Captain Future is a fictional

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, ...

character (not to be confused with the pulp magazine character of the same name) who first appeared in ''Startling Comics'' #1 (June 1940) 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 ...

Publishing history

Captain Future appeared in issues #1-40 of ''Startling Comics'' (June 1940 - July 1946). He also appeared in several issues of ''America's Best Comics''. In 2003, he appeared in

AC Comics AC Comics (formerly known as Paragon Publications and Americomics) is a comic book publishing company started by Bill Black.

' ''Sentinels of America'' #1, along with

Black Terror The Black Terror is a fictional comic book superhero who originally appeared in ''Exciting Comics'' #9, published by Nedor Comics in January 1941. The character was popular, and on the strength of the Black Terror's sales, Nedor made ''Exciting Co ...

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 ...

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 The Scarab. In 2004 he appeared in ''

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. ...

, Volume Two''. In 2008, Captain Future appeared in flashbacks in

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 ...

's miniseries ''

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 ...

''; in the one-shot ''Project Superpowers: Chapter Two Prelude'', it was stated that he would appear in future issues in this line.

Fictional biography

Nedor Comics

In 1940,

scientist A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...

Andrew Bryant discovers that bathing himself in a combination of

gamma Gamma (uppercase , lowercase ; ''gámma'') is the third letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 3. In Ancient Greek, the letter gamma represented a voiced velar stop . In Modern Greek, this letter re ...

and

infrared Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...

rays will grant him superpowers. He uses these powers to fight crime, with the help of his

detective A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads th ...

girlfriend, Grace Adams of the Agatha Detective Agency. While "powered up" Bryant is super-strong, can fly and hurl bolts of energy from his hands. Strong blows to the head, however, can render him unconscious, and he must frequently use his radiation machine to recharge his powers. According to ''Jess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes'', "his enemies vary from German ("Nazonians") and Japanese agents to Dr. Allirog, a Moreau-like mad scientist who creates "fiendish monsters" and who transplanted his brain into the body of a bear with the head, hands and feet of a gorilla, to Dr. Bio, who creates horse-sized tarantulas with human faces, to

kaiju is a Japanese media genre that focuses on stories involving giant monsters. The word ''kaiju'' can also refer to the giant monsters themselves, which are usually depicted attacking major cities and battling either the military or other monster ...

-sized alligators".

''Project Superpowers''

At some point after

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 ...

, Captain Future was trapped in the mystical Urn of Pandora by the misguided

, along with dozens of other heroes. Decades later, the Urn was broken and the heroes were freed. In the second volume of Project Superpowers, it is revealed that Captain Future was actually the Greek god Zeus all along.

Powers and abilities

After bathing himself in gamma and infrared rays, Captain Future gained superhuman strength, flight, and the ability to project energy bolts through his hands, although his powers are only temporary and he must expose himself to the radiation to recharge them.

References

External links

*
Captain Future
at ''The Good Guys & Gals of the Golden Age'', vol. 2, no. 22 {{commons category, Captain Future (Nedor), Captain Future (Nedor Comics) Comics characters introduced in 1940 Dynamite Entertainment characters Golden Age superheroes Nedor Comics superheroes Comics characters with superhuman strength Fictional World War II veterans