Number 2389: Martan the Marvel Man: beware of gravity!

Martan and his wife, Vana, are an attractive young couple living on Planet Antaclea, 3 million light years from Earth. Despite that distance, they are able to watch Earth via their television, so they know all about primitive Earth people. By the way, Martan and Vana are planning on zipping by Earth while on their way to another destination. They treat a rocketship ride like a drive to the next town, couple of hours in the car, errrr, I mean spaceship!

Oh, and Martan has to educate his wife to a deadly thing about Earth: it has gravity! Yikes! Perhaps it is the only planet in the known universe to possess such a dangerous thing. It can — and does — cut short the couple’s trip when they are “drawn to Earth!!” because of the dangerous gravity. One must ask: How do they keep their feet on the ground on Antaclea?

“Martan the Marvel Man” was a feature in Dell’s Popular Comics, beginning with the origin story I am showing today, appearing in issue #46 (1939). He and Vana lasted until Popular Comics #71, with a January 1942 cover date. The feature was copyright by R.S. Callender. He was a packager, someone who came up with original material to supplement the reprints of syndicated newspaper comic strips.

Another Martan story. Just click on the thumbnail.

Number 1612: The Marvel Man

Martan, who came to Earth for a honeymoon with his bride, Vana, decided to stick around. They had encountered another bunch of aliens who had attacked our planet, so Martan, called the Marvel Man, helped to fight them off.

Martan was yet another spaceborn type who landed on our planet, and out of all the countries ended up in America. He and his spouse decided to defend that country over all others. My fellow Americans...we have been really lucky that way in the comics, eh?

This character was part of a wave of superheroes in Dell Comics’ Popular Comics, which lasted for a couple of years until Dell decided to dump the super people and go to licensing funny animals and such. They did that so well that they got away without the usual superheroic contents of most comics of the era (1939-42 or so). In Martan and Vana’s case, they appeared in issues #44-71. The writer of the story is credited as G. Ellerbrock, and the artist is unknown. E. C. Stoner, who did the cover, was also part of the art movement known as the Harlem Renaissance.

From Popular Comics #59 (1941).