History Film / TheAdventuresOfCaptainMarvel

* HandWave: As with most serials of the time, plot contrivances like how Billy ends up appearing right after Captain Marvel leaves or how Captain Marvel knows someone is in trouble are addressed with classic dialog like "Don't worry about that now..." or "I'll tell you about that later..." which are always accepted without question.

* BoundAndGagged: Since to become Captain Marvel, Billy has to say the magic word, he ends up being gagged a lot. Ironically, the villains have no clue he's Captain Marvel until the very end when the Scorpion sees his transformation from a distance. Greedy to learn the secrets of Captain Marvel, the Scorpion has Billy captured and brought to him bound and gagged. After threatening his friends to force him to reveal his secret it leads to this very satisfying exchange:

* BoundAndGagged: Since to become Captain Marvel, Billy has to say the magic word, he ends up being gagged a lot. Even though the villains have no clue he's Captain Marvel until the end.

* WorldsStrongestMan: Captain Marvel, by virtue of channeling the Strength of Hercules and being [[TheOnlyOne the only guy on the planet with superpowers]].

* KarmaHoudini: Barnett, the Scorpion's right hand man and primary enforcer, who we never see get his comeuppance in the serial. When last seen, the Scorpion hands Barnett a wad of cash to cover various expenses and is told to wait until the Scorpion returns for further instructions. He never appears again.

* InvincibleHero: Played with. While Captain Marvel is the only one in the serial with superpowers, and [[NighInvulnerability normal weapons like guns and blades have absolutely no effect on him]], he isn't completely immune to harm. Several times advanced enough technology was able to knock him out, and there were a few instances where it seemed like he might actually be killed from things like molten lava. Similarly, Billy Batson, Cap's mortal alter ego, was just as vulnerable to harm as the next guy, and much of the drama came from whether or not Billy would escape the danger he was in.

As the first superhero film of its time, The Adventures Of Captain Marvel had a lot of new ground to cover. Since no one had done a serial like this before, the studio utilized aspects of other serials, borrowing from the archeologist/explorer and murder/mystery genres, as well as having a lot of aspects similar to pulp heroes of the day. There was a lot riding on the serial as well, as it would basically decide whether or not superhero films were a viable option. That there was an explosion of superhero serials following it is a testament to the film's quality, and its importance to the superhero film genre cannot be overstressed.

Today, ''The Adventures Of Captain Marvel'' is considered perhaps the best {{Film Serial}}s ever made, with the [[Film/FlashGordonSerial three Flash Gordon epics]] being the other contenders for the number one spot.

* ThereAreNoPolice: With a [[MalevolentMaskedMen Malevolent Masked Man]] going around brutally murdering the scientists one by one, no one ever thinks to call the police.

* TransformationSequence: At least once per chapter, Billy will say "Shazam" and transform into Captain Marvel. While the effects at the time didn't allow for the lightning strike transformation fans know today, they managed pull off a passible 'mystical explosion' through a combination of editing and smoke bombs.

* AWizardDidIt: In this case, the literally used to explain the existence of superpowers. The wizard Shazam grants Billy the power to become Captain Marvel in order to protect the world from the misuse of the Scorpion Idol.

* DeathTrap: Played Straight and Subverted. Not only do the villains have several death traps (including a trap that shocks you into unconsciousness, rolls you along on a conveyor belt and then guillotines you), several of the Malcolm Expedition scientists have death traps of their own to protect their lenses, including, at one point ''wall mounted Tommy Guns''.
* FlyingBrick: One of the first, if not the first, in film.

* InvincibleHero: Averted. While Captain Marvel is the only guy in the serial with out and out superpowers, and [[NighInvulnerability normal weapons like guns and blades have absolutely no effect on him]], he isn't completely immune to harm. Several times advanced enough technology was actually able to knock him out, and there were a few instances where it seemed like he might actually be killed from things like molten lava. Similarly, Billy Batson, Cap's mortal alter ego, was just as vulnerable to harm as the next guy, and much of the drama came from whether or not Billy would escape the danger he was in.

* ThouShaltNotKill: Averted. Unlike his comic counterpart, this version of Captain Marvel was equal parts pulp adventurer and superhero, and as a result, was not afraid to kill his opponents. He wasn't a callous murderer, but it will surprise people familiar with the comic to see him throw a man off a building or ''gun down several men with a machine gun'' -- men who are ''running away'' from him, even! Similarly, Billy himself would often get into gun fights, and while we never see him kill anyone on screen, it's pretty clear that he is not kidding around.

* BoundAndGagged: Since to become Captain Marvel, Billy has to say the magic words, he somehow ends up being gagged a lot. Even though the villains have no clue he's Marvel until the end.

* CliffHanger: It's a 1940's serial, of course every chapter ends in a CliffHanger. Managed despite Captain Marvel's NighInvulnerability by either placing his mortal alter ego in danger or presenting him with a threat actually capable of harming him.

