Black Canary STEALS Comic Book Title - Shocking Origin 

Johnny’s so clumsy he accidentally knocks other people out? He’s like a reverse Hal Jordon.

I liked that the Thunderbolt introduced himself to Jakeem with “Let’s just say you ain’t never had a friend like me…”

Poor Johnny Lastname, if only he could pull off fishnets he wouldn't have lost his thunder.

How Johnny Thunder is represented in the Stargirl TV series shows that modern writers on the show have more respect for the character than the folks writing the comic back in the day. Johnny was DC's original "weirdness magnet."

Sasha: "What's hot?" Me, Watching Her: "Er, uh, hoo, wow, oh boy, you'll never believe this, but..."

Johnny Thunder is kinda like a proto-Jimmy Olsen. Some guy in a bowtie who gets swept up in crazy adventures outside of his control and is friends with a far more competent superhero.

'Johnny, you were never a hero. You were always just a weird guy we put up with 'cause ya had a "pet" thunderbolt.' Al Pratt (the original Atom) summing up Johnny Thunder's time in the JSA in The Golden Age #2.

"Is singing at you hot?" Depends what it is- if it's a sultry song on a piano, yes. If it's an aggressive sea shanty probably not (but then your fathoms may vary).

I loved how Johnny once said, "Say you idiot, do something!" Then the thunderbolt could do something.

I would like Black Canary in Stargirl. Odds are they do her more justice compared to Arrow.

I once had an idea for a complete reimagining of Johnny Thunder where he's a native Badhnisian who's aware of his powers and uses them to fight against colonialism

When steal your girl becomes steal your comic.

Black Canary is my favorite DC character, and reading her golden age appearances was really interesting for me. For one, Dinah loved being Black Canary. One time, Dinah went on a date with Larry, where she makes up an excuse to leave, and comes back as Black Canary to finish her date. Golden age Black Canary is second best Black Canary (Birds of Prey being best).

So far all I know is that johnny is basically the " why's gamora?" Scene from infinity war personified

It's ok Sasha. We are still here for you. As penance, you have to do the history of Hawkman!

The Johnny Thunder stories never really found their groove. I'm honestly surprised they lasted as long as they did. That origin, in addition to being super racist, is also super weird for what is essentially a supernatural comedy series. They seemed to walk it back pretty quickly, too, since in its second appearance Badhnisia is only mentioned as the Thunderbolt's homeland. But that story also involves it being invaded by Imperial Japan (!) so still kinda racist. It still pops up from time to time, like in Tom Taylor's run on Suicide Squad. Did they ever outright say Johnny Thunder has supernatural luck? Because it sure seems like he does. As a side note, All-Star Comics №6, the issue where Johnny joins the JSA as an official member, is great. The JSA hazes him by sending him on a wild goose chase. Also, there's a panel where he calls himself Dr. Fate's boy friend. Hey look, it's Peachy Pet, in what I'm pretty sure is her final Pre-Crisis appearance! She is actually Johnny's daughter, albeit adopted. Eventually, she marries the Thunderbolt's son, making Johnny and the Thunderbolt brothers-in-law. It's a bit of a shame we don't see much of her after the Golden Age, since I really like her. I tend to find the "bratty kid" archetype endearing. I wonder what would have happened if they'd brought her back earlier. Maybe she could have joined Infinity Inc. and we'd have had Johnny Thunder passing the torch earlier? Older or more obscure characters? Well, I just wrote a whole paragraph about Peachy Pet, so I'm probably her number one fan by default. I am also really fond of the original Atom, Al Pratt. He did the "mild-mannered alter ego" bit really well. And I always like it when I see Dan Garett, the first Blue Beetle, show up. Yes, even the edgy Rebirth version. Speaking of Blue Beetle, and getting away from the Golden Age, Countdown: Arena from 2008 was a terrible miniseries, but the Blue Beetle designs were fun. I especially liked the one that looked like a xenomorph.

I just can’t believe how popular Shazam was in the golden age. He was more popular than Superman and Batman in the 40’s. Today Shazam is like Johnny Thunder and an obscure fifth wheel character. It’s crazy to think how Shazam’s popularity over shadowed just about every other super hero in history.

Kid Eternity was a golden age character that I always enjoyed reading. He was revisited as an agent of Chaos (as opposed to Doctor Fate and the Lord(s) of Order) in the 80s/90s. The interplay between him and Mr. Keeper was fun, or creepy as the cases may be!

