Britain's PS Artbooks gets more of my comics-buying dollars than any other publisher. Their hardcover and paperback collections of classic and even not-so-classic comics from the 1940s though the 1960s bring me great pleasure. I get to read comic books I have never read. Even the not-so-classic ones are entertaining. Alas, if Trump’s threatened tariffs happen, these already pricey books may become too expensive for me. I can only sell so much blood to raise money for them and I still use most of my organs. Time will tell.
Ibis the Invincible Vol. 1 presents the first three issues of the Fawcett Comics title from the 1940s. Ibis is an Egyptian prince who battles the cruel Black Pharaoh in ancient times. He is gifted with the powerful Ibistick which can do pretty much anything. Ibis defeats the Pharaoh, but not before the villain plunged the princess Taia into a 4000-year sleep. Ibis uses the Ibistick to join her in this long sleep. When they awaken in the modern era, Ibis and Taia jump right back into the business of fighting often-supernatural evil.
Ibis and Taia first appeared in Whiz Comics #2 [February, 1940] in a story by Bill Parker (writer) and C.C. Beck (artist). Ibis would appear in every issue of that title, backing up headliner Captain Marvel and alongside other heroes like Spy Smasher, Lance O’Casey, Golden Arrow and others. His own title ran for six issues published between 1942 and 1948.
Ibis #1 [1942] has a cover by Mac Raboy and kicks off with a new, expanded origin story by Otto Binder with art opined to be by Pete Costanza. It’s a 68-page issue featuring three other Ibis tales and the usual space fillers. Ibis contends with Asian dictator Ching Fang, the supernatural demon Nightmare (summoned by blackmailing gangsters) and a Mayan bat-god Zoltil. We don’t know who wrote and drew these stories, but each runs 14 pages. I found them entertaining.
Of special interest is the Nightmare story. Having no physical evidence of the crimes against a wealthy socialite, Ibis frames the criminals by teleporting her necklace into the gangster hideout and calling the cops on them. The frightened crooks decide to escape by entering the nightmare dimension where they meet a far more terrible fate than they would faced on Earth. The Ibistick can’t kill, but it can do just about everything else.
Besides a cooler origin story, Ibis isn’t really different from the host of other magician characters appearing in the anthology comics from the 1940s. What made or broke the characters were their gimmicks. Zatara spoke his magic spells backwards. Ibis had the Ibistick, which pretty much any kid could’ve duplicated with sticks from their backyards or nearby parks.
The second issue, published in 1943, is better than the first. Ibis fights a human criminal, the murderous mummy Rameses (an old foe) and Mr. Discord. The criminal gets his mitts on the Ibistick and uses it against Ibis. The best story of the issue is “Ibis Sends Death on a Holiday” by Otto Binder and artist Bob Hebberd wherein our magician hero learns a valuable lesson. The Mr. Discord story is by Bill Woolfolk.
With the third issue [Winter 1945], the page count drops to just 36 pages and the Ibis stories are all written by Bill Woolfolk. Ibis goes up against Jaguar Man, an accidentally-summoned sorcerer and a living musical note. The art is by Gus Ricca.
Ibis the Invincible would stay 36 pages for two of its remaining three issues with the middle one coming in at 52 pages. If PS Artbooks does another volume, they’ll likely have to pad the page count with a non-Ibis comic book or two.
Getting back to the secondary features in these three issues, they are a mixed bag. “Sir Butch” (6 pages) is a very busy humor and fantasy tale written and drawn by Dave Berg.
Issue #2’s “Brother Boot and his pal Curley” (6 pages) stars two fun-loving kids having adventures. Curley looks uncomfortably like the Yellow Kid. The creators are unknown.
Issue #3 has “Mystic Moot and His Magic Snoot” (4 pages) by the legendary Basil Wolverton. It’s always terrific to see Wolverton work. He was all over the comics of the 1940s and 1950s.
When I read vintage stories of heroes like Ibis, I usually look at them with a thought of what I could do with them. But I could not warm up to Ibis. He was too powerful and also too easy to be incapacitated with a knock on the head.
Despite his Egyptian origins, Ibis looked like another Caucasian hero. If I were to write him, I want the stories to reflect his likely Arabic look and his culture. Which would probably lead to tales about the Middle East. I have enough trouble making sense of the 2025 United States and its fascist oligarchs and Republicans. I don’t need to take on even more dysfunctional countries.
Let me know if you enjoy my ventures into the comic books of the 1940s and beyond. I have literally over a hundred PS Artbooks volumes I haven’t read yet.
I’ll be back soon with more stuff.
© 2025 Tony Isabella
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