American Ace, Castile D'Or, and Attainia

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vanhornluke
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American Ace, Castile D'Or, and Attainia

Post by vanhornluke »

MOTION PICTURE FUNNIES WEEKLY #1 (1939)

1ST Story

NOTE:
This Namor story is already analyzed and in the MCP.

5th Story:
By ?

APPEARANCES:
WWI soldier (in flashback), Queen Ursula, Castile D’Orian army, Josef, Castile D’Orian minister (a Count), Attainian pedestrians, Attainian officials, Castile D’Orian officials, Castile D’Orian citizens, Attainian monarch, American Ace (Perry Wade), Attainian soldiers, Attainian citizens, horses

SYNOPSIS:
Queen Ursula, in exile since WWI, is brought back to Castile D’Or and regains her thrown, planning to reconquer territories lost during the war. She first sets her sights on Attainia and has her own foreign minister there assassinated to provide an excuse for invasion. Meanwhile, Perry Wade travels to Attainia, unaware of the political/military developments. Shortly after he lands his plane, the Castile D’Orian air force begins bombing the capital. He barely survives.

NOTE:
Definitely pre-Comics Code! This story is surprisingly brutal, showing Attainian children blown to bits. It introduces two more countries overlooked by the Marvel Atlas, Castile D’Or and Attainia. I get the impression they’re somewhere in central or eastern Europe. I obviously don’t have a copy of this comic, so I’m relying on the version in Marvel Mystery Comics #2, which reprints the first six pages of the seven-page story. I've skipped the other stories, since they aren't confirmed to be 616. Also, I should point out that the title is Motion Picture (singular) Funnies Weekly, so the MCP key should be corrected.


MARVEL MYSTERY COMICS #3 (Jan 1940)

5th Story:
By ?

APPEARANCES:
American Ace, Jeanie, Marie, their grandfather, Queen Ursula, Josef, Castile D’Orian citizens, Castile D’Orian pilots

NOTE:
I’m not sure what’s going on with this story at MCP. It’s listed in American Ace’s chronology with no brackets, so that should mean that the story has been fully analyzed. However, none of the other characters have MCP chronologies. Also, apparently, the first six panels tell the same story as the last page of the story in Motion Picture Funnies Weekly. Finally, is it worth pointing out that Perry says he’s looking for radium? :-P


AMAZING MYSTERY FUNNIES #24 (Sep 1940)

8th Story:
By ?

APPEARANCES:
Castile D’Orian soldiers, Attainian soldiers, Queen Ursula, Josef, Lt. Lank

SYNOPSIS:
Lt. Lank has been attacking the Castile D’Orian military and industry, making a name for himself and sparking fear in his enemies. One day, balloons tethered to the ground are sent up in order to snare Lank. He flies right into them and grabs one of the balloons, riding it down to the ground where he’s captured. He’s brought to Queen Ursula, since she’s curious to meet him. Thinking she can do whatever she wants, she impulsively kisses him, so he responds by giving her a harsh spanking and then jumping out a window to escape.

NOTE:
MMC #3 promised more American Ace stories, but for whatever reason the series was dropped. The writer apparently liked the setting, so the story of the war between Castile D’Or and Attainia was continued here. Lt. Lank is obviously playing the same role as American Ace. It’s possible Lank is another name American Ace has adopted, but I don’t see any need to make that assumption, especially since it’s not listed as an alias in his handbook entry. So, I’ll simply assume that Lank is another pilot resisting Castile D’Or’s invasion. MCP is, of course, free to disagree and identify him as American Ace. Also, obviously, none of the other stories in this issue have been confirmed as 616, so I’ve skipped them.


THE ARROW #2 (Nov 1940)

6th Story:
By ?

APPEARANCES:
Bavanian consulate, Lt. Lank, Castile D’Orian bomber crew, Attainian radio operator, Castile D’Orian soldiers, woman who kisses Lank

SYNOPSIS:
Lt. Lank is visiting his friend, the Bavanian consulate in Attainia, when he hears over the radio that Castile D’Or is attacking Tara, a nearby town. He speeds to Tara and takes an old fighter plane up in the air. He daringly jumps onto an enemy bomber and sneaks aboard, capturing the crew and dropping the payload on the Castile D’Orian army, saving Tara.