* DarkerAndEdgier: At least compared to the modern comics (the Golden Age comics weren't as Silver Age silly as some people *cough*Creator/DanDiDio*cough* seem to think). Here, the villain goes around murdering scientists for their lenses, and even Captain Marvel is more willing to threaten and, in some cases, ''kill'' his opponents. In a more literal example, since the serial was filmed in black and white, the costume Tom Tyler wore as Captain Marvel was primarily gray and black in color instead of red and gold, making his outfit literally DarkerAndEdgier than his comic counterpart.

[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/advcptmarvel.jpg]]

* YouCantThwartStageOne: Captain Marvel makes it difficult, but he is unable to stop the Scorpion from collecting all the lenses for the Golden Scorpion and killing the scientists holding them.

Today, ''The Adventures Of Captain Marvel'' is considered perhaps the best movie serials ever made, with the three Flash Gordon epics being the other contenders for the number one spot.

''The Adventures Of Captain Marvel'' was a 1941 film serial starring d Tom Tyler as Captain Marvel and Frank Coghlan Jr. as Billy Batson. The 12 chapter serial focused on the Malcolm Expedition, a group of [[AdventurerArchaeologist Adventurer Archaeologists]] who discover an ancient tomb which hold the ancient [[MacGuffin Scorpion Idol]]. The idol contains several lenses that, when properly aligned, could cause a number of different effects, from transmuting the elements to completely obliterating matter. The scientists decide to divide the lenses among them to ensure that the idol cannot be used without the consent of the entire group. However, almost immediately one of the scientists assumes the masked identity of the Scorpion, and steals both the Scorpion Idol and the scroll which tells how to use it. The Scorpion then sets into motion a plot to kill the other scientists and steal their lenses for himself, to become the most powerful individual on the planet.

* DarkerAndEdgier: At least compared to the modern comics (the Golden Age comics weren't as Silver Age silly as some people *cough*DanDidio*cough* seem to think). Here, the villain goes around murdering scientists for their lenses, and even Captain Marvel is more willing to threaten and, in some cases, ''kill'' his opponents. In a more literal example, since the serial was filmed in black and white, the costume Tom Tyler wore as Captain Marvel was primarily gray and black in color instead of red and gold, making his outfit literally DarkerAndEdgier than his comic counterpart.
* DeathTrap: Played Straight and Subverted. Not only do the villains have several death traps (including a trap that shocks you into unconciousness, rolls you along on a conveyor belt and then guillotines you), several of the Malcolm Expedition scientists have death traps of their own to protect their lenses, including, at one point ''wall mounted Tommy Guns''.

* ThouShaltNotKill: Averted. Unlike his comic counterpart, this version of Captain Marvel was equal parts pulp adventurer and superhero, and as a result, was not afraid to kill his opponents. He wasn't a callous murderer, but it will surprise people familiar with the comic to see him throw a man off a building or ''gun down several men with a machine gun''. Similarly, Billy himself would often get into gun fights, and while we never see him kill anyone on screen, it's pretty clear that he is not kidding around.

* WorldsStrongestMan: Captain Marvel, by virtue of channeling the Strength of Hercules and being the only guy on the planet with superpowers.

As the first superhero film of its time, TheAdventuresOfCaptainMarvel had a lot of new ground to cover. Since no one had done a serial like this before, the studio utilized aspects of other serials, borrowing from the archeologist/explorer and murder/mystery genres, as well as having a lot of aspects similar to pulp heroes of the day. There was a lot riding on the serial as well, as it would basically decide whether or not superhero films were a viable option. That there was an explosion of superhero serials following it is a testament to the film's quality, and its importance to the superhero film genre cannot be overstressed.

TheAdventuresOfCaptainMarvel was a 1941 film serial starring d Tom Tyler as Captain Marvel and Frank Coghlan Jr. as Billy Batson. The 12 chapter serial focused on the Malcolm Expedition, a group of [[AdventurerArchaeologist Adventurer Archaeologists]] who discover an ancient tomb which hold the ancient [[MacGuffin Scorpion Idol]]. The idol contains several lenses that, when properly aligned, could cause a number of different effects, from transmuting the elements to completely obliterating matter. The scientists decide to divide the lenses among them to ensure that the idol cannot be used without the consent of the entire group. However, almost immediately one of the scientists assumes the masked identity of the Scorpion, and steals both the Scorpion Idol and the scroll which tells how to use it. The Scorpion then sets into motion a plot to kill the other scientists and steal their lenses for himself, to become the most powerful individual on the planet.

Today, ''TheAdventuresOfCaptainMarvel'' is considered perhaps the best movie serials ever made, with the three Flash Gordon epics being the other contenders for the number one spot.

!TheAdventuresOfCaptainMarvel provides examples of: