Doc Strange | |
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Thrilling Comics #1
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Publication information | |
Publisher |
Nedor Comics America's Best Comics |
First appearance | Thrilling Comics #1 |
Created by | Richard E. Hughes (writer), Alexander Kostuk (artist) |
In-story information | |
Alter ego | Doctor Thomas Hugo Strange |
Team affiliations | SMASH |
Notable aliases | Tom Strange |
Abilities | Scientific genius, super strength, flight, super speed, invulnerability to bullets |
Doc Strange is a Golden Age comic book superhero who originally appeared in Thrilling Comics #1 (Better Publications, also called Nedor Comics) in 1940. Circa 2000, the character was revived and renamed 'Tom Strange' in Tom Strong #11 (published by America's Best Comics).
Hugo Strange ("Dr. Strange," later "Doc Strange") was an American scientist who developed a serum called Alosun--described as a "distillate of sun atoms"--which when ingested gave him superhuman strength, the ability to fly, and invulnerability. Doc Strange was assisted by his girlfriend Virginia Thompson. In Thrilling Comics #24, he gained teen sidekick named Mike, who wore the same costume as Doc Strange, along with a green cape. Though non-powered during the earlier adventures, Mike later gained the same powers as Doc Strange.
Doc Strange appeared in Thrilling Comics #1–64 and the Golden Age America's Best Comics #1–23, 27
Doc Strange was briefly revived in the pages of Femforce as part of the Vault Heroes, a group of Golden Age superheroes who volunteered to have themselves cryogenically frozen following World War II, so that they could be revived should the world need them. He died shortly after being unfrozen, making the heroes realize that the cryogenic process did not work perfectly on everyone.
AC Comics went on to reprint many of his Golden Age adventures in various anthologies.
Doc Strange, along with other heroes from Nedor Comics, were revived by Alan Moore in his series Tom Strong. This revival set the characters on a parallel world called Terra Obscura, which was also the title of the resulting mini-series. The character was renamed "Thomas Hugo Strange" (or "Tom Strange"), presumably to set him apart from the Marvel Comics sorcerer Doctor Strange and Batman villain Hugo Strange, and to present him as a Terra Obscura version of Tom Strong.