1. Were Cosmic Boy, Colossal Boy, Triplicate Girl/Duo Damsel, Element Lad, Phantom Girl, Star Boy, Princess Projectra, Dream Girl, and Shadow Lass the first heroes with their respective powers?

2. During the Silver Age/Bronze Age, did anyone know that Peter Parker was Spider-Man other than Harry Osborne?

Captain Stacy knew somehow. Norman Osborne knew (Norman and Harry learned at different times). The Jackal knew somehow (he cloned him).

A list here of everyone who knows. A quick glance and I think the Thor & Ka-Zar stories would have come out in the Bronze Age.

http://www.spiderfan.org/faq/knows.html

In the '40s,there was a giant superhero called The Green Giant.So far as is known,he had nothing to do with the canned vegetable people.

I was wondering what heroes would exist if there were no duplicate of powers and those characters had never existed. (I'm sure we've done this before, but I couldn't find the thread.)

For example, Triplicate Girl/Duo Damsel would survive, but Madrox would have never existed.

1. Super-strength, flying - Superman
2. Size Reduction - Doll Man
3. Flame powers - Human Torch
4. Magnetism - Cosmic Boy
5. Super Speed - Flash
6. Precognitive - Dream Girl
7. Shape changing - Martian Manhunter
8. Winged - Hawkman
9. Intangibility - Phantom Girl
10. Size increase - Green Giant
11. Duplicate body - Triplicate Girl
12. Element transmutation - Element Lad
13. Stretching - Plastic Man
14. Create darkness - Shadow Lass
15. Telepathy - Captain Comet
16. Telekinesis - Marvel Girl
17. Cyborg - Robotman
18. Magic - Spectre
19. Invisibility - Invisible Kid
20. Sea Hero - Sub-Mariner
21. Ice powers - Jack Frost
22. Archer - Green Arrow

Green Arrow is not the first (or the second) archer in comic books and if 'magic' is The Spectre's superpower, then Zatara and Doctor Occult were first. Will Eisner's The Flame preceded The Human Torch by a few months and there was a Magno in the Freedom Fighters who had both lighting and magnetic abilities.

What about weapons? Quality's The Invisible Hood had a, well, an invisibility hood and Dr. Mid-Nite had blackout bombs.

Namor was the first character to have flying as a superpower, then Captain Marvel, by the way.

Was Hourman the first superhero to get his powers from drinking a science-fictional potion? I suspect he was, and that this was one of the influences on the whole 'super soldier serum' concept (not to forget the all-important 'vita-rays').

Why was there that period in the 70s where the Watcher just looked like a muscular bald dude, instead of the classic look from the 60s, with the crazy gigantic head?

I blame that whole 'Bronze Age Diet' fad. Rumour has it that was the reason the Thing went from lumpy to rocky, as well.

Namor beat Superman with flight? I didn't know that. I'm also unfamiliar with The Flame and Invisible Hood because my knowledge of Golden Age comics and all those minor superheroes is embarrassingly low. I need to bone up on these guys.

Yep. Superman was leaping in comics long before he was flying.

If you count comic strips, Mandrake is pretty early with magic, 1934.
Doctor Occult comes a year later with supernatural powers, including flight.

New question:

Reading the Superior Spider-Man thread had me thinking... what superheroes at Marvel and DC have had their bodies and minds taken over by a villain?

1. Daredevil/Doctor Doom
2. Justice League/Secret Society of Super-Villains
3. Dazzler and Polaris/Malice

Any more?

An episode where several members of the Justice League had this happen was the launching point for Identity Crisis, IIRC. I'm going to research it now.

That's the second point.

No one ever answered my Watcher question.

So here's my follow-up: Why do you guys suck so much?

JLoA 166 - 168.

That's #2 on my list.

Even me???????????????????

I didn't recognize them as exactly the same. Carry on.

Ours is not to answer questions . . . ours is only to stand, and read. We are . . . the Readers.

Ms Marvel-Rogue count? She was in Brotherhood of evil mutants at time IIRC