#this sat in my askbox forever but I am so happy I was finally able to give this ask the attention it deserves

[wolfsbanesparks]

Love your post on underrated Captain Marvel/Fawcett Comics characters. :) Thinking the Fawcett Comics Characters story potential, how would you use Spy Smasher, Minute Man, Phantom Eagle, or Commando Yank in a modern day Captain Marvel/Fawcett City story?

So It has taken me literally forever to answer this, but I wanted to give it as much thought as it deserved (not to mention I've been swamped lately and needed some extra spoons before I tried).

This got very long, so it's under the cut.

Now these characters you've mentioned have some overlap in their origins/traits/motivations so I think there could be a good story that features all of them coming together to face a larger threat.

So to start off here are some ideas of slightly more modern takes on the characters (assuming they are all in their crime fighting prime at the time of the story rather than the older retired mentors some of them were portrayed as in certain comics runs).

Spy Smasher: A brilliant detective and fighter, Alan Armstrong works with the American government as a counterintelligence agent. He has a public persona as a championship athlete that he uses to cover his movements. I imagine that he is the type to pursue his leads at great personal risk and is willing to go rogue with his information if he believes its the best way to save as many people as possible.

Minute Man: Jack Weston is a highly trained American super soldier regularly sent on secret solo missions, fighting enemies that most don't know exist. He fights against diabolical villains who have managed to keep their illegal operations out of the public eye (unlike many supervillains the JL fights who make a big show of their evil plans).

Phantom Eagle: Mickey Malone is a young aspiring pilot in the airforce. A loose canon and a revolutionary, he regularly disobeyed orders to do what he thought was right, eventually earning himself a discharge from the military. Still eager to join the fight and help others he joined forced with Commando Yank as his pilot and air support.

Commando Yank: Chase Yale is an investigative reporter determined to document human rights violations overseas, often reporting from active warzones. Not content to merely record what's going on, he dons a vigilante costume and fights to protect the civilians.

I think that considering their connections to the government and the military, they should come together as a team because they each have discovered a different piece of an international terrorist plot. I would utilize Captain Nazi as a villain (as they were all initially created to fight Nazis whether America wanted to join the war or not) though he can be working alongside the Mask (the leader of a dangerous spy ring that Spy Smasher often goes toe to toe with).

An example for how this would work (or at least begin): Minute Man is sent on a mission where he faces off against Captain Nazi, barely escaping with his life. The confrontation garners enough attention that the US government has to deny their involvement claiming he acted on his own in an unsanctioned mission.

Around the same time Commando Yank and Phantom Eagle are on the scene where the detonation of an unknown device has caused untold devastation in a small small country (testing of the secret weapon Captain Nazi and the Mask are creating) and as they help the survivors they learn about the weapon and the organization that might have set it off.

Meanwhile Spy Smasher uncovers a lead that the Mask was on the move and planning something big, possibly even getting a potential target. But he is told not to pursue it any further (possibly due to corruption/a double agent working with the villains because he's a neonazi).

Eventually they all come together to stop the terrorist plot. Minute Man gets his rematch with Captain Nazi and defeats him with the help of a gadget designed for him by Spy Smasher. Commando Yank and Phantom Eagle help evacuate the civilians in the targeted area, fighting off the grunts rigging up the weapon and providing a swift exit for the team should things go sideways. Spy Smasher faces off with the Mask while attempting to defuse the weapon/stop it from launching.

I am by no means an expert on any of these characters, but I hoped this made sense. Also if anyone else has some ideas of their own for a modern adaptation of these characters feel free to share in the comments!