Archie Comic Publications, Inc., is an American comic book publisher headquartered in Pelham, New York.[Top-Notch Comics'' #8. Artist Warren King and writer Joe Blair loaned their talents to many of the Firefly's installments.
]
Publication history
The Firefly was the fourth superhero launched by MLJ in the eighth issue of their title '' Top-Notch Comics''.[Firefly](_blank)
at Don Markstein's Toonopedia He was a mainstay in ''Top-Notch Comics'' until its 28th issue, when MLJ changed its format from a superhero book to a humor book.
The popularity of superheroes waned in the late 1940s. The Firefly has had very few appearances since, although when he did briefly reappear during the sixties in '' The Mighty Crusaders'' #4 he had gained the ability to glow brightly like his namesake
A namesake is a person, geographic location, or other entity bearing the name of another.
History
The word is first attested around 1635, and probably comes from the phrase "for one's name's sake",
which originates in English Bible translations ...
. As part of the team the character reappeared in the 2000s ''Archie's Weird Mysteries
''Archie's Weird Mysteries'' (French: ''Archie, mystères et compagnie'') is an animated television series based on the characters by Archie Comics. The series premise revolves around a Riverdale High physics lab gone awry, making the town of R ...
'' #3 and 14 and ''Tales From Riverdale Digest'' #27.
Fictional character biography
The Firefly's real name is Harley Hudson, an entomologist and chemist. He discovers that insects can lift masses greater than their own weight not because of the square–cube law
The square–cube law (or cube–square law) is a mathematical principle, applied in a variety of scientific fields, which describes the relationship between the volume and the surface area as a shape's size increases or decreases. It was first ...
but because of their ability to coordinate their muscles. He teaches himself to coordinate his muscles as insects do and finds himself able to perform amazing feats. He then dons a costume and calls himself the Firefly. Thus, the Firefly, similar to the Black Hood
The Black Hood is a fictional character created by MLJ Comics (later known as Archie Comics) during the period known as the "Golden Age of Comic Books". The Black Hood first appeared in ''Top-Notch Comics #9'', October 1940 and became one of MLJ ...
, another MLJ superhero, does not possess any real superpowers but is merely a man possessing great physical and mental prowess due to his natural abilities.
Hudson's romantic interest is Joan Burton, a newspaper reporter. Her occupation was common for female characters in MLJ comics. Barbara Sutton, the romantic interest for the Black Hood
The Black Hood is a fictional character created by MLJ Comics (later known as Archie Comics) during the period known as the "Golden Age of Comic Books". The Black Hood first appeared in ''Top-Notch Comics #9'', October 1940 and became one of MLJ ...
, and Jane Barlowe, the romantic interest for the Wizard, were both newspaper reporters.
His recurring enemies are Dr. Dread, the Mummy and the Dervish.
Impact Comics
Firefly would also appear as part of the Crusaders published in the 1990s by DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
' imprint Impact Comics
Impact Comics was an imprint of DC Comics that was aimed at younger audiences. It began in 1991 and ended in 1993. The initial "I" in the logo was stylized as an exclamation point, but the official name of the imprint was not ''!mpact''.
Impac ...
. The character was armed with a flamethrower.
Dark Circle Comics
The Firely was a featured character in ''The Mighty Crusaders'', first released in December 2017 under the Archie Comics imprint Dark Circle Comics. The series ran for four issues.[Dark Circle News]
The World Still Needs Heroes.
''Darkcirclecomics.com''. Accessed 31 August 2017.
References
External links
*Offenberger, Rik
Rik Offenberger (born January 30, 1964) is an American comic book journalist and publicity agent, an early utilizer of the Internet for distributing comics news, and the public relations coordinator of Archie Comics.
Career
Offenberger started ...
, ed
Firefly
at MightyCrusaders.net
*
*
{{GoldenAge
Golden Age superheroes
Comics characters introduced in 1940
Fictional chemists
Fictional entomologists
Male characters in comics
Vigilante characters in comics