What’s six inches tall, flies a model airplane, and hits like a grown man? It’s the Doll Man, and he is riding Elmo the Wonder Dog into the Oddball of the Week award.

If you watched Peacemaker, you heard the reference. In the episode, “Better Goff Dead,” as Peacemaker and the squad were gearing up to assassinate a butterfly posing as a Senator, the anti-hero mentioned how tiny people unsettled him. He then specifically names Doll Man, the obscure Golden Age character just weird enough to nab this week’s Oddball award.

WHAT’S A DOLL MAN?

Created by legendary artist Will Eisner in 1939, Doll Man has been around nearly as long as Superman. He was originally part of Quality Comics, though his rights would eventually fall to DC Comics. 

Think of Doll Man, aka Darrell Dane, as the predecessor to the Atom and Ant-Man. The main difference is that Doll Man can only shapeshift down to six-inches tall, but he retains his normal physical strength thanks to a formula he created. From there, he lives life as a living action figure complete with a tiny airplane. The “mightiest mite” even rides his Great Dane, the aforementioned Elmo. Take that, Hank Pym! 

FEATURE COMICS #27

Like so many DC characters, Doll Man’s origins date back over eight decades. He was first introduced in 1939’s Feature Comics #27 as a four-page feature titled, “Meet the Doll Man.” For a comic so old, high prices go with the territory. In this case, a graded 2.0 sold for nearly $2k in January 2021. 

FEATURE COMICS #30

If you’re going to put together a collection based on this character, you will want his first cover appearance on Feature Comics #30. With cover hunting such a major subset of the collecting world, it could pay to have this comic in your long boxes.

Surprisingly, the low grades are not as expensive as you may think, at least not for a GA first. The most recent sale was for a 1.5 that brought $132 in February 2021.

DOLL MAN QUARTERLY #37

By no means am I saying we’ll see the Doll Man in live-action, but there’s always a chance these days. What if instead of Doll Man we meet Doll Girl? That would put an added emphasis on Doll Man Quarterly #37 which features her first appearance.

Martha Roberts had been aiding him to this point, but it was in this comic that she first discovered the ability to shrink to six inches. If you’re in the market for a copy, a 3.0 sold for $340 in April.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #107

Although Doll Man may have fallen into obscurity, his first superteam continues to carry on the quirky traditions. The Freedom Fighters are as patriotically corny as it gets. Hailing from an alternate reality in which the Nazis won World War II, the team is led by Uncle Sam, who dresses exactly like you imagine. At his side are Doll Man, Phantom Lady, the Ray, Human Bomb, and Black Condor.

We’ve seen them in animated form more than once, but they could be a hit in live-action. That makes this a great addition to your collections, and you don’t have to spend a fortune to get one. Just last year, a 9.6 sold for $330 in September.

DYNAMITE IN A SMALL PACKAGE

After a mention in Peacemaker, it would not surprise any of us if Doll Man made it into a future episode. He’s made it to animation before, but he would also fit into either the Harley Quinn cartoon series or the spinoff, Noonan’s. Like so many classic DC characters, the DCEU’s modern era is perfect for such an odd creation.

Need more Oddballs in your life?

*Any perceived investment advice is that of the freelance blogger and does not represent advice on behalf of GoCollect.