Random Back Issues #46 - Hourman #10

No, you don't understand. He's a demon, so decaf is like a triple espresso for him. Because it's evil. And he's a demon, so evil is good for him. Look, just give him the damn stimulants before he consigns us all to Hell, OK?

We last looked at Hourman five months ago, but 13 issues from now. Seems appropriate for a time-traveler. At the point, Torcher the demon and Dr. Togg, the Golden Age Hourman foe are ready to betray the rest of the group out of bitterness and general stupidity. Here, they're just being added to the supporting cast. Torcher's fresh out of Hell, and Togg's fresh out of prison.

Beth and Snapper are trying to introduce Torcher to local culture, since he decided to stay on Earth after Day of Judgement. Which I think was about the Spectre going nuts. I know, which time? Hourman shows up with Wendi Harris, who was the wife of the original Hourman. Ty tried helping her son, Rick, who has some sort of horrible disease, and fucked that up real good. He had to dump him in the Timepoint, where time never passes, until he can find a cure.

 

All of which leaves him a little leery of trusting a demon from Hell, because maybe his judgement's unsound. Snapper and Beth talk him through that, although Beth is also trying to figure out if something is going on between Ty and Wendi. Which I feel should be gross, because developmentally, Ty is maybe an adolescent, but also because I'm not sure whether he would be considered a descendant of her deceased husband, or a copy of him. Neither of those is great, but the former feels weirder than the latter.

While I'm trying to get over my wiggins about that, a Bill McDowell head of a Big Pharma company asks Hourman to please protect him. He hired Dr. Togg when the doc approached him offering his expertise in genetics. Togg got busy making "gombezis", which are dogs with bird wings and talons that just say the word "Gombezi" all the time.

Togg's watching all this and unleashes the gombezis. Ty and Torcher drive them off, but they grabbed Beth on the way out the door, because Togg's smitten. Beth does spend basically every issue in a crop top and shorts, but as Rick notes, Togg was in prison 58 years, so 'Pat Buchanan in a halter top' might have produced the same effect.

And that mental picture is the greatest crime Snapper Carr ever committed.

Hourman tracks them down, but not before Togg uses his monstroscopic lamp to make Beth like him. Ty flips out a bit and smashes the lab, but calms down, uses him time vision to undo the damage, and restores Beth and Togg to their "normal" states. Ty also offers Togg (or Rocco) his friendship, and a lab on his Timeship. He hopes Togg will find a cure for the mysterious disease Rick Tyler has. Togg is suspicious, and when Ty says that this is because Togg doesn't trust himself, Togg dismisses that as 'self-help crap.'

All that dealt with, Hourman and Beth have themselves a sunset walk on the beach. Just as the android's about to confess his feelings, the Justice League of the 853rd Century shows up, insisting he come home with them. Cockblockers. Tyler will ultimately get them to back off, but Batman, being Batman, decides that doesn't apply to him and will ultimately decide to butt in again later.

Because all Batmen, no matter the era, are jerks.

[6th longbox, 48th comic. Hourman #10, by Tom Peyer (writer), Rags Morales (layouts), Mark Propst (embellisher), John Kalisz (colorist), Heroic Age (seps), Kurt Hathaway (letterer)]