The inner workings of Centaur Comics are a mystery even after years of research into their comics, but nevertheless prepare to meet The Ermine! (And don’t ask why it’s called Star Ranger Funnies.) Your Major Spoilers Retro Review of Star Ranger Funnies #15 awaits!
STAR RANGER FUNNIES #15
Writer: George Filchock
Penciler: George Filchock
Inker: George Filchock
Colorist: Uncredited
Letterer: Uncredited
Editor: Harry “A” Chesler; Kenneth Fitch (managing editor)
Publisher: Centaur Publishing
Cover Price: 10 Cents
Current Near-Mint Pricing: $1400.00
Release Date: September 30, 1938
Previously in Star Ranger Funnies: One of the more mystifying companies of the Golden Age, the Comics Magazine Company (AKA Ultem Publications, Centaur Comics, and a couple of other legal names) has ties to the earliest days of what would become both DC and Marvel Comics. This particular issue was edited by Harry “A” Chesler (who was known to joke that the “A” stands for “Anything”) whose own publishing firm(s) would eventually give us the adventures of Dynamic Man, Rocketman, and Yankee Girl. As for Star Ranger Funnies, this comic contains mostly cowboy stories, but none of them feature anyone named Star Ranger. Moreover, despite the numbering, this is the first issue of the title, having picked up the numbering from a previous volume. Coming out within the first 120 of a post-Superman comic book industry, the debut of The Ermine is a strange little hitch in the early days of the “costumed” hero.
We begin with the cabin of the Thorn family, somewhere in the Alleghenies.
After being sent out to find her father and brother, who had been chopping logs, young Alice Thorn doesn’t return home. The family fears the worst. But, as my old friend Otter Disaster used to say, “It’s always darkest before it gets pitch black.” Their worries of Native American warriors are brought to horrifying life by a head-on attack!
I apologize to readers of Native descent and those who are sensitive, as the portrayal of the tribe in this issue is retrograde, even for the year 1938. Having stolen young Alice away, the warriors continue to attack until one of the members not present returns in a panic. He and several of his brethren have encountered a legendary figure, and only he lived to tell the tale of… The Ermine!
The disappointing stereotypes, even having the family pinned down and outnumbered, run away in fear at the very name, leaving Pa Thorne to wonder aloud about The Ermine, just in time for the hero to appear at his doorstep!
Despite what the Thorne pater familias believed previously, the arrival of The Ermine is shocking in a number of ways. While many of the heroes of this era rocked bare legs, Ermine did it while stalking the Wilderness of the backwoods of maybe-Pennsylvania. That takes guts. Secondly, the story ends on a cliffhanger, like a movie serial, with the next chapter not appearing until the fall of 1940, in the back of Fantoman #2. Also worth mentioning, this comic came out not long after the first appearance of The Arrow, the first post-Superman costumed hero. While The Ermine isn’t quite a superhero, The Arrow wasn’t really one in his first appearance either.
Entirely unrelated, this issue features a remarkably lovely double-page splash in the middle which features a lot less racism towards Native Americans.
If you’ve never heard of The Ermine, I am unsurprised, but Star Ranger Funnies #15, which is actually number one, gives him a not-particularly-memorable launch in a story that’s pretty much just a curiosity, earning 2 out of 5 stars overall. If you’re really interested, I briefly touched on the second Ermine tale during a previous Retro Review, one which also suffers from Centaur’s unusual take on numbering comic books.
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STAR RANGER FUNNIES #15
With some distressing perspectives on aboriginal tribes of the Alleghenies, a hero with bare legs and a tasseled hat, and a dazzling array of forgettable cowboy features, it's really an issue for the hardcore collectors of Centaur.
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Writing5
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Art4
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Coloring4
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