Post by johnreiter902 on Oct 12, 2020 13:18:14 GMT
I recently read Whiz Comics #26, while researching the history of Doctor Sivana. Then, I had to go back and read it again. It has one of the most startlingly complex time-travel plots I have ever seen, particularly in the golden age. When the story wraps up in America's Greatest Comics #3, it still leaves many fascinating loose ends.
Basically, Billy Batson is investigating the disappearance of a federal judge under investigation, named Arnold Benedict. He observes that the man is an exact double for General Benedict Arnold (who, on Earth-S, vanished in 1780). Captain Marvel uses a time machine to got back to 1780, where he captures Benedict Arnold, and discovers that Arnold really is Judge Benedict. According to the judge, he found himself suddenly whisked back in time to the 18th century, and had been living there for years. Captain Marvel takes him back to 1942, to face justice.
No explanation is ever given for how Judge Benedict was sent back in time to become Benedict Arnold. Also, the story mentions that John Wilkes Booth also disappeared, and was never caught on Earth-S. This is never explained.
But the weirdness continues. Dr. Sivana pushes Captain Marvel into the time machine and sends him back to the prehistory. Billy looses his powers, because neither his patrons nor Shazam exist yet in that time. He is offered up as a sacrifice by the cavemen, but is rescued by an elderly, bearded time traveler from the 70th century. This time traveler claims to have been visiting many times in history, and to have been in the prehistory for a while. He recognizes Billy, and knows exactly why his powers will not work. He uses the time machine to send Billy home (he knows Billy must return to 1942, and face Dr. Sivana). When Billy asks how the time traveler knows to much, he gives the famous "heh heh heh" laugh and says he knows Billy must return to 1942 and meet Sivana, because he (the time traveler) IS Sivana.
Before Billy can react to this revelation, he returns to 1942. In the fight, Sivana falls into the time machine and is sent 5000 years into the future (to the 70th century), seemingly creating a time loop.
Except, that's not what happens. In America's Greatest Comics #3, Sivana returns minutes later, no older than when he left. He has no memory of what happened to him in the 70th century, except that he brought back a weapon called a Magno-Ray.
So the mystery is, what happened to Old Sivana? If he no longer exists, than how did Billy escape the prehistory? Or did he exist, and somehow return to 1942, while reverting to his old self?
