The Awesome Origin of Sparky, the Blue Beetle's Sensational Assistant!

Not that anyone is clamoring for it, but let's check out Golden Age Blue Beetle #14, which (as the cover clearly states) has the first appearance of Sparky.

... the Sensational Assistant.

Oh, my.  That is hilarious.  I could stop today's post right here and feel like I have earned your visit here today.  But there was someone else making a debut in this ish, and he is not to be missed:

Yes, the Red Robe.  Why do we care?

Because he's just so dang enthusiastic:

I like this guy.  He kills while wearing a green skull mask and runs away, laughing.  It would be years before the Joker would be this zany and cool:

I may not like what the man does, what with the shooting an unarmed man and all, but I appreciate his zeal.

Oh, before we go any further, here's some Fun with Out of Context Dialogue! (tm!):

times 2:

Awesome.

Anyway, back to the Red Robe, with another installment of What Could Possibly Go Wrong? (tm!):

Yeah, all things considered, why not go snooping around in hiding places.  What Could Possibly Go Wrong? (tm!)

Oh.  Well, there's always that.

And the Red Robe won't just kill people in front of you and laugh about it.  The man's debate skills are right up there with Lincoln and Douglas, as we take a look at an installment of Well.... Touche! (tm!):

Well... Touche! (tm!)

TELL me you don't love this guy.  You can't.  He's the most entertaining character of the entire Golden Age.

But, of course, the Blue Beetle can't have that:

Sadly, I believe it was his finish.  He was German, so we can assume he got the chair.  Tragic.  TRAGIC, I tells ya!

Anyway, back to the amazing origin story of Sparky, the Sensational Assistant:

Yup.  For some reason, the story wasn't ready in time to go to press.  No one seems to know the details for certain.  In the next issue, he'd just show up, ready for work.  So... there's his origin, folks.  Enjoy!

And yes, Sparky would later become "Spunky,"... because that's so much cooler.

See you tomorrow!