The First Spider Woman

In the early 1940s when war raged across the globe, comic book sales were at an all-time high, thanks in large part to them being one of the few entertainment mediums that were available to entertain children. Sure, there were radio programs broadcast in the afternoon, and the Saturday Morning Matinee at the theater that would include a cartoon, a serial, and a couple of B-pictures. But in terms of colorful, visual entertainment, comic books were just about the only game in town. However, paper was necessary for the war effort, and was strictly rationed. This led to assorted publishers, typically of the fly-by-night variety, occasionally coming into a small supply of paper and deciding to put out a comic book in order to capitalize on the situation. MAJOR VICTORY COMICS was one such release. It published three haphazard issues in 1944 and 1945 of varying quality. But it’s one particular strip that we’re interested here.

The creator credits for Spider Woman are lost to the ages, and she made no further appearances in the later issues. So it’s really just her name and her shtick that makes her noteworthy today, as she shares it with several latter-day characters who achieved a bit more success. Regardless, this 1944 Spider Woman story is a weird thing, with some eye-popping artwork that shows just a hair of influence from Basil Wolverton and a story that’s utterly insane.

See, Spider Woman is a costumed heroine who wears a second costume over her fighting togs, that of a gigantic spider-creature, the better to frighten criminals. Amazing.