NOTE:
Yet another country overlooked by the Marvel Atlas, Bavania. If Lank is identified as American Ace, then the unnamed woman here could be assumed to be Jeanie, since she’s drawn similarly to Jeanie. Also, again, none of the other stories in this issue have been confirmed to be 616. No other stories set during this war have appeared, but, as American Ace's handbook entry speculates, it may have been mooted by WWII.


Chronologies:

AMERICAN ACE/PERRY WEBB
*MOTION PICTURE FUNNIES WEEKLY 1/5 (1-6) (add)
*MOTION PICTURE FUNNIES WEEKLY 1/5 (7) ~ M/MC 3/5 (1:1-1:6)
*M/MC 3/5 (delete)
*M/MC 3/5 (1:7-6:5) (add)
ALLWS:BH 4-FB
ALLWS:BH 5-FB

JEANIE
M/MC 3/5

JOSEF
MOTION PICTURE FUNNIES WEEKLY 1/5
M/MC 3/5
AMF 24/8

LANK, LT.
AMF 24/8
ARROW 2/6

MARIE
M/MC 3/5

QUEEN URSULA
MOTION PICTURE FUNNIES WEEKLY 1/5
M/MC 3/5
AMF 24/8
Last edited by vanhornluke on Sun Sep 10, 2017 4:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Russ Chappell
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Re: American Ace, Castile D'Or, and Attainia

Post by Russ Chappell »

vanhornluke wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2017 5:54 pm AMERICAN ACE/PERRY WEBB
*MOTION PICTURE FUNNIES WEEKLY 1 (1-6) (add)
*MOTION PICTURE FUNNIES WEEKLY 1 (7) ~ M/MC 3/5 (1:1-1:6)
*M/MC 3/5 (delete)
*M/MC 3/5 (1:7-6:5) (add)
ALLWS:BH 4-FB
ALLWS:BH 5-FB
Thanks for the analyses.

Since Motion Picture Funnies Weekly 1 and Marvel Mystery Comics 3 were published in different years, they can't have synchronous appearances. M/MC 3/5 (1:1 - 1:6) is just a retelling of Motion Picture Funnies Weekly 1 (7), much as Peter Parker being bitten by a radioactive spider has been shown dozens of times, so there's no need to break off page 7 of MPFW from pages 1-6. It would just be MOTION PICTURES FUNNIES WEEKLY 1. The first 6 panels of M/MC 3/5 wouldn't be listed, any more than those Spider-Man retellings.

Going on, we don't list page ranges unless there's more than one listing for a story in a character's chronology, and since we're no longer listing the first six panels, there's no need to distinguish pages 1:6 - 6:5. It's just M/MC 3/5.

I know at first glance, it may seem a little odd, that we're not somehow "recognizing" that the first part of M/MC 3/5 duplicates the last part of MPFW 1, but look at this way. To those people who don't have both books, it doesn't matter: American Ace's chronology goes from MPFW 1 to M/MC 3/5. It's only an issue when someone has both books, sitting on the desk in front of them at the same time. But if they have both books, they can clearly see what's happening, and the chronologies listed here make a kind of...sense.
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vanhornluke
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Re: American Ace, Castile D'Or, and Attainia

Post by vanhornluke »

Ah, I guess that makes sense. I thought the ~ symbol was used to indicate simultaneity in-universe, not from an out-of-universe publishing perspective.
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Re: American Ace, Castile D'Or, and Attainia

Post by Russ Chappell »

It's an easy misinterpretation to make. We're working on posting a much more detailed and thorough guidebook to how to read the listings.
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Re: American Ace, Castile D'Or, and Attainia

Post by Col_Fury »

Radium!!1!!~ :lol:
-Daron Jensen
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