In July 1965, Dick Giordano took the reins as editor at Charlton Comics, bringing with him a fresh vision: a line of "Action Heroes." As Giordano explained, "We should publish adventures of heroes that didn't have superpowers." He sought to distinguish Charlton from the superpowers-saturated landscape of DC and Marvel.
While Giordano inherited some super-powered characters like Captain Atom and Son of Vulcan, his new creations focused on grounded, real-world skills. Consider Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt: An orphan raised in a Tibetan monastery, he mastered incredible feats through willpower and discipline, but used them sparingly.
Drawing inspiration from different eras, Charlton tapped into history. While Gunmaster lived in the Wild West, Judomaster battled in World War II. As Don Markstein described, Judomaster was U.S. Army Sgt. Rip Jagger, a soldier who, during the Pacific campaign, rescued a local girl from a Japanese sniper. As thanks, the girl's grandfather, the village chief, trained Rip in martial arts. With incredible speed, Rip became an expert and, donning a costume, led a guerrilla movement to liberate the island. Afterward, he continued his superheroic career, maintaining a secret identity.
Interestingly, Judomaster's vibrant costume bore a striking resemblance to the colors of the Japanese flag, a stark contrast to the flag-waving imagery of heroes like Captain America.
Beyond Action Heroes, Charlton maintained its diverse output, printing war stories, humor, romance comics, Westerns, monster tales, ghost stories, and even the surprisingly popular hot rod comics.
Paul Power argues that "Without the Charlton Comics set of heroes, we would not have had Alan Moore's Watchmen." Indeed, Giordano's emphasis on realistic heroes and complex characters left a lasting impact, so much so that DC Comics would later recruit him. His "Action Heroes" stood out from the crowd of Superpowered crusaders!