Alongside the release of Alan Moore’s and Paul O’Neill’s The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Volume III: Century 1969 comes the latest installment of Jess Nevins’ equally as extraordinary annotations. Within Nevins and his team reveal all sorts of fascinating tidbits surrounding the often mysterious world of the League including the appearance of Lord Voldemort!
Page 54. Panel 4. “Well, my first name’s Tom, my middle name’s a marvel, and my last name’s a conundrum.”
In J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” novels the real name of arch-villain Lord Voldemort is Tom Marvolo Riddle. The “Harry Potter” novels are set in the 1990s and 2000s, but Voldemort/Tom Riddle is much older than Harry Potter et al., and as best can be guessed Tom Riddle, in the late 1960s, was a free agent.
According to the novels themselves, Riddle never taught at Hogwarts–he applied for the role of teacher of Defence Against the Dark Arts twice but was denied both times. However, it is very much in character for Riddle to claim he is a Hogwarts teacher, as he does in Panel 2.
Other fun facts include:
Page 15. Panel 7. The picture is of three of the Seven Stars in happier times: Captain Universe, an invisible Mina wearing the hat of Vull, and Marsman.
“Captain Universe” is a reference to Captain Universe, who appeared in the British comic Captain Universe (1954). “Working in the research laboratories of the United Nations Interplanetary Division, Jim Logan discovers an amazing secret. He treats himself electronically and thereafter, whenever he shouts the word ‘Galap’, electronic impulses from outer space vibrate through him, endowing him with superhuman powers. He becomes Captain Universe, the Super Marvel!”
Pádraig Ó Méalóid adds, “Captain Universe was created by Mick Anglo, the alleged creator of Marvelman, and it’s obvious that, like Marvelman, Captain Universe is a direct copy of Captain Marvel. Only one issue of Captain Universe was ever published, by Arnold Book Company, which was a subsidiary of L Miller & Son, the publishers of Marvelman, but run by the ‘& Son’ himself, Arnold Miller.”
Page 20. Panel 1. The black-haired gentleman in the bowtie on the far left of this panel is of course the second Doctor Who, played by Patrick Troughton from 1966-1969.
Page 21. Panel 1. “I’m Jeremiah Cornelius.”
Jeremiah (“Jerry”) Cornelius is the creation of Michael Moorcock. He’s a secret agent and anarchistic adventurer. He appeared, much younger, in Black Dossier on Page 20, Panels 2-8.
Image by Mal Dean
Page 24. Panel 4. “Soror Iliel”
In Aleister Crowley’s The Moonchild (1917) one of the characters is given the name “Iliel” as part of a magic war on a group of black magicians.
Nevin’s annotations, loaded with obscure information, are almost as fun as reading the book itself.