When it comes to discussing the Golden Age of Comics, the costumed characters are far outnumbered by the two-fisted detectives, soldiers, and G-Men. But somewhere in between, you’ll find Red, White, and Blue. Your Major Spoilers Retro Review of All-American Comics #1 awaits!

ALL-AMERICAN COMICS #1

Writer: Jerry Siegel
Penciler: Bill Smith
Inker: Bill Smith
Colorist: Uncredited
Letterer: Harry Lampert
Editor: M.C. Gaines
Publisher: DC Comics (All-American Comics Inc.)
Cover Price: 10 Cents
Current Near-Mint Pricing: $10,000.00
Release Date: March 1, 1939

Previously in All-American Comics: It’s difficult to discuss All-American Comics, the title, without discussing All-American Comics, the publishing company. Years before he founded EC Comics, editor Max Gaines secured funding from publisher Harry Donenfeld, whose other publishing ventures included National Allied Publications (the home of Superman) and Detective Comics (the home of Batman). All-American Comics’ slate of heroes would include Wonder Woman, The Flash, The Green Lantern, and Hawkman, among others. This first issue features none of those, consisting largely of comic strip reprints (mostly Mutt and Jeff), but it’s the lead feature we’re focusing on today, illuminating one of the great blank spots in my personal comics history.

If you’ve ever read Waid and Ross’ magnum opus, Kingdom Come, you might be aware that among the nihilistic young heroes of the future, are Red, White, and Blue, three androids with ill-defined liquid metal powers. That’s why, for the longest time, I thought that Red, White, and Blue were Golden Age mystery men. In truth, they’re a trio of uniformed military men. Marine Red Dugan is introduced first, intending to reunite with his old friends, only to have to spring sailor Blooey Blue out of the brig. While awaiting their third school chum, Red leaps into action to protect a young woman from a masher, starting a massive barroom brawl.

That’s when Army infantryman Whitey Smith makes the scene.

During the scuffle, the girl makes a break for it, accidentally leaving behind her purse, allowing the trio to track her, since the bag is full of photographs of secure military locations. Believing her to be a spy, they follow the mysterious Doris back to the boat where she is staying… and end up on the wrong end of her gun.

Bill Smith isn’t a name that carries the same cache as Will Eisner, Jack Kirby, or even Lou Fine, but his combination of big-foot and adventure art tropes in this feature is actually impressive. Doris reveals herself not to be not a foreign spy, but a domestic one, an agent of the Secret Service. Doris is supposed to meet with a mysterious buyer for her “stolen secrets,” but ends up taking Red, Whitey, and Blooey along as backup.

Of course, the mysterious boss (who looks very Prussian, especially for a comic released two years before the US entered World War II) has his own revelations, as he knows Doris is a double agent. Fortunately, three two-fisted men of the armed forces make for SIX fists, which adjusted for 1939, is 131.46 fists.

Thanks to the boys’ help, Doris gets the biggest bust of her G-2 career, and pulls a few strings to get Red, White, and Blue assigned permanently to her command. Weirdly, though they’re not costumed heroes, Red, Whitey, and Blooey fall into a strange proto-superhero niche, along with the Slam Bradley, Speed Saunders, and other unlicensed Golden Age punchers of evil.

Though the boys appeared regularly in the pages of All-American Comics, as well as Comics Cavalcade, All-American Publishing’s big crossover title, they were quickly eclipsed the costumed heroes. When Max Gaines sold his portion of All-American Publishing to his partner Donenfeld in 1944, it was the beginning of the end for Red, White, and Blue. The last appearance of the team came in 1945, not long before National Periodical Publications bought All-American Publishing and its properties, but as a first appearance, All-American Comics #1 gets the job done right, making me wish that there was a decent reprint volume of their adventures, earning 3 out of 5 stars overall.

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