Captain 3-D
Encyclopedia
Captain 3-D was a Harvey Comics
character who appeared in one issue of his own eponymous title, dated December 1953, a few years before the beginning of the Silver Age of Comic Books
. Captain 3-D was a product of the famous comic book creative team of Joe Simon
and Jack Kirby
, and was an example of an early attempt to produce a 3-D comic book.
The handful of Cat People survivors are forced to hide in disguise among mankind, although they never give up their dreams of conquest. Knowing that in their weakened state the Chosen One might be able to lead humanity against them, they hunt for the Book of D, but every time they manage to catch up with the Book's guardian and kill him, someone else spirits the Book away to safety and becomes its new guardian.
In the early 1950s a strange, badly injured man stumbles into a book shop that has been inherited by teenager Danny Davis. Probably feeling the best place to hide a book would be in a shop full of them, he hands Danny the Book of D and begs him, "Keep this one. Never sell it." Seconds later he is killed by one of the disguised Cat People. Danny disarms the killer who flees. Examining the book afterward, Danny finds a pair of strange glasses inside it; the only other thing inside the book is an illustration of a strangely dressed man. Looking at the picture through the glasses, Danny is astounded when the man springs to life off the page. His arrival is timely as it coincides with the appearance of more gunmen, who identify the man from the book as Captain 3-D.
In spite of being outnumbered, Captain 3-D easily subdues the attackers, then has Danny examine them through the same strange glasses that brought him to life. Danny sees that the "gunmen" are Cat People. The Chosen One, who has become known over the years as Captain 3-D, tells Danny that he is the new guardian of the Book of D. Danny realises this means he is now a target, but Captain 3-D reassures him that he will not be alone. With that, he returns to his sleep in the Book of D.
-created Marvel Comics
character, 3-D Man
. 3-D Man in turn inspired the Marvel Comics Avengers
character Triathlon who has since become the second 3-D Man.
AC Comics
has its own Captain 3-D clone, Commando D.
Harvey Comics
Harvey Comics was an American comic book publisher, founded in New York City by Alfred Harvey in 1941, after buying out the small publisher Brookwood Publications. His brothers Robert B...
character who appeared in one issue of his own eponymous title, dated December 1953, a few years before the beginning of the Silver Age of Comic Books
Silver Age of Comic Books
The Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those in the superhero genre. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an interregnum in the early to mid-1950s, the Silver Age is considered to cover the...
. Captain 3-D was a product of the famous comic book creative team of Joe Simon
Joe Simon
Joseph Henry "Joe" Simon is an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s-1940s Golden Age of Comic Books and served as the first editor of Timely Comics, the company that would evolve into Marvel Comics.With his...
and Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby , born Jacob Kurtzberg, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor regarded by historians and fans as one of the major innovators and most influential creators in the comic book medium....
, and was an example of an early attempt to produce a 3-D comic book.
Character history
Around fifty thousand years ago, a battle between two opposing civilizations takes place, one society populated by humanoids, the other a race of Cat People. The Cat People succeed in all but wiping out the humanoids, with only a tiny number of survivors hanging on in underground bases. A humanoid scientist, Doctor Five, devises a way that one of his people might survive to oppose the Cat People in the future. The Chosen One will be kept in a sort of "two-dimensional half life" in a specially prepared book, the Book of D, able to be released for brief periods of time by someone wearing a special pair of glasses. Doctor Five entrusts the book to a group of primitive men, who promise to guard it. Shortly afterwards the Cat People kill Doctor Five and the other remaining humanoids, leaving the Chosen One the last survivor of his race. However the Cat People are all but destroyed themselves when their continent sinks beneath the ocean.The handful of Cat People survivors are forced to hide in disguise among mankind, although they never give up their dreams of conquest. Knowing that in their weakened state the Chosen One might be able to lead humanity against them, they hunt for the Book of D, but every time they manage to catch up with the Book's guardian and kill him, someone else spirits the Book away to safety and becomes its new guardian.
In the early 1950s a strange, badly injured man stumbles into a book shop that has been inherited by teenager Danny Davis. Probably feeling the best place to hide a book would be in a shop full of them, he hands Danny the Book of D and begs him, "Keep this one. Never sell it." Seconds later he is killed by one of the disguised Cat People. Danny disarms the killer who flees. Examining the book afterward, Danny finds a pair of strange glasses inside it; the only other thing inside the book is an illustration of a strangely dressed man. Looking at the picture through the glasses, Danny is astounded when the man springs to life off the page. His arrival is timely as it coincides with the appearance of more gunmen, who identify the man from the book as Captain 3-D.
In spite of being outnumbered, Captain 3-D easily subdues the attackers, then has Danny examine them through the same strange glasses that brought him to life. Danny sees that the "gunmen" are Cat People. The Chosen One, who has become known over the years as Captain 3-D, tells Danny that he is the new guardian of the Book of D. Danny realises this means he is now a target, but Captain 3-D reassures him that he will not be alone. With that, he returns to his sleep in the Book of D.
Cancellation
A second issue of Captain 3-D was partially completed, however the fad for 3-D was waning even as Captain 3-D first appeared. Thus Harvey Comics' plans for publication of further 3-D comics, including Captain 3-D #2, were canceled.Powers and abilities
The last survivor of an otherwise extinct humanoid race, Captain 3-D is gifted with superior intellect and physical attributes; he is fitter, stronger and faster than normal humans, to a level unspecified in his one brief appearance. Able to survive for millennia stored within the Book of D, Captain 3-D can only be released by the special glasses developed and built by Doctor Five.Legacy
Captain 3-D was the inspiration for the Roy ThomasRoy Thomas
Roy William Thomas, Jr. is an American comic book writer and editor, and Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibly best known for introducing the pulp magazine hero Conan the Barbarian to American comics, with a series that added to the storyline of Robert E...
-created Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
character, 3-D Man
3-D Man
-Publication history:Although his adventures take place in the 1950s, the character was created by Roy Thomas in the 1970s in the anthology series Marvel Premiere...
. 3-D Man in turn inspired the Marvel Comics Avengers
Avengers (comics)
The Avengers is a fictional team of superheroes, appearing in magazines published by Marvel Comics. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 The Avengers is a fictional team of superheroes, appearing in magazines published by Marvel Comics. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 The Avengers...
character Triathlon who has since become the second 3-D Man.
AC Comics
AC Comics
AC Comics is a comic book publishing company started by Bill Black.AC Comics specializes in reprints of Golden Age comics from now-defunct companies whose properties lapsed into public domain and were not reprinted elsewhere...
has its own Captain 3-D clone, Commando D.