DETECTIVE COMICS 36 (1940)
Written by Bill Finger
Pencils by Bob Kane & Jerry Robinson
After Dr. Death, let’s meet the first Batman supervillain you might recognize: Hugo Strange.
Detective Comics was still an anthology; the cover has nothing to do with THIS story, but at least it’s a Batman cover.
Batman’s look is getting closer to its classic version: this is the first time his gloves begin to be drawn with the three spikes.
Also he’s about to be crushed by his GIANT logo.
Considering how close Batman will be with the police, it’s refreshing to see his earliest portrayal.
The victim, later identified as an FBI agent, mentioned the words “fog” and “strange” before dying, so Batman (I’m sorry, “the Batman”) deduces that it’s a reference to Professor Strange.
Sounds legit.
Also: does “philosopher” feel a little out of place next to “scientist” and “criminal genius”, or is it just me?
Speaking of the professor, he makes a fittingly creepy debut.
Pretty close to most modern interpretations, actually. Although I’m not used to see him depicted as physically intimidating.
No wonder Gotham City needs the Batman if its cops are THIS incompetent!!!
Bruce Wayne has updated from reading the news to listening to the news.
Considering how long it took Superman to get to his classic look, it’s quite something to see Batman drawn like this after just 9 stories.
The original Bat-Signal was WILDLY different!!!
After the Batman fights some more Strange goons…
…he’s eventually knocked out, because we’re decades before he becomes invincible against regular humans.
And here I thought Wonder Woman had the exclusive on Golden Age S&M.
The Batman is able to free himself (because Batman), Strange once again shows that he’s a far more physical threat in this era.
But come on. Batman.
Now… if this was a modern story, or perhaps even a Silver Age story, it would be over.
But in the Golden Age:
Uhm… okay. So that happened, for some reason.
Historical significance: 2/10
Hugo Strange is introduced, but he’s nearly unrecognizable as a character. More on that later.
Silver Age-ness: 6/10
The random, out-of-nowhere weather machine.
Does it stand the test of time? 0/10
Not exactly a classic. Far more polished than the Dr. Death story, to be sure, but that only makes it stand out even less.
How close is this to the modern character? 5/10
Almost there as a look, completely disregarded for everything else.
Hugo Strange is a weird case when it comes to Batman early villains (not as weird as Dr. Death though).
He has THREE Golden Age stories, including this one, the last one being in December 1940.
This version of Strange won’t show up again until “The Brave And The Bold #182” in 1982, meaning there is a forty-two year gap in his appearances. And he’s brought back only to commit suicide in the same story!!!
However, and that’s a rather big however, that’s only if you consider the Earth-2 version… because in 1977 we were introduced to the more interesting Earth-1 version, which is notable because this Hugo Strange was one of the very few Batman supervillains to learn his secret identity.
The most well-known adaptations of the character, from “Batman: The Animated Series” and the Arkham games, are based heavily on the 1977 version.
Basically only part of the look has resisted the test of time. Of the original character, which to be honest felt like a rip-off of Sherlock Holmes nemesis Professor Moriarty, nothing else remains.