Without This Forgotten Golden Age DC Hero, One Of Batman’s Greatest Villains Wouldn’t Exist

Batman is DC Comics‘ cash cow, and there’s no denying it. Once upon a time, he was the rule and not the exception, a gritty, violent hero who made criminals pay. Over the years, many ideas in DC started elsewhere in the company, and those ideas came to Batman comics. Bane is a perfect example of this. The villain’s origin was an inverse of the Dark Knight’s own; the villain was cursed for the crimes of his father, and made himself into the perfect machine to take vengeance and make himself powerful. A big part of this was Venom, a strength-enhancing drug that made him more than a match for Batman, its power coming with the high price of addiction.

Bane’s become one of Batman’s greatest villains, but the idea of a strength-enhancing, addictive drug wasn’t created for the character. In fact, it has its origin back in the Golden Age, when DC Comics was codifying what the superhero could be with teams like the Justice Society of America. One member of this team, who also starred in numerous solo adventures in the Golden Age and beyond, was the first drug-using DC character: Hourman. Rex Tyler began a legacy that would reach far past the modern day, and is one of the most underrated heroes in the history of DC Comics.

Hourman Is a Character With Depths That Most Fans Miss

Hourman, on the surface, doesn’t really seem like all that great a character. I was first introduced to him in 1991, when I was collecting DC Universe trading cards. The first pack I ever opened had the hero as the first card, and his name and gimmick seemed like prime Golden Age cheese to my Jim Lee X-Men-loving self. Rex Tyler was a chemist who created a drug called Miraclo, which gave him superhuman strength and durability for an hour. He used the drug to help clean up his city, a common practice for the wealthy of the Golden Age, apparently, and would join the Justice Society.

He was never one of the more powerful characters, but he was always there with his awesome hooded yellow and black costume and a hard right hook. He’d return with the JSA in the ’60s, and eventually, the most interesting aspect of the character would be created: that Miraclo was an addictive drug. This little wrinkle changed everything for the character. He was only a superhero because he was a drug addict, and he soon became addicted to the thrill of adventuring. His son Rick would take up his mantle and also get addicted to the drug, something that would become a major part of the first two Hourmen.

The Golden Age, one of the greatest Justice Society stories, modernized the heroes of the ’40s, and showed Hourman’s addiction in full blast. The rest of the heroes retired, but he couldn’t. He was chasing the dragon, trying to create a version of his drug that would keep him higher longer. His whole life was making drugs, taking drugs, and fighting crime, and it was the most interesting look at a drug addicted hero ever. This little idea — the crusading hero of yesteryear, one of the legends, was a drug addict — felt so real and it made the character into something special.

Of course, because of the nature of superhero comics, he’d eventually beat his addiction, creating a non-addictive version of the drug that he could take more than once a day. However, there’s always been so much potential with this idea of the character; it’s always surprised me that DC has never come up with a mature readers’ story starring the character using this idea (I have a pitch, DC, in case you’re interested). The hero has always had more going on than most fans realize, and it’s long past time that the character got his just due as one of the greatest Golden Age heroes ever.

Hourman Is a Legend Who Could Be So Much More

The 2020s have been a new Golden Age for DC’s oldest heroes. The return of the Justice Society to DC continuity has taken many of the characters to new places. Alan Scott’s Green Lantern is the poster boy for this; the character was made gay, and it’s made him so much better. Hourman could easily take the same path by leaning into his drug addiction. DC has used this idea in minor ways elsewhere in the character’s history, but it’s long past time to pull the trigger and make the character into what he could be.

Hourman’s history is quite interesting. Rick Tyler is a great character (his story since the early ’00s has been an amazing redemption tale of beating addiction and living up to his father’s legacy, and had one of comics ‘ best unsung romances with Jessie Quick), and the Hourman of the 853rd century was an awesome addition to the mythos. However, Rex is the original, with the idea of a strength-enhancing, addictive drug paying off for everyone but him. It’s about time for that to change. Hourman is an amazing character, and the world needs to know.

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