Pencils

Lin Streeter (signed)

Inks

Lin Streeter (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

fantasy-supernatural

Characters

The Lady of the Lake (introduction); Garlan (introduction); Lady Morgana (villain); a monster (villain, introduction, death)

[no title indexed] (Table of Contents: 3)

Firefly / comic story / 8 pages (report information)

Script

Harry Shorten (signed)

Pencils

Bob Wood (signed)

Inks

Bob Wood (signed)

Colors

?

Letters

?

First Line of Dialogue or Text

The mad scientist, Dr. Dread, whom the Firefly has brought within the reach of the law, is about to suffer for his mis-deeds [sic]

Genre

superhero

Characters

Dr. Dread (villain, introduction, death); zombies (villain, introduction, death); Sneaky (villain, introduction)

[The Invasion of Luxeria] (Table of Contents: 4)

Fran Frazer / comic story / 4 pages (report information)

Script

Joe Blair (signed)

Pencils

Irv Novick (signed as Irving Novick)

Inks

Irv Novick (signed as Irving Novick)

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

adventure

Characters

Fran Frazer (introduction); Hal Davis (introduction)

[The Bail Bond Racketeers] (Table of Contents: 5)

The Wizard / comic story / 8 pages (report information)

Script

Harry Shorten

Pencils

Edd Ashe

Inks

Edd Ashe

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

superhero

Characters

Bail bond racketeers (villains, introductions)

[The Nazis' Hidden Guns] (Table of Contents: 6)

Wings Johnson / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Joe Blair (signed)

Pencils

Ed Smalle (signed as Ed Smalle Jr.)

Inks

Ed Smalle (signed as Ed Smalle Jr.)

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

aviation

Characters

The Nazis (villains)

[Ah Ku and the Council of Seven] (Table of Contents: 7)

Bob Phantom / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Harry Shorten (signed as H. Shorten)

Pencils

Bernard Klein (signed as Bernie Klein)

Inks

Bernard Klein (signed as Bernie Klein)

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

superhero

Characters

Ah Ku (villain); her gang (villains); The Council of Seven (introduction, three deaths)

The Mother Lode (Table of Contents: 8)

text story / 1 page (report information)

Script

?

Pencils

?

Inks

?

Colors

?

Letters

typeset

Genre

non-fiction; western-frontier

Characters

Thomas F. Walsh

Synopsis

Gold is where you find it, the trick is to know how to hold on to it!

[The Army-Colby Game] (Table of Contents: 9)

The West Pointer / comic story / 5 pages (report information)

Script

Harry Shorten

Pencils

Bob Wood

Inks

Bob Wood

Colors

?

Letters

?

Feature Logo

Keith Kornell, West Pointer

Genre

adventure

Characters

Keith Kornell; Janet

Synopsis

Espionage before the Army-Colby Game in football.

Indexer Notes

Originally credited to Ed Wexler, but the grinning faces showing teeth, as the reporter, and some very narrow heads in side view are not his work, it is Bob Wood. Compare heads and faces with his Firefly story. Hard to find teeth showing in Wexlers faces, issue #3.

[The Master Brahmins: Part 4] (Table of Contents: 10)

Kardak / comic story / 6 pages (report information)

Script

Harry Shorten (signed)

Pencils

Bernard Klein (signed as Bernie Klein)

Inks

Bernard Klein (signed as Bernie Klein)

Colors

?

Letters

?

Genre

superhero; fantasy-supernatural

Characters

The Great Rexa (villain, introduction); the Transparent People (villains, introduction)