Summary: A scientist has created a
synthetic man, but it ignites uncontrollably in the presence of oxygen. One day, it escapes... and thus the
Marvel Universe is born!
This issue provides examples of:
- As You Know: The first panels.
Horton: As you all know, I've been working on a synthetic man — an exact replica of a human being!!
- Blank Slate: When he wakes the Torch knows nothing, and reacts to most things with curiosity or childlike joy, including the bells of fire trucks coming to extinguish him.
- Broken Pedestal: When the Torch realizes that even Horton wants to use him, he rejects him and burns down his house as well on his way out.
- Buried Alive: The Torch was buried in concrete for a significant (but unspecific) time.
- Funetik Aksent: The mobsters' dialogue is written phonetically. "Joisey"-style.
Red: Dat's funny — de grass 'round de pool is boinin', Sardo!
- Elemental Armor: The Torch's fiery aura is so hot that anything getting close to him melts, evaporates, or fizzles.
- Finger-Snap Lighter: The Torch demonstrates his control for Horton by lighting his cigar.
- Fireballs: He learns that he can fling fire around when he gets control of his flame.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Doubly so: Sardo is killed by the same Torch he wanted to use as a weapon setting his house on fire, and even more directly by the canister of sulphuric acid he tried to throw at the Torch blowing up between them.
- Human Popsicle: The Torch's creator, once he discovers his defect that sets him ablaze, seals him inside a block of concrete with no air and buries him underground until he can find a way to fix his defect. Some time after, an air shaft and crack forms in the concrete, giving the torch just enough oxygen to trigger his fire abilities and break free. The amount of time that passes isn't specified, but it's long enough for "everyone" to forget about the spectacle of the flaming man.
- I Just Want to Be Free: The Torch vows that he will be free and no one will use him again.
- Immune to Bullets: The Torch is shot while un-flamed, but the bullet still melts against his skin.
- In a Single Bound: The Torch surprises even himself when he finds he can leap not only out of the burning building but clear above the city. Apparently, the reason is because the blue and red flames combined to make him lighter than air.
- The Mafia: Sardo and his gang are classic mobsters.
- Man on Fire: On the Torch's initial rampage, there is a civilian on fire.
- No One Could Survive That!: When the Torch's tomb explodes, Horton wonders if he was destroyed, and declares he must have been, because "No one could have survived that!"
- No-Sell:
- The firefighters blast the Torch with a fire hose of cold water, to which he just giggles and says it tickles.
- Sard is protected by a "super-steel" door that is supposed to protect him even from the Torch, but the Torch simply walks through it "without exertion" (according to the narration).
- Off-into-the-Distance Ending: The comic ends with the Torch soaring off ("like a comet") across the city and toward the moon.
- Out of the Inferno: The Torch calmly walks out of Sardo's burning mansion holding his insulated nitrogen tank.
- Playing with Fire: The Torch's primary abilities are that he's on fire.
- Power Incontinence: The Torch starts with absolutely no control over his fire ability.
- Power Nullifier: Sort of downplayed; it's nothing special, but nitrogen gas puts out the Torch's flame.
- Readings Are Off the Scale: The scientists who come to measure the Torch's heat output say the readings are off the scale, then immediately have their pyrometers melt.
- Reluctant Monster: Immediately after waking, the Torch can't control his fire, and wonders forlornly why everything he touches must turn to flame. While he's running around setting the city and citizens ablaze.
- Ridiculously Human Robot: The Torch is a "synthetic human", or an android, but is indistinguishable from the humans around him, except for his powers.
- Shame If Something Happened: Sardo's plan with the Torch is to extract "fire insurance" from businesses. He is, however, far less subtle than the name of the trope.
- Skilled, but Naive: He is an incredibly powerful fiery force, but his lack of experience with the world lets him be used by criminals. He thinks, for instance, that Sardo is helping him when he loads him up in a glass tube to use him as a weapon.
- Sociopathic Hero: The Torch absolutely understands the concept of law and breaking the law - he turns on the mobsters when he recognizes that they are criminals - but seems to lack actual empathy. He boils some mooks alive and laughs gleefully as he wrecks a burning lab.
- Superhero Origin: This is the Torch's origin issue. Artificial Human flavor.
- Super-Speed: He outruns a car.
- Turned On Their Masters: Downplayed; the Torch at the end rejects and killsnote according to the next issue; in this one it looks like he just left his creator, but doesn't reject humanity as a whole.
- Villains Want Mercy: Sardo tries to bribe the Torch into letting him live by offering him nitrogen (which can control his flames).
- What Measure Is a Mook?: The Torch (and writing) seems perfectly blase about establishing that the lesser bad guys died horribly.
The Torch: That rat burned — all right! And those fellows in the pool won't come up for air —
- Wreathed in Flames: The Torch is constantly enveloped in flames when he's in contact with oxygen, at first. Later he can turn it on and off.