Who else do we need? Dr. Mid-Nite, Hour Man, and original Sandman! Need reprints of their Golden Age adventures!

I have always felt that Jimmy Olson with his "Superman signal watch" was the silver age version of Johnny Thunder.

It felt like Johnny Thunder was like Archie without the Riverdale cast of characters. Well now I'm dying to know what the error was with the sound.

With all 7's, I either thought something biblical, or Fairy Tail. Singing to impress someone seems to only work in musicals and music video plots. I... Actually like what Johhni Thunder was doing there, seems visually more interesting than the others.

The OG Vigilante (Greg Saunders). They kept trying to replace him with ski mask knockoffs but the OG Cowboy keeps on coming back. Just glad he's back in official canon, hope they do more with the OG Seven Soldiers in the future. They were the second superhero team in DC history. Stuff, his sidekick, was meant to be a (1940s) critique of the racist stereotypes of Chinese people, especially sidekicks, because instead of being a racist cartoon with broken English. He was a hothead Asian-American who spoke in American slang and proper english. It was the 1940s so there were plenty of other shoddy things as well, but it was a genuine attempt. He was also the FIRST superhero to ever get a tv show. It was not accurate to the comics, with a white man playing Stuff, and Vigilante being a federal agent, but it was The Vigilante.

I just wanna know why Johnny Thunder stole Jimmy Olsen's cloths. He accidentally kills someone, steals people's cloths ... who is this guy???

Ma Hunkel. Well, you asked for obscure character requests. Red Tornado's past is a mystery I'd like explored.

I'll never forget an old 1940's ALL-STAR COMIC where Johnny Thunder gets a cold, so he can't make it to the JSA meeting. So he puts a PERSONAL AD IN THE NEWSPAPER that was all: "SUPERMAN, please take my place at the next JSA meeting. I have a cold." The guy felt that his replacement in the JSA while he's sick should be SUPERMAN!

You want a suggestion for older characters? How about Adam Strange, DC's take on the Flash Gordon/John Carter concept? Also, I totally want to see an updated take on the Metal Men, maybe adding some elements that were overlooked back in the day. ("Bismuth, meet Tungsten and Nickel.")

The sound's fine. And people make mistakes. That's why they put erasers on pencils.

...was ...was Johnny Thunder the first Jojo?

"Daisy Darling?" Why that's kind of cute.

In hindsight Black Canary had more story potential than Johnny Thunder did.

As The Grand Archpriest of The Church of the Algorithm, I bless this video with a comment.

@5:41 I'm tempted to make a spreadsheet to enumerate when Sasha introduces herself in her videos, because I'm a data geek, but there's now 356 videos (at the time of this recording 😆)

Say you? Cei-U? So Johnny Thunderbolt was the Earth-2 counterpart of Snapper Carr!

I knew about Johnny. But I didn’t know The Black Canary debuted there. See I made sure to put The in there.

I didn't know Johnny Thunder had solo stories. I've seen him in JSA where had often been referred to as the team's mascot so I assumed he was just a part of the old JSA series. I'll second that DC should do more things with Jakeem Thunder And I recently read the Johnni Thunder Mini and would mind seeing more stories with that character either. Maybe a vertigo series.

Speaking of Star Girl, how about talking about Shining Knight and the Seven Soldiers of Victory?

Seventh Son of a Seventh Son! That immediately put the Iron Maiden song in my head.

About a quarter of the way into this I got Josie Cotton's "Johnnie Are You Queer?" stuck in my head and the story arc itself is making that stay just on humor alone with how Johnny Thunder is asa a superhero.

So black canary was formerly a femme fatale supporting villain who later became a super hero, that sounds a lot like black widow's confusing history

Another young Lady that pushed out the lead of a comic; Merry, Girl of 1000 Gimmicks stole the Comic of her 'Brother', The Star Spangled Kid!

The audio gives old-school RU-vid vibes, it weirdly makes me nostalgic

When it comes to older and obscure characters, *they're the best.* It hurts thinking they'll stay in comic book limbo.

The most interesting thing I learned in this video is that there are actually people out there who will leap to an impassioned defense of Johnny Thunder.

That scene of them hiding in the gas tank is kind of unsettling. Just makes you feel like they are about to be lit on fire any moment after they get out of it.

You know what? NOW I want to know about that last Johnny Thunder solo story!! Bring on that missing issue!

15:15 - on Black Canary - "She was brave!"... and Bold?? Eh eh eh... I'll show myself out...

A character who’s name starts with “Jo-“, has a magical entity that “Stands” by him, and goes on “Bizarre Adventures” sure sounds like a fun idea.

So Johnny Thunder is pretty much blessed by Lady Luck, with a genie.

Wonderful review, as always. Black Canary reached her peak with the early birds of prey comic by Chuck Dixon. And rode the wave of success in the Justice League cartoons.

You showed a picture of the Golden Age Red Tornado. Ma Hunkel needs some attention!

I honestly did not notice the audio until you pointed it out with the insert.

I hope you know how _unbelievably_ funny that first Johnny Thunder joke was Not being sarcastic, it caught me off guard and I laughed

I don't know if Cissie King-Jones/Arrowette is obscure, but she definitely needs to be used more.

"Say you" backwards? "Ouy Yas?" Ooh yas, queen slay!

The "YZ" name was a late 90s retcon by Grant Morrison to justify the Thunderbolt being from the same realm as Mxyzptlk. Evidence suggests that All-American Publications' top editor Sheldon Mayer really liked Johnny Thunder. Mayer was more of a humourist (see his semi-autobiographical "Scribbly"), and as the editor on the early issues of "All-Star Comics" was responsible for Johnny being in the JSA stories before Johnny was even a member [similarly the one page Red Tornado gag in All-star #3 was Mayer.] I suspect it was Mayer who pushed for Johnny Thunder stories to be included in National Publications' "World's Fair" two one-shots. By the time Black Canary showed up, Mayer had "retired" and All-American was becoming a part of National. Bob Kanigher always seems like an ass. Then again, he tried to get Dinah together with Bruce as a couple in the one issue of JLA he wrote. It was painful.

Johnny Thunder seems like he'd be a fun character, with the right writer. I'm a big fan of Johnny Thunders, the guitarist and song writer of the New York Dolls (and later solo stuff, and eventually being dead). ANYWAY, I had no problems with the sound, your Black Canary inspired outfit was great and the makeup was ON POINT! Fantastic!

Thank you so much for explaining how Black Canary was a villain whose publisher ended up making her into a hero. I really thought that was a Marvel thing, like Wanda & Pietro leaving the league of evil mutants to become Avengers. Maybe I missed it, but did you say whether she started as a natural blond versus being a brunette with a wig? And she did start as a normal person who evidently gained the "canary cry" later on (golden age? silver age? later?)

"Watch the Birdie!" was a commonplace thing for mid 20th century photographers to say. The "birdie" was there to focus to attention of the people sitting for a formal photograph.

it really reminded me of The Spirit by Will Eisner, in Canary's costume and Johnny's comedic antics, your mileage may vary.

I've always loved Johnny Thunder and the Thunderbolt. I first discovered them in the seventies when I would read those Justice League/ Justice Society crossovers. As for obscure characters, could you do one on Phantom Lady?

I enjoyed the Johnni Thunder series. I read it recently. So this is a great, informative, video!

I think Deadman, The Atom, Metamorpho, Adam Strange, Rip Hunter, The Phantom Stranger and The Black Orchid should get more recognition. I would also like to see more of the Doom Patrol and the original Justice Society of America.

I always liked Jakeem better, to be honest. Johnny always seemed like he was just allowed to hang out with the JSA in a kind of patronizing manner. My REAL question though, when is the Stargirl series going to cover the forbidden love between Stargirl and Shazam? That was such a wonderfully awkward situation handled in the JSA series.

So Johnny was the Jar Jar Binks of his time.

I need a johnny playlist right now, the roast is real 😂😂😂

Johnny Thunder is Dennis the Menace with a Genie in a world full of Wilsons :P LOL

I always get Jonny Thunder confuzled with Johnny Quick. So many potions! So many magic phrases! :)

Wait........ Sasha is a TIMELORD (TIMELADY)?........ And when she changes her look, she is actually Regenerating like Romana did?....

I didn’t notice anything wrong with the audio - I was distracted by the magnificent wiggatry.

Honestly, even though I initially notice the sound quality difference, I really didn’t mind at all because it’s not a green juice or anything and I really come here just to vibe and have sash casually rant bout random comic hijinks. If anything, knowing you enjoyed the vibe you gave off the first go around makes me excited to watch

Ah, yes: CEI-U! Johnny needs the first-ever Poot In Your Face Award. I see you, Sasha. Johnny? What next? Rick? SNAPPER? You are thinking about it, aren't you? Admit it. LOL. I recall with great fondness finding a new 64 page giant special put out by DC. They leaned on all the near-misses from the Golden Age. They were what made the Silver Age look less silly (to a teenaged me, anyway). Maybe... Johnny Quick? Jabber an equation and run like the wind! Or The Ray? Nearly naked man running around... And, of course: Robin Dies At Dawn!

The little girl was Peachy Pet and I believe she was Johnny's adopted daughter. Not sure when he adopted her and what happened to his original/girlfriend fiance`.

"Say you, say me, say it together".

That’s one of the things I love about these videos. With terms like stealing thunder, scandalous, and sultry singing, it’s like you’re TMZ. But for comics! Johnny’s later appearances were definitely better. Especially Doomsday Clock. He finally escaped the Sanitarium when he realized WHY he couldn’t call the Thunderbolt. Read for yourselves, gang. Another reason the original Black Canary was popular: she was modeled after starlets like Veronica Lake and Lauren Bacall. It was a look. Something else often overlooked was her Post-Crisis confession to her daughter of an affair with Starman. Sure, make jokes that he waved his Cosmic Rod around, but I’m thinking it was the head-fin. Who could resist? Yondu knows what I mean. Scandalous. As for unappreciated characters of the time? The Terry Sloane Mr. Terrific. Unique origin. Or the Al Pratt Atom. Here’s a guy that didn’t have much in the way of powers, intellect, or height. Didn’t stop him. And don’t get me started on the Adult Earth 2 Robin… HAVING SAID THAT: I’m gonna once again issue the challenge to compare and contrast Lucas “Snapper” Carr vs. Rick Jones! Who had more impact? Who copied whom? Who had more neat-o keen kool catch-phrases than Greg Brady? I jus’ gots to kno! Stealing thunder, indeed.

I've always liked the concept of Johnny Thunder, but I had no idea about the Black Canary connection. I'm glad that Johnny, along with other Golden Age heroes are getting more recognition these days. I especially love how the Stargirl TV show depicted him and can't wait for Jakeem to take up the Thunderbolt. It's even better now knowing how he's treated better now than he was back in the day. It would be great if you could cover more Golden Age heroes from the JSA and Seven Soldiers of Victory, and maybe talk about what the Stargirl TV show has been doing with them.

I noticed the audio, I support the decision of choosing to keep the bad audio with the good vibes. I'm not in this channel for the high quality sound, I'm here for the vibes.

Anything doing with the JSA or its' members would be welcomed by me!

Kids: Never, ever, ever apologize for "technical mistakes" - think happy accidents. Nobody would have complained except that one unhappy troll.

I actually just realized how little people know about him. 😂

"Champions small with midnight wing, foe of every evil thing, heed my call and arise to flight, prove the Black Canary's might!" -- BC does a cheap knockoff of Green Lantern's oath (just for one story, thankfully)

Hey, impassioned Johnny Thunder fan, here! Did I help inspire this video? I did write a somewhat lengthy defense of Johnny in that old video. It got only two likes, and you, Sasha, weren't among them, so I don't know if this'll go anywhere, but here goes... 91 issues. Seven and a half years. That's an awfully long time for someone "who just didn't end up catching on". He outlasted characters like Dr. Fate, the Spectre, Hourman, and Starman. Granted, he never had his own solo series in the Golden Age, but neither did Hawkman. Or the Atom. Or any JSA member except, Flash, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman (Superman and Batman really didn't count at this time since they only showed up in two issues of All-Star Comics at that time, one of them thanks to Johnny). And "very quickly overshadowed by other characters"?!? You and I must remember All-Star Comics #s 3, 4, 6-33 very differently. As I recall he was often the POV character in the framing devices of those issues. And a bit ironic that image you use at 4:49 is from one of the Psycho-Pirate JSA stories. As I recall he was especially prominent in the JSA's second P-P story. I feel Johnny's Golden Age downfall can't be fully understood without the context of losing his creator John B. Wentworth in 1947. It wasn't just Wentworth whom DC removed from their own creation that year. Jerry Siegel was fired from writing Superman. DC yanked Gardner Fox from writing his three main creations Flash, Hawkman, and the JSA. Alfred Bester had been the main Green Lantern writer for the previous 4 years (and created Vandal Savage and Solomon Grundy) but that abruptly stopped in 1947. Ironically, Bill Finger, now widely regarded as one of the biggest comic book creator victims, was one of the few DC creators to continue through this 1947 "purge", still writing Batman stories for the next couple of decades. Overall, I think Johnny's end has less to do with any individual failings with him, and more to do with the decline of all superhero comics in the late 1940s. And the apparent attempt by DC to revitalize these characters with newer writers and artists were actually failures at the time. Except for Superman, all these series ended up being cancelled within two years. The JSA managed to last a little longer, only to lose its slot in All-Star Comics at the end of 1950. And Black Canary was definitely one of those failures. Her solo run in Flash Comics lasted only 13 issues, literally just one full year, before Flash Comics was cancelled at the end of 1948. A 13-issue solo run can look pretty small and insignificant compared to Johnny's 91-issue run in the same title. All the JSA characters got a huge boost when they returned in the 1960s. But BC didn't really catch on until she joined the JLA in 1969 and hooked up with Green Arrow as he suddenly became interesting for the first time in the over 25 years since he'd been created. This was soon after the cancellation of the Adam West Batman series and huge comic fan backlash against the show. There was a huge craving for "serious" superheroes and an equal abhorrence for anything related to superheroes that might be construed as ridiculous. It was an environment where BC could flourish. You want a serious superhero? BC can be a serious superhero, easily, no problem. But Johnny can't. Being ridiculous is an essential part of who he is. This is a guy who can command literally one of the most powerful beings in the entire DCU, which should be able to solve all his problems instantly. So why doesn't he? Simple. Because he's an idiot. Myself, I grew up on and loved the Giffen-DeMatteis JLI, so I've always had a fondness for characters like Johnny T who were never meant to be taken all that seriously. Even if I sound so serious defending him.

It's interesting how side characters could suddenly replace the main characters and end up more famous. Another example of this is Lady Shiva and Bronze Tiger being more popular than Richard Dragon.

Ooh yes, I knew a couple of Johnny Thunders. DC reprinted BC's intro in one of their beautiful 100 Page Super Spectaculars around the same time they reprinted Alex Toth's masterful All-Star western adventures of the same name. Ah to be young and broke...

Ok this is absolutely freaky! I was literally in the comic shop 2 days ago and saw this Black Canary comic on the shelf and read it on a whim and liked it. And now you're doing a review of it.😆🤗

Older obscure characters that need respect on their name: Starman, Alan Scott and Vixen all powerhouses with very little respect. Captain Britain, Hellcat and Quasar in Marvel need steady good writing and a streamline of story. Stargirl is low key clutch with the legacy heroes. Also… there’s something wrong with your audio. Just… uh, wanted to let you know. ;)

In theory, Thunder could have more going for him because he does have more personality than the other JSA members (granted, that personality is "clumsy") and the "hero who is useless" genre has been successful in animation.

I think you need a poll: Black Canary Black Widow Mockingbird Silk Spectre Ooooo and Phantom Lady And btw, great video! Highly entertaining.

So Johnny Thunder the female was like negative man In a sense?

The whole bad luck that’s also somehow good luck angle. Like Todd Chavez, that’s pretty relatable.

Just like with Wonder woman, every once in a while, there will be a discussion on whether it's more progressive for Black Canary to wear pants or not. The answer usually change every couple of years.

my brain just realizing that Black Canary's biker look mostly meant minion clothes, or a bar fight with Logan. This would be fun to be redone now a days. Canary's abs are the same length as Johnny's neck

I am so excited for the Deathstroke Inc book. Hopefully she's the best part of that, too!

JT is probably one of my favorite *SUPER HEROS* I feel like he’s the most relatable. If I had a mystical Genie I feel like I’d be just like Johnny. I’d wish for something but sense I wasn’t specific enough I’d get something completely wrong. He’s such a lovable character! I always get sad seeing old JT or when JT dies.

(Tips fedora) “M’lady”

Also that first Canary video is how I found your channel, so this is a somewhat celebratory video for me

The 1966 JLA/JSA Crossover event features Johnny of Earth 1&2. Worth the read. If you mention Johnny Thunder should not Rex, the wonder dog get a mention too?

I like the lore they added later that the Thunderbolt genie was a 5th dimensional imp like good ole Mister Mxyzptlk, Batmite and Mopee (and a handful of other characters).

Don't worry about it Sasha, this video looks fine on my television and the sound is also good on the home theater system. I did not know about the connection of Black Canary with Johnny Thunder. It's her classic romance/partnership with Green Arrow that t am familiar with. You are right about the _'Stargirl'_ television show showing proper respect to the Justice Society of America.

Please do a Jakeem video. He sounds interesting and plus more stargirl isn't bad.