Human Torch (1939) is on a train that is attacked by aliens looking for one of the passengers' secret explosives formula.
Tropes appearing in this story include:
- Alien Invasion: Downplayed; it's just one ship coming for one person.
- Aliens Speaking English: The Martians speak English (without any explanation).
- The Artistic License – Physics is especially egregious in this issue: the Torch's flame aura is so hot that bullets melt before they get to him, but he can carry a piece of regular fabric in his flaming hand, he melts a steel beam off of the scientist's legs without harming him, he sublimates away the collapsing roof of the train...
- Badass in Distress: The Torch is captured by the aliens and tied to a chair with his powers nullified.
- Big, Stupid Doodoo-Head: The fiercest insult the scientist's adult daughter can come up with is
Diane: Even if I had the formula, you'd never get it, Mr. Ritton - or should I say, Mr. Rat!!
- Buried Alive: Attempted: Ritton dumps a load of sand on the Torch, thinking it would extinguish him. He has underestimated the Torch.
- Chained to a Railway: The bad guy ties the daughter to a track and then jumps in a handy locomotive to do the deed himself.
- Coincidental Broadcast: The passengers in the train are watching what appears to be news about an alien invasion of New York City; the passengers argue about whether it's real or fiction, referencing the previous year's Real Life The War of the Worlds (1938) broadcast. And then the alien ship arrives for them.
- Subverted in that it turned out the Torch was right and the broadcast was in fact fiction.
- Defiant Captive: The daughter is captured, but continues to defy and insult her captors.
- Enhanced Interrogation Techniques: The aforementioned Chained to a Railway bit was an attempt to get her to talk.
- Finger-Snap Lighter: The Torch light's the bad guy's cigar to show him who he is (although it looks more like a gun than a lighter).
- Fireballs: Not only does he point-shoot them and throw them, he also kicks them out.
- Good Old Fisticuffs: The Torch beats up the aliens handily.
- Human Aliens: The Martians don't seem any different from humans, except that they keep their suits on (presumably for atmosphere).
- Im Dying Please Take My Macguffin: The scientist knew he was dying and pushed the Torch to take his formula to his daughter.
- In a Single Bound: The Torch leaps to the top of a mountain.
- Insufficiently Advanced Alien: The Martians came to Earth because the scientist had created a better version of TNT and their explosives technology is lacking.
- Lightning Gun: The broadcast's aliens are destroying the city with "planes spurting electricity"; the real aliens use the same.
- MacGuffin: The scientist's new and improved TNT formula is being hunted by aliens.
- Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: Downplayed, but present; Ritton is helping the alien invasion because everyone laughed at him when he told them about the Martians two years previously.
- Motive Rant: Ritton launches into a spiel about his motives as soon as the daughter is captured.
- Out of the Inferno: The Torch calmly carries a baby through the flames from the burning train.
- Outside Ride: One of the aliens is riding on the outside of the car to grab the daughter and kidnap her without stopping.
- Ridiculously Potent Explosive: The super-TNT blows up a room with just a pinpoint amount.
- Playing with Fire: Fire is the Torch's main ability.
- The Promise: Upon taking up the MacGuffin:
The Torch: You can be sure of one thing, Carson, I promise that this formula shall never get into the wrong hands!
- Pursued Protagonist: As soon as he takes up the formula, the aliens are after the Torch now.
- Runaway Train: Ritton's train at the end, after he bails out, is on a collision course with another.
- Shout-Out: The passengers in the train are watching what appears to be news about an alien invasion of New York City; the passengers argue about whether it's real or fiction, referencing the previous year's Real Life The War of the Worlds (1938) broadcast.
- The Torch tells them it's surely just a televised version of "Lawson Bell's" famous broadcast.
- Super-Strength: The Torch catches a hurtling boulder, and lifts a steel beam. (And melts them both.)
- Think Nothing of It: The Torch tell's the mother of the baby, trying to express her gratitude:
The Torch: It isn't necessary ma'am.
- Track Trouble: The train they're on in the beginning is derailed by aliens.
- Train Escape: Ritton tries to make hs escape on a train. Since he almost immediately ends up on a collision course with another train, this was poorly thought-out.
- Vehicular Kidnapping: The aliens drive up in a car, with one hanging off the side, and snatch her away. It's not a very subtle version.
- Weaponized Car: The aliens' car comes with a detachable, launchable false hood that slices through the Torch's car.
- Weapon of Mass Destruction: The scientist regrets and is afraid of his invention. Two ounces of it is enough to blow up a car and a lot of road, and it went off from being impacted, not ignited.
- Wreathed in Flames: The Torch, as usual, is aflame.
