Rorschach fighting

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by Pursuivant

Golden Age supers would probably use just Boxing with a few add-ons.

Judo is possible. The original Black Canary was based around advanced training in it.

While I was thinking about the Manhunter (Paul Kirk) I found one of his Golden Age comics as a reprint. His recognizable Techniques were Boxing Punch:(Face) and (a highly Cinematic version of) Judo Throw.

I could also cite some Judo users from 30s Pulps. Karate was pretty unknown until well after WWII when GIs started bringing it back from occupation Japan and Okinawa. It was still quite new in the 60s when I was a kid.

You shouldn't count on all unarmed combat from the era being unsophisticated though. I first read about Ear Clap in (I think) Burroughs first Pellucidar book. The hero explained it as a dirty trick a wrestling coach had taught him.

There's also a unarmed combat sequence in Triplanetary where some bad guy (they weren't zwilnicks yet) tried a "Coup de Savate" on conway Costigan. Costigan stopped it with (in Gurps terms) a Leg grapple, a takedown, a Limb Wrench and a Stamp Kick (Head). A thoroughly modern looking combo from a book from 1934.