Whizzer's Rogues

The Flash accrued one of the most creative rogues' galleries in DC Comics. But a similar observation could not be made of Whizzer, the Squadron Supreme's counterpart to the Flash. Squadron Supreme #8 showed Whizzer defeat two old foes named Rustler and Bollix. The outlaw duo seemed to have no super powers aside from their newly acquired force field belts (invented by Squadron member Tom Thumb). In contrast, Tom Thumb's obituary would report how he had apprehended scores of bizarre criminals, such as the Iron Moth (#10). I would have liked to have learned about more of these imaginative enemies.

This panel comes from Squadron Supreme #8 (April 1986).

Every Which Whizzer

The Squadron Supreme entry from the original edition of The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe introduced several details about the team. The Squadron's 12-issue limited series, however, would later contradict some of the information from the handbook. Whereas the handbook listed Whizzer as Hiram Arnold, chemist, his identity would instead become Stanley Stewart, mail carrier. Squadron Supreme #8 further established that Whizzer gained superhuman speed after jogging through a dense, slightly luminescent fogbank—distinguishing the hero's origin story from the Golden Age version of the Whizzer.

The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe included this image of the Whizzer in the original entry for the Squadron Supreme.

Defenders: Tier D

This month's series of posts comparing the power levels of the Defenders wraps up with Tier D. Candy Southern, the level-headed leader of the New Defenders, would default to this tier as she had no superhuman powers or extraodinary skills. Through her connection to Angel, however, Candy certainly had encountered her share of super-beings before joining the Defenders.

For an example of a costumed hero at Tier D, I'll turn outside of the Defenders and select the original Whizzer when he came out of retirement during the Bronze Age of comics. While Whizzer retained the super-speed he sported as a member of the All Winners Squad shortly after World War II, he now lacked the stamina to hold his own alongside other heroes.

All Winners Squad

Sub-Mariner has never been much of a team player—for good reason. A generation before he reluctantly joined the Defenders, the Prince of Atlantis had a turbulent experience with another superhero team in All Winners Comics #19 (Fall 1946).

The theft of several artifacts from a major museum prompted the original Human Torch and sidekick Toro to summon Captain America (with sidekick Bucky), Sub-Mariner, Miss America, and Whizzer. Known as the All Winners Squad, the group discovered a series of riddles left behind by a criminal mastermind called Isbisa. When the word romaN appeared among the clues, Human Torch asked Namor if he had orchestrated the crime as a practical joke. Namor felt insulted by the implication; only at the urging of Toro did Namor decide to stay with the team. The All Winners Squad regrouped two issues later to thwart Future Man and Madame Death (#21).

Coincidentally, Toro wore only trunks and boots as a costume and might have been mistaken for Namor's sidekick until activating his flame powers and thereby resembling a shorter version of the Human Torch.

The historical significance of the All Winners Squad diminished when retroactive continuity placed the Invaders during World War II, forming five years before the All Winners Squad.

The Return of Whizzer

Like other members of the Squadron Sinister, the villain Whizzer was a nod to a member of the Justice League of America—specifically Flash (Barry Allen). Unlike the rest of the Squadron Sinister, Whizzer also had a similarly named counterpart at Timely Comics (a predecessor to Marvel Comics).

Robert Frank, the original Whizzer, first appeared in USA Comics #1 (Aug. 1941). The character acquired superhuman speed and vitality from a transfusion of mongoose blood designed to save his life following a venomous snake bite. As a costumed hero, Whizzer soon became a member of the All Winners Squad, a group that also included Miss America, Sub-Mariner, Captain America (with sidekick Bucky), and the original Human Torch (with sidekick Toro).

Three decades later, Giant-Size Avengers #1 (Aug. 1974) brought Whizzer out of retirement, getting more mileage out of the character. Without the benefit of half-Atlantean physiology, or years spent in suspended animation, Whizzer had aged normally and found himself past his physical prime. For a time, indirect evidence led Whizzer to incorrectly believe that he and Miss America (now deceased) were the true parents of the mutant twins Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver.

Whizzer's own history become more complex when retroactive continuity effectively split the All Winners Squad into two new teams set during World War II. Invaders #1 (Aug. 1975) sent Sub-Mariner, Captain America, and Human Torch to battle the Axis powers in Europe. Marvel Premiere #29 (April 1976), on the other hand, placed Whizzer and Miss America, along with Red Raven and a handful of other costumed crimefighters of that era, in a homefront team called the Liberty Legion.

Perhaps to avoid confusion with the increasing prominence of the original Whizzer, the villainous Whizzer from the Squadron Sinister later changed his handle to Speed Demon. It is worth noting that, over at DC Comics, the original Flash (Jay Garrick) first appeared in Flash Comics #1 (Jan. 1940).

This image of Whizzer comes from The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe.