By various (Malibu Graphics)
ISBNs: 0-944735-22-3 & 0-944735-06-1
The animated cartoon legend who became Mighty Mouse started out as a Superman parody from the Paul Terry animation studio (known as Terrytoons) in 1942. “The Mouse of Tomorrowâ€, launched his crusade against cat-on-mouse crime after fleeing from marauding moggies and taking refuge in a Supermarket. Whilst there, exposure to Super Soap and consumption of Super Soup, Super Celery and Super Cheese transformed him into a peewee powerhouse clad in a dangerously litigation-attracting blue-&-red, caped outfit.
Super Mouse was a huge hit for Terrytoons and spawned a welter of cartoon shorts. However after the seventh in 1943 the name changed to Mighty Mouse (with the earlier animations re-dubbed by 1944 to eradicate any trace of the original. The studio produced more than ninety features between 1942 and 1961…
The Rodent Avenger also survived a closet-full of costume changes before settling on the vibrant red and yellow outfit of his television years and (in anticipation of today’s constant revamping of heroic motives) almost as many origins, but the one that eventually stuck in the comicbooks was that he was a mysterious foundling baby in a basket and raised by an elderly couple in the deep, dark woods…
Such a screen smash naturally spawned a successful comicbook career. His first outing came in Timely’s (Marvel Comics as was) Terrytoons #38, November 1945, with creative contributions from Stan Lee, Jim Mooney, Mike Sekowsky and Al Jaffee. The Magnificent Mus Musculus then sprang into his own solo title for four issues until Timely lost the lucrative license to St. John/Pines Publications in 1947.
Generating a host of issues, giants and specials (including one of the industry’s earliest 3D comics) throughout the 1950s, eventually Western Publishing’s Gold Key imprint secured the rights at the end of the decade, carrying on the cute crusade until 1968.
The reason for the comic’s longevity – other than the fact that it offered simple, fun and thrilling action for younger readers – was simple.
In 1955 the fledgling CBS television network bought out Paul Terry, transferring his entire pantheon to the flickering silver screens of a nation about to go home entertainment crazy. Mighty Mouse and the animator’s other movie theatre stars (especially anarchic smart-mouthed double-act Heckle and Jeckle, the Talking Magpies) were soon early TV sensations, with kids subsequently pushing their comicbooks sales through the roof…
As you are probably aware, Mighty Mouse has come and gone from our TV screens a multitude of times since then…
This brace of cheap-&-cheerful monochrome samplers from 1989 gathers the tantalising contents of a few of those mid-1950s yarns, regrettably with nothing definite in the way of creative credits, but fascinating to cartoon as well as comics aficionados, because of the intriguing fact that many of Terry’s key animation studio artists moonlighted on illustrating the strips.
Thus with art (possibly) by Connie Rasinski, Art Bartsch, Carlo Vinci and the legendary Jim Tyler plus scripts (potentially) by Tom Morrison – storyman at Terrytoons and the on-screen speaking voice of Mighty Mouse – these slim tomes offer a stunning example of just how kids comics aren’t done anymore… but should be.
What you need to know: the extremely sensible and hardworking mice live harmoniously in prosperous Mousetown (or sometimes Terrytown), their happy lives only occasionally blighted by attacks from mean and nasty cats…
Video Classics Volume One opens with a handy, informative historical introduction feature ‘The World’s Mightiest Mouse’ by Jim Korkis, before the wondrous whimsy commences with ‘Tunnels of Terror’ (from Mighty Mouse Comics #36, December 1952) wherein worst of all feline felons The Claw has had his inventive associate Professor Ohm construct a deadly burrowing device dubbed the Land Submarine to raid the overly complacent rodent population.
Claw isn’t worried about Mighty Mouse either, as he’s laid a trap for the Mouse of Tomorrow, using the beautiful Mitzi Mouse as bait…
Unfortunately for the conniving cats, even undermining a mountain and dropping it on the big-eared champion isn’t enough to ensure victory…
From Mighty Mouse Comics #73, May 1957, ‘False Alarm’ reveals how a rare day off is spoiled when meowing miscreants broadcast fake distress calls to distract the fast-flying hero whilst they steal everything in Mousetown, after which The Claw returns in ‘Mail Robbery’ (Mighty Mouse Comics #31, March 1952), stealing the post, a host of jewels and poor old Mitzi – until you know who blazes in to Save the Day…
Of course not all cats are evil. When a wicked witch kidnaps a black kitten to use in her magic spells the Meteoric Muridae is more than willing to risk the sinister perils of ‘Goblin Grove’ (Mighty Mouse Comics #73, again) to rescue little Junior…
This initial vintage collection concludes in spectacular fashion with a tale from The Adventures of Mighty Mouse #13 (July 1957) as the Claw uses a shrinking ray to diminish our hero to bug size. Of course even as a ‘Pint-Sized Protector’ the Mouse of Tomorrow is utterly unbeatable…
Volume Two also opens with a cracking Korkis introduction as ‘What a Mouse!’ reveals more lost pop culture lore before an epic 5-chapter saga sees a hundred foot tall cat menace the mice in ‘A Visitor from Outer Space’ (Mighty Mouse Comics #36, December 1952). When the Rocketing Rodent intervenes he ends up marooned on the creature’s home planet Pluto but still manages to overcome impossible odds and return in time to Save the Day…
No, I’m not being redundant here: in the cartoons the characters always broke into song and Mighty Mouse always warbled his personal signature tune “Here I Come to Save the Day†whilst pummelling perfidious poltroons and menacing monsters…
‘Fake Cake’, also from Adventures of Mighty Mouse Comics #13 offers a one page example of why chaotic crows Heckle and Jeckle were so well regarded, after which ‘A Visit from Aunt Prudy’ (MMC #73, again) exposed feline felon Ripper‘s most cunning con, when Mighty Mouse’s long-lost and very prim relative turned up and enjoined him to remember that nice mice never indulged in fisticuffs…
Adventures of Mighty Mouse Comics #13 then proves the merit of those magpies of mayhem with a vacuum cleaner caper dubbed ‘In the Bag’ before a kitty coterie of kidnappers operate a foolproof ploy to capture innocent mice in ‘Magnet Dragnet’ from the same issue. Foolproof yes – but not Mighty Mouse proof…
The all-ages action then ends with the Mouse of Tomorrow lending the Elves of Terrytown a helping paw before being ‘Caught in a Web’ (Mighty Mouse Comics #31, March 1952) by the merciless misanthrope Sam Spider. Never fret though: nothing is mightier than furry justice…
Once upon a time, comics for young kids were a huge and important component of the publishing business. Even if that isn’t the case anymore, surely there are enough old gits like me – and parents prepared to offer their offspring something a little bit different from the brain-blitzing modern fare of computers and TV cartoons – to warrant a revival and new comprehensive compilation of such wonderful, charm-filled nostalgic delights?
Any takers?
© 1989 Malibu Graphics, Inc.