Volto Saves the Mayor From A Bomb (Volto From Mars #1)

Thanks to @kfhrfdu_89_76k for pointing me to this one, and thanks to the fact that Hit Comics #35 is in the Digital Comics Museum, I can tell you that this ad is the first thing after the cover. Volto, as far as I can tell from the little bit of research that I did (yes, I do some research) was created just for this ad campaign for Grape Nuts Flakes. So I assume that means that Volto is owned by General Foods. There are twenty ads that I am aware of, and I'll add them over time.

The shtick is pretty simple for these ads: danger presents itself, and Volto uses his powers to stop the danger. By saying, "Volto" and extending his left hand, he repels things magnetically. By saying, "Volto" and extending his right hand, he attracts things magnetically. Conveniently, it's cereal grains that recharge his powers, and of course, Grape Nuts Flakes is the grain that does it best.

Although I've seen no use of Volto outside of these ads, DC had a similar character in Yankee Poodle, of the title Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew!. Her powers worked the reverse of Volto's- that is, her left hand attracts and her right hand repels- and add that her repelling power takes the form of blue stars, and her attracting power takes the form of red and white stripes. Why that would be the case, and why the power would be limited to a certain hand (or to her hands at all) is simply a matter of convenience to the character's creation- one of those things you just accept and move on. Same with Volto. Can't change it, so you may as well have a bowl of Grape Nuts and don't let it worry you.

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Concise Listing:

The list below is in chronological order.