Worst Character Names of Mongo 4

I probably should have started the "Worst Character Names of Mongo" series of articles with the following offenders, but little did I know at the time that these were but harbingers of far worse nomenclatures to come (and in greater numbers). And so I bring you—from a single day in 1944—the following blinding burst of inspiration in the post-Alex Raymond Sunday strips of Flash Gordon:

• Lura
• Ardo

"The rescued girl quickly regains consciousness. 'You saved my life, handsome stranger. Lura will reward you!'" (3 September 1944)

"'Set a course 120° polar, to the palace in which my brother Ardo and I rule this land,' Lura says. Then, with unexpected speed, 'I'll borrow these guns... No tricks!'" (3 September 1944)

Worst Character Names of Mongo 3

The Flash Gordon Sunday strips of 1948 bring us these examples of not-so-creative character-naming:

• King Justo
• Princess Glitra
• Vilan

"'I told you the metalarm was right—It detected the metal of their weapons.' King Justo laughs. 'Doctor, will they survive the sleep-fog?'" (21 March 1948)

"Justo's weakness is his daughter. He can't refuse the sensation-hungry girl's demand to see the newcomers—so Flash's first sight is of Princess Glitra!" (28 March 1948)

"But Glitra thinks fast, too. 'Why, Dale, how nice—cousin Vilan wanted to meet you. Show her around, Vilan.' Flash and Dale can hardly object..." (4 April 1948)

Worst Character Names of Mongo 2

Today, I discovered another concentration of ludicrous character names from the Flash Gordon Sunday strips (this time from 1947).

• Sultra
• Defto
• Zugo
• Grisla
• Bruto
• Techno

"Zarkov arranges to have Flash in disguise, arrested and put in the cell next to the girl spy, Sultra." (8 June 1947)

"Before Flash can give himself away, Sultra murmurs, 'Thanks, Defto. Your fake papers saved us—it's all right. This fellow helped me break jail...'" (29 June 1947)

"Kang commands: 'Test your bent-ray, Zugo.' The ray-scientist cackles, 'First, I electrify the protecto-dome, so the ray can't curve back on us...'" (13 July 1947)

"'I won't leave you alone a minute, for one of your famous escapes,' Kang smiles, cruelly. 'I'll just watch Grisla kill you by inches.'" (31 August 1947)

"Half conscious, but helpless, Flash sees Sultra open a secret passage to admit a Kangman spy, Bruto, who growls, 'Can I kill him now?'" (26 October 1947)

"As manager Techno shows the mongonium plant to Flash, disguised as Kang's inspector, a message comes over the fototype ticker." (21 December 1947)

Worst Character Names of Mongo

This week, I may have stumbled upon the highest concentration of terrible character names in the history of the Flash Gordon comic strip (specifically the Sunday strips of late 1945). Don Moore, the ghostwriter for the strips, must have been very tired when he created these:

• Grusom
• Evila
• Dicto
• Traito
• Darlia

"Kang flees with two of his inner circle, the torturer, Grusom, and the beautiful, power-mad Evila..." (28 October 1945)

"Dicto, head of the new Mongo Bureau of Investigation, reports to Flash: 'We have a lead. This citizen, Traito, says he saw Kang rocketing toward Deserta.'" (4 November 1945)

"Flash and Dicto race to search Evila's townhouse where they find her lovely twin sister, Darlia." (4 November 1945)

Deserta indeed.