I think most of us know that the 60’s were a time of amazing creativity in the Marvel Universe. Characters were created that drive new stories some 40 plus years later, and are responsible for generating new industries today certainly not imagined at that time. But, even with all that said, you know what I don’t think we give Stan and Jack and Steve and so on enough credit for? The villains! Without a credible villain, there is no tension, no conflict, and thus, no story. Now, not all of the bad guys have stood the test of time (Stilt Man, anyone?). But, a number of them were really creative, even daring for that time. Today, I’m going to talk about one such “villain” that made an impression on me. Batroc, the leaper.
Batroc?
Seriously?
Yes, Batroc! He made his first appearance in Tales of Suspense #75. At the time, I’m sure I had never heard of the term “mercenary.” Really, what elementary school student did? If you think about it, that’s a pretty complex concept to follow. Here was a bad guy that had no axe to grind, no revenge to take, and he wasn’t trying to rule the world. He just wanted to test his skills against Captain America, and it honestly seemed like money and girls were more important than his mission. Frankly, to me, that sounded like a good gig (although at the time girls were not top of mind – that came later). Plus, he was a bad guy that worked with a smile and a large mustache! Seriously, it’s not like the mask was really going to put anyone off his trail. And, he wasn’t a Communist, he was French for gosh sakes!
I wonder if we realize how high a level those comics were written for? How many kids under the age of 10 today know what Cap knew in 1966 (and I learned shortly thereafter)? That is, Batroc was an expert at “La Savate, the French art of boxing with the feet!” (a quote from Cap in ToS #75). How many of us in the US knew people that spoke French? In my neighborhood, Yiddish was more common. But, French? As an aside, do we really think Stan spoke French? Or, did he just look up different ways to say “Holy @#$!@”?
Over the years, Batroc has been, from times, side by side with Cap, and, at other times, “head to foot” against Cap. His first appearance in Tales of Suspense had layouts by Jack Kirby, but the pencils were by Dick Ayers and the inks by J. Tartaglione. The next two issues of ToS were penciled by “Jazzy” John Romita. From my research, those were the only two issues of Captain America’s Tales of Suspense stories penciled by John. I’m not sure if John inked himself, as the splash to 76 lists no inker.
Did I say splash? Sacre Bleu (which, by the way, French people never say)! Yes, I did! Please take a look at the splash to Tales of Suspense #76, “The Girl, the Gladiator, and the Glory!”
