The Black Terror is a
fiction
Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...
al comic book
superhero
A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...
who originally appeared in ''Exciting Comics'' #9, published by
Nedor Comics
Standard Comics was a comic book imprint (trade name), imprint of United States, American publisher Ned Pines, who also published pulp magazines (under a Thrilling Publications, variety of company names that he also used for the comics) and pape ...
in January 1941. The character was popular, and on the strength of the Black Terror's sales, Nedor made ''Exciting Comics'' a monthly magazine starting with issue #11 (July 1941).
The Black Terror was the most popular superhero in Nedor's stable, and appeared in a quarterly solo comic book as well as the lead feature in ''America's Best Comics'' and ''Exciting Comics'' until 1949.
Some Black Terror stories were written by
Patricia Highsmith
Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley.
She wrote 22 novel ...
before she became an acclaimed novelist. The character has been revived by various publishers over the years, including
AC Comics
AC Comics (formerly known as Paragon Publications and Americomics) is a comic book publishing company started by Bill Black. ,
Eclipse Comics
Eclipse Comics was an American comic book publisher, one of several independent publishers during the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1978, it published the first graphic novel intended for the newly created comic book specialty store market. It was ...
,
America's Best Comics
America's Best Comics (ABC) is a comic book publishing brand. It was set up by Alan Moore in 1999 as an imprint of WildStorm, an idea proposed to Moore by WildStorm founder Jim Lee when it was still under Image Comics.
History
''America's Best ...
, and
Dynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book publisher founded by Nick Barrucci in 2004 at Mount Laurel, New Jersey. It is best known as the owners of '' The Boys'' franchise across several IP medias. Dynamite primarily publishes adaptation ...
.
Exciting Comics
The Black Terror's
secret identity
A secret identity is a person's alter ego which is not known to the general populace, most often used in fiction. Brought into popular culture by the Scarlet Pimpernel in 1903, the concept was widespread in pulp heroes and is particularly prevalent ...
was pharmacist Bob Benton, who formulated a chemical he called "formic ethers", which gave him various superpowers. He used these powers to fight crime with his sidekick, Tim Roland, together known as the "Terror Twins".
His love interest is secretary Jean Starr, who initially despises Benton and loves the Black Terror, but later discovers that they are the same person.
According to ''Jess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes'', "The Black Terror has enemies ranging from Nazis to mad scientists like Thorg (he of the "million dollar death ray"), the
femme fatale
A ''femme fatale'' ( or ; ), sometimes called a maneater or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype of ...
Lady Serpent (who has a hypnotic glance), and the Japanese scientist Hanura and his "electro-hypnotizer", which is used to assassinate American generals and admirals".
With the popularity of superheroes fading in the late 40s, the Black Terror's series ended with issue #27 (June 1949).
Later appearances
AC Comics
In 1983
AC Comics
AC Comics (formerly known as Paragon Publications and Americomics) is a comic book publishing company started by Bill Black. revised the Black Terror, starting in their ''Americomics'' title. In it, now-retired Bob Benton (called Mark Benton in this version) returns to action after an attempt to shake him down for protection money leads to the death of his wife. He would operate as an over-the-top vigilante, now just called the "Terror". Later, most likely due to
trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...
issues, he became a criminal enforcer known as the "Terrorist".
Alter Ego
In
Roy Thomas
Roy William Thomas Jr."Roy Thomas Checklist" ''Alter Ego'' vol. 3, #50 (July 2005) p. 16 (born November 22, 1940) is an American comic book writer and editor, who was Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibl ...
' ''
Alter Ego
An alter ego (Latin for "other I", " doppelgänger") means an alternate self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other self, one with a differen ...
'' mini-series from 1986, several Golden Age characters were used, but renamed. The Black Terror (renamed "The Holy Terror") made an appearance.
