In the first years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) starting with Iron Man, the superhero franchise consisted primarily of solo films that introduced the most important heroes from the Avengers team. The first Captain America film from 2011 also proved this earliest heroes from Marvel Comics his honor. It’s the Human Torch in front of the Fantastic Four.
First Marvel superhero is hidden in the first Captain America film
In Captain America – The First Avenger there is a scene in which Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) accompany a group of people through the Stark Expo. Here you can briefly see a glass tube in which a Man behind the sign “The Burning Man” stands.
The character is a reference to the very first Marvel Comics hero Jim Hammond aka the Human Torch.
Before the Fantastic Four, there was a Human Torch in the Marvel Universe
Jim Hammond is not to be confused with Johnny Storm, the later Human Torch from the Fantastic Four universe. Instead, Jim Hammond is one Character from the earliest Marvel comic from 1939which comes from Carl Burgos. At that time the label was still called Timely Comics.
Hammond was an android artificially created by scientist Phineas Horton under the guidance of Victor Timely. With his ability to control flames, he was initially portrayed as a monster. He later became a hero, for example working as a police officer for the New York Police Department.
When Johnny Storm was first introduced in comic book form as part of the Fantastic Four team in 1961, Burgos’ version of this similar superhero character no longer played a role. That’s why he is today largely forgotten by fans. The first Captain America solo film still paid tribute to the character.
This article was also published in a similar form on our international sister site AdoroCinema.