Before the Femforce, there was Captain Paragon… but what came before THAT? Your Major Spoilers Retro Review of Captain Paragon #1 awaits!

CAPTAIN PARAGON #1

Writer:  Bill Black/Raymond Miller
Penciler: Bill Black
Inker: Bill Black
Colorist: Uncredited
Editor: Bill Black
Publisher: Paragon Publications
Cover Price: $1.00
Current Near-Mint Pricing: $40.00
Release Date: January 1, 1972

Previously in Captain Paragon: The history of Captain Paragon actually begins with another Captain… The Big Red Cheese himself, Captain Marvel! Bill Black’s intention for Paragon Golden Age Greats was to revive Cap with a new Bronze Age mindset, but questions of whether or not the character was actually available for use ended up being too great. Indeed, DC Comics licensed ol’ Cheesey from Fawcett Comics later that same year, which makes me wonder if this comic had anything to do with that plan. Instead of Billy Batson, Black redrew the story to feature his own character, Captain Paragon, but kept the basic plot the same: The Captain, having been in suspended animation since the 1950s, was accidentally recovered and revived by an alien warrior who wanted to recruit him to fight for her planet against their enemies. Captain Paragon isn’t interested in being a pawn in her war, escaping her ship and flying back to an Earth he hasn’t seen in many years. After an encounter with some hippies in the streets of New York City, the good Captain ends up getting dosed with… LSD!

Fortunately, the scientists at Latimer Labs, including Nicola, his old friend’s daughter, are able to sedate him before his tremendous strength destroys the city. Unfortunately, the Captain’s old enemy, The Shroud, has also returned and is influencing Dr. Latimer, twisting his memories to make the hero seem like an enemy. At the same time, alien scientist Doctor Mara, who was forced to help would-be overlord Proxima to revive Captain Paragon, capturing some of his unique energies to turn HERSELF into a superhuman as well, also arrives in New York, only to run afoul of similar element to those that drugged the Captain.

The title of the chapter identifies Mara as Miss Marvel, probably an artifact of when this was a Marvel Family story. There are even elements of (a slightly grown-up) Mary Marvel in her face and haircut. Bill Black’s art is very much drawing on Bronze Age Marvel Comics, and while his figure work can be stiff, the DNA of every AC Comics story in the ensuing fifty years can be seen in these pages.

Back at Latimer Labs, Captain Paragon awakens, the acid finally having worn off, only to be confronted by his old enemy, The Shroud!

Miss Marvel arrives just in time to reveal the truth: that Captain Paragon’s guilt over killing the Shroud during the Korean War is all misplaced, as the villain never died in the first place! In a puzzling development, the two heroes are suddenly teleported to an alien world for a page, only to discover that it was an illusion by The Shroud… who is secretly Doctor Latimer!
The story ends somewhat abruptly, and I’m not 100% sure where it picks up again. I do know that when Bill and company launched Americomics/AC Comics during the ’80s independent comics boom, this story was told again, with Mara becoming the hero Stardust and a number of other characters involved, launching out into Sentinels of Justice. One of those Sentinels was the mage, Nightveil, who had a previous alias during the Golden Age of Comics. In those stories, she was called The Blue Bulleteer, but this issue reveals (I think for the only time in the actual comics) what Nightveil was intended to be.

The fact that the section printed here features its own indicia indicates that Paragon Publications intended to give the newly-magic Phantom Lady her own title, only to change up again, probably thanks to copyright questions. (Phantom Lady would also return at DC Comics in 1973 as part of The Freedom Fighters on the world called Earth-X.) If you’ve been a reader of AC Comics since the ’80s, as I have, this story feels like a long-lost pilot episode for a show I really love, sort of like when we first saw Star Trek’s The Cage when I was in college. Captain Paragon #1 is one of those issues that I feel everyone should read, and I am absolutely the only one, but it’s still a book well worth snagging, should you ever find a copy, earning 3 out of 5 stars overall.

In fact, if you ever encounter one of the reprinted versions with added colors, I’d be willing to take it off your hands.

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