Darkline Comics
Bob Benton made a single appearance in the fourth issue of Darkline Comics' ''Dark Adventures''. In the script by Vic Peterson and art by Thompson O'Rourke, Benton's exposure to his secret formula has made him ageless and sleepless, and he begins a new war on crime under the name "Terror Knight".
Eclipse Comics
Eclipse Comics
Eclipse Comics was an American comic book publisher, one of several independent publishers during the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1978, it published the first graphic novel intended for the newly created comic book specialty store market. It was ...
did a three-issue mini-series "revival" of the Black Terror in 1989. In this series, the character is an undercover FBI agent operating against organized crime who would dress up like the Black Terror for certain operations. He had no superpowers or any connection to the original character.
America's Best Comics
The Black Terror, along with other heroes from
Nedor Comics
Standard Comics was a comic book imprint (trade name), imprint of United States, American publisher Ned Pines, who also published pulp magazines (under a Thrilling Publications, variety of company names that he also used for the comics) and pape ...
, were revived by
Alan Moore
Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including ''Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', ''The Ballad of Halo Jones'', ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman:'' ''The Killing Joke'', and ''From Hell' ...
in 2001 in his series ''
Tom Strong
''Tom Strong'' is a comic book created by writer Alan Moore and artist Chris Sprouse, initially published bi-monthly by America's Best Comics, an imprint of DC Comics' Wildstorm division. Tom Strong, the title character, is a "science hero", wi ...
'', published by
America's Best Comics
America's Best Comics (ABC) is a comic book publishing brand. It was set up by Alan Moore in 1999 as an imprint of WildStorm, an idea proposed to Moore by WildStorm founder Jim Lee when it was still under Image Comics.
History
''America's Best ...
. This revival set the characters on a parallel world called
Terra Obscura
''Terra Obscura'' is a 2003 comic book miniseries spin-off from Alan Moore's ''Tom Strong'' series. The stories are written by Peter Hogan, and drawn by Yanick Paquette and Karl Story with additional flashback sequences drawn by Eric Theriault. ...
, which was also the title of the resulting mini-series.
In ''Tom Strong'' #11, Moore and co-creator Chris Sprouse more fully introduce the idea of Terra Obscura being a parallel Earth, "but in our own dimension. In our own galaxy". In this issue,
Tom Strange
Doc Strange is a Golden Age comic book superhero who originally appeared in '' Thrilling Comics'' #1 (Better Publications, also called Nedor Comics) in February 1940. The character continued in ''Thrilling Comics'' until issue #64 (Feb 1948). ...
is revealed to have run across the
Milky Way
The Milky Way is the galaxy that includes our Solar System, with the name describing the galaxy's appearance from Earth: a hazy band of light seen in the night sky formed from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye ...
for 30 years to reach Strong for help in stopping an alien menace that killed or imprisoned most of the science heroes of Terra Obscura. Strong himself theorized that the duplicate Earth "must be due to some near-inconceivable fluke of mathematics, of statistical probability".
The parallel Earth, as revealed by Strange, was formed much as our own, except that once Earth had completely formed, something large collided and combined with it — a vast spacecraft. The pilot of the spacecraft survived in the
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
, until awakened by astronauts on July 20, 1969. It apparently followed them back to Earth, where it began construction of a ship to return home — by converting the entire Earth into a spaceship. In the process, it was engaged in battle by the members of
SMASH. It killed some members, and trapped others in suspended animation for 30 years, until freed by the combined efforts of Tom Strong and Tom Strange.
In ''Tom Strong'' #12, it is revealed that the Black Terror had been killed in battle with the alien. However, Benton, a
polymath
A polymath ( el, πολυμαθής, , "having learned much"; la, homo universalis, "universal human") is an individual whose knowledge spans a substantial number of subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific pro ...
, had transferred his consciousness into a computer program called Terror 2000.
