League of Extraordinary Oddballs: KANGAROO MAN

Continuing our review of unusual comic book adventurers, the spotlight now falls on Kangaroo Man, not that he deserves it since he’s not the real star of the strip that bears his name.  Just as the Red Bee played second fiddle to a trained insect, Kangaroo Man leaves most of the hard work to a highly skilled marsupial.

Adventurer and animal expert Jack Brian is a Frank Buck-like character who arrives in America with his trained kangaroo, Bingo.  Aside from the ability (and predilection) to leap around a lot, animal training seems to be the extent of Jack’s “superpowers,” but Bingo is another story.

“Amazing” as in, “That’s nice, son.  Now let’s get you those meds and you can have a nice little rest.”

Throughout his adventures, Bingo engages in a running commentary that always comes out as “Rsp! Rsp!” but thanks to the miracle of thought balloons, we readers always know what he means..

Like any patriotic marsupial, Bingo loves America and hates crooks and Nazis.  His powerful feet and even more powerful tail prove too much for Hitler’s minions.

Alas, 1940s America has a distinctly “humans first” bias, so despite doing most of the work in the partnership, Bingo still has to suffer constant indignities. For instance, when seating is limited in an airplane, guess who gets to ride on the outside?

Even so, Bingo never fails to pull his weight, proving his tail is strong enough to do just about anything, including destroying the fuselage of a crook’s airplane from his perch on the wing of another.

So the seating arrangements ultimately work out for the best. Let’s be honest, it’s not like Jack’s rear end could have been as effective if he’d taken up the wing position, and in general I suppose an airplane’s controls are too complex for a kangaroo’s paws to operate.  However, motorcycles are another matter entirely.

Alas, despite their obvious value to law enforcement and homeland security, Jack and Bingo only stuck around for three issues of Choice Comics.  Rumor has it the Justice Society offered a membership, but only for the kangaroo, and in a show of loyalty Bingo retired with Jack to Australia where they remained happily married until Jack’s death in 1987.