YANK WILSON

Yank Wilson is an agent with American Intelligence.

When we say he is an agent, we must be specific in that he is referred to throughout most of his recorded adventures as not just an operative but a "Super Spy", whatever that means.

By the use on a few occasions of quotes around the name 'Yank' it is apparent that it is a nickname, not his real first name. What that real name is, however, a mystery because he is never referred to by anything other than Yank, Wilson, or his codename, Q-4. That is not the only unknown surrounding Wilson. Also a mystery is, well, everything about him other than he is male, likely in his early 30s, has a handsome stern face, clean-shaven and has short wavy blond hair.

We learn no background about him but since he is adept at flying several types of aircraft he obviously has some training there. He also knows a bit about boats and is comfortable at sea as he is in the air. He does, halfway through his adventures, identify himself as 'Captain Wilson' which would indicate he might really be working for Military Intelligence. He also thanks his Army flight training for the skills he currently has so no doubt he served. Whether that was in the past or ongoing is not certain. In a different adventure he reflects on his being 'Yank Wilson of the Intelligence' - an unusual turn of phrase though later he is recognized as 'Wilson of the United States Intelligence".

On more than one occasion he is recognized while out in the field so there is no doubt he has been active for some time, enough for foreign governments to build a sizable dossier on him and to know that if he is on the scene, their mission is certainly in jeopardy.

Yank Wilson is an honorable man. If he says he will stop you, he will. If he vows to get you, you will be caught. In one mission he must swear allegiance to the bad guys' cause but he makes sure his fingers are crossed behind his back so he is not really telling a lie. This dedication is shown in another case where he and his agency is said to be "working feverishly through devious legal channels" (interesting choice of words).

Being honorable does not mean he is not willing to get physical when needed. He definitely enjoys a good tussle and gets into one in virtually every case. Hitting first and hard and often is one of Wilson's trademarks and using the threat of violence is not something he would squawk at. "Confess or I'll break every bone in your body" he tells one prisoner. The man talked.

The concept of a B-movie, one that is not the main film but the lesser part of a double feature, has been around for almost as long as there have been movies. The same concept of an added attraction but not meant to be the lead or star held true in the comic book industry. When anthology magazines ruled as they did during the time of Yank Wilson's adventures, there were numerous publications who wanted to spread the genres around giving a little something to most everyone and spy fiction was definitely a part of package.

Of the many spies or counter-spies that the Golden Age of Comics gave us, one of the least memorable was Yank Wilson, which is a bit funny because few had the nerve to dub itself as "Super Spy" like Wilson did. The Wilson stories were sadly unimpressive with very ho-hum artwork and plots that felt like they were created even as the drawing were happening.

Wilson gets wind of a caper. Wilson shows up and hit someone. Wilson gets hit over the head and taken prisoner. Wilson gets free and hits someone. Something blows up or crashes or runs into something. Wilson gets congratulated for being so resourceful.

There are times when you eat something fluffy and it leaves you still feeling hungry. Other times you have a bad lingering taste in your mouth. And unfortunately there are those incidents where you are left with a bum tummy. Wilson gave me the latter.