In the ''Terra Obscura'' series, the Terror 2000 program institutes a crime prevention program in Invertica City, wherein technologically produced versions of the Black Terror (referred to as the Terror) fight crime. A corporation running the program tries to sell it to other cities in the US. Eventually, the Terror transfers its consciousness into the now deceased Tim and tries to acquire power from the returning
Captain Future
Captain Future is a pulp science fiction hero — a space-traveling scientist and adventurer —originally published in his namesake pulp magazine from 1940 to 1944. The character was created by editors Mort Weisinger and Leo Margulies. The maj ...
's spaceship. He is defeated by a time travelling version of his original self, the Black Terror.
Image Comics
The Black Terror is seen in the
Mike Allred
Michael Dalton Allred is an American comic book artist and writer most famous for his independent comics creations, ''Madman'' and ''iZombie''. His style is often compared to pop art, as well as commercial and comic art of the 1950s and 1960s ...
illustrated "
Stardust the Super Wizard
Stardust the Super Wizard is a fictional superhero from the Golden Age of Comics who originally appeared in American comic books published by Fox Feature Syndicate. The character was created by writer-artist Fletcher Hanks. Stardust the Super W ...
" story in
Image Comics
Image Comics is an American comic book publisher and is the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry in both unit and market share. It was founded in 1992 by several high-profile illustrators as a venue for creator-ow ...
' ''
Next Issue Project
The Next Issue Project is a series of American comic-book anthology one-shots published by Image Comics beginning in February 2008. The multi-title project, edited by Erik Larsen, creator of Savage Dragon, features comic book characters that have ...
'' #1 (also known as ''
Fantastic Comics
''Fantastic Comics'' was an American comic book superhero anthology title published by Fox Feature Syndicate during the Golden Age of Comic Books. The title introduced the characters Banshee, Black Fury (John Perry), Nagana, Queen of Evil, Samson, ...
'' #24, January 2008). He can be seen with many other notable Golden Age characters, including
Daredevil,
Miss Masque
Miss Masque is a fictional masked crime-fighter. She originally appeared in comic books published by Nedor Comics, and was later revived by AC Comics, America's Best Comics, and Dynamite Entertainment.
Nedor Comics
Miss Masque is the secret identi ...
, the
Green Lama
The Green Lama is a fictional pulp magazine hero of the 1940s, created by American author Kendell Foster Crossen. He is commonly portrayed as a powerful Buddhist Lama, dressing in green robes with a red scarf and using his powerful skill set t ...
, the
Face
The face is the front of an animal's head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may aff ...
, the
Phantom
Phantom may refer to:
* Spirit (animating force), the vital principle or animating force within all living things
** Ghost, the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that can appear to the living
Aircraft
* Boeing Phantom Ray, a stealthy un ...
, the
Fighting Yank
The Fighting Yank is the name of several superheroes, first appearing in ''Startling Comics'' #10 (Sept 1941).
Fall 1941 was a boom period for patriotic superheroes as the country prepared to enter World War II; during this period, comic book p ...
, and
Samson
Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...
, who headlines the book. He also made a small appearance on the cover and in some panels of ''
Savage Dragon
The Savage Dragon is a fictional superhero created by Erik Larsen, published by Image Comics and taking place in the Image Universe. The comic features the adventures of a superheroic police officer named the Dragon. The character first appeared ...
'' #141 (November 2008).
Wild Cat Books
In June 2008, pulp publisher Wild Cat Books released ''Legends of the Golden Age'', a prose anthology featuring new stories of the Black Terror and
Lev Gleason's Daredevil.
Dynamite Entertainment
Black Terror was one of several Golden Age characters to appear in the comic book series ''
Project Superpowers
''Project Superpowers'' is a comic book limited series published by Dynamite Entertainment beginning January 2008. It was co-plotted by Jim Krueger and Alex Ross, with scripts by Jim Krueger, covers by Alex Ross, and interior art by Doug Klaub ...
'', by writer
Jim Krueger
Jim Krueger () is an American comic book writer, novelist, and filmmaker.
Early life
Jim Krueger and his brother grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He developed an interest in comic books and storytelling in his youth, and has described a fateful t ...
and artist
Alex Ross
Nelson Alexander Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an American comic book writer and artist known primarily for his painted interiors, covers, and design work. He first became known with the 1994 miniseries ''Marvels'', on which he collaborated wi ...
. He was also the first in the series to get a spin-off series, written by Krueger with art by
Mike Lilly
Mike Lilly is an American comic book artist known for his work on books such as ''Annihilation: Conquest'', ''Quasar'', ''Vampirella'', ''Dick Grayson, Nightwing'', ''Batman'', ''Detective Comics'', ''Marvel Knights'', ''Punisher'', ''Catwoman'', ...
. In the ''Black Terror'' series, which began in November 2008, the Terror leads a one-man assault on the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
in search of his lost partner, Tim. The series was cancelled at #14 in 2011. The character appears in the 2013 ''Masks'' series along other pulp heroes. He again had a solo series in 2019 entitled ''Black Terror'' which consisted of 5 issues unrelated to his previous Dynamite versions.
Metahuman Press
The 2009 Metahuman Press serial ''Out for Vengeance'' uses both the Black Terror and
Black Fury as a basis for the character. He maintains the traditional secret identity and costume. The series is set in the modern day and involves Robert Benton suddenly finding himself young and semi-amnesiac in the city of New Salem.
Heroes Inc.
The webcomic ''Heroes Inc.'' started in 2009 and takes place in an alternate reality where the allies of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
lost the war. In present day, the
American Crusader
The American Crusader is a superhero who originally appeared in ''Thrilling Comics'' #19 (Better Publications, Aug 1941). He appeared in almost every issue until #41 (April 1944).
The character was revived in the Modern Age in ''Femforce'' #59, b ...
gathers DNA from Golden Age heroes in order to create a new generation of heroes. One of these Golden Age heroes is the Black Terror (now going by the alias Duncan Boone), who is currently on death row for first degree murder.
Curse of the Black Terror
In February 2011, Broken Soul Press launched a webcomic called ''Curse of the Black Terror''. The comic is described as a superhero/noir story. The webcomic follows a re-imagined version of the Black Terror. Writer Curtis Lawson has stated that the story keeps the original Black Terror's history mostly intact and that his new Black Terror is a Legacy Hero. This new Black Terror features a new costume, but the same powers as the original. His identity has not been revealed. The visual re-design of the Black Terror in this webcomic was the work of artist Kundo Krunch.
Moonstone Books
In 2011,
Eric M. Esquivel
Eric Michael Esquivel (born 1987) is a Latino American comic book writer and journalist, known for the 2018 series ''Border Town'', which was cancelled following allegations that he had sexually and emotionally abused a female friend.
Early life ...
and Ander Sarabia created a version of The Black Terror called "The Blackest Terror", who is more of an urban revolutionary, obsessed with social justice, than a status-quo-enforcing superhero. Theirs is the first version of Robert Benton to be portrayed as an
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
. Blackest Terror also appears in their book ''Thor: Unkillable Thunder Christ'', also published by
Moonstone Books
Moonstone Books is an American comic book, graphic novel, and prose fiction publisher based in Chicago focused on pulp fiction comic books and prose anthologies as well as horror and western tales.
The company began publishing creator-owned com ...
.
Film
The Black Terror appears alongside other Golden Age superheroes in the independent film ''Avenging Force: The Scarab''.
References
External links
Black Terrorat
Don Markstein's Toonopedia
Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...
Archivedfrom the original on August 27, 2015.
at the International Catalogue of Superheroes
{{GoldenAge
Characters created by Richard E. Hughes
Comics characters introduced in 1941
Comics characters with superhuman strength
Dynamite Entertainment characters
Dynamite Entertainment titles
Eclipse Comics titles
Fictional scientists
Fictional World War II veterans
Golden Age superheroes
Nedor Comics superheroes