First Appearance: Marvel: The Lost Generation #12 (March 2000).
Appearances: Marvel: The Lost Generation #12-1.
Years Active: 1960s-1980s.

The Lost Generation is that group of heroes and villains who were active in the years before Reed Richards and his best friend, wife, and brother-in-law stole a rocket, were exposed to cosmic rays, and turned into the Fantastic Four. Their adventures have only recently been revealed, and only a few of their stories have been told, but we do know that they were active for the space of a few decades and that most of them died while successfully defending Earth against an "advance squadron of Skrull battle cruisers."

The Lost Generation were:

• The Black Fox, an older hero who came out of retirement to fight against the Skrulls and who died during the final battle with them. His powers are unknown, although in all likelihood he was simply a strong, athletic fighter with no superpowers. His real name was Dr. Robert Paine; in his civilian identity he was a law professor at Northwestern University in Chicago. Although he did much of his work in Chicago, his home city was "Foxwood Farms," in Illinois, which was also the location of his hideout, the Foxhole. Given his age during the last battle, his comment that he had retired "more than once already," and his experience with Doctor Strange, it is likely that his career was lengthy; he was thought by Cassandra Locke to have been an urban legend. He had a Green Lantern-Harlequin-type relationship with Gadfly, who may have been his student at Northwestern. He was a member of the First Line, although he seems to have quit the team after the disastrous Halwan mission. He was familiar enough with Dr. Strange to call for the pair to be on a first-name basis with each other; they met "longer ago than I care to remember" in a "haunted mansion." The Fox had a special hatred for Nocturne, who had badly defeated the Fox early in his career, breaking his legs and killing Miriam, the only woman the Fox had ever loved. In the Fox's own words, "Before, I was just a masked swashbuckler. After that...that was the day the Black Fox was truly born." The Black Fox piloted a radar-invisible jet called the Flying Fox.
• Blackjack, a former super-villain who went straight after being released from prison. He seems to have had no superpowers beyond agility and skill at fighting. He was a member of the First Line (for how long is not known) and was romantically involved with Positron. He was killed by Scimitar during the First Line's rescue mission to Halwan.
• Captain Hip, a hippy superhero about whom little (so far) is known. His first name was Fred, he lived in Chicago, was married to Sunshine, and was the father of Gadfly. His powers seem to have included super agility and super speed and were caused by "top secret CIA tests." His final fate is unknown.
• Professor William Carmody, who at the time of his death at the hands of Nocturne, during the final battle with the Skrulls, was in the shape of a fetus. Professor Carmody was originally the hero the Eternal Brain, but in current continuity is Professor Carmody, a telepathic hero and the teammate of Walkabout. He had been a scientist working on "organ preservation experiments" until he was shot by a sniper; his life was preserved by his brain being placed in a chemical-filled jar. This operation granted him telepathy. Carmody had a daughter, Mary. It is implied that Carmody had the ability to grow new bodies and inhabit them. One of his enemies--perhaps his arch-enemy--was Nocturne. Carmody was a member of the First Line and was responsible for the creation and construction of Walkabout. Presumably Carmody was successful enough as a scientist to found and build the Carmody Institute on the coast of Maine.
• Doctor Mime, a hero about whom little is known. He was the partner of Rapunzel and like her was a member of the First Line.
• Effigy, a Skrull who masqueraded as a human so well that the other heroes, including Oxbow and Pixie, who may have been his friends, were unaware of it. Effigy seems to have been a bit of a scientist. From his words he always tried to be a good American, despite his racial heritage and background; he was a member of the First Line and was accepted and honored by them. His other powers, if any, are unknown. Among his other identities he posed as "Mr. Scott," a State Department official. He died during the final battle with the Skrulls, although it was his doing that destroyed the Skrulls' ships.
• Firefall, a member of the First Line capable of projecting flames from her hands. She had flaming hair and could fly. She is assumed to have died at the end of the final battle with the Skrulls.
• The First Line, which was not a single hero but was instead a team, the foremost team ("a confederation of heroes") of the Lost Generation, perhaps consisting of all of its heroes. The First Line is described this way: "Aside from that screw-up in Iran, the First Line's hardly been seen since...when? Nixon was in office?" In issue #11 they are described as having started as a "tightly-knit team" which did not operate particularly covertly. From this we can theorise that they were active in 1980, in an attempt to free the American hostages from Iran, but that they were primarly active during the early 1970s and the late 1960s. In at least one case retired members of the Line were shown in contact with government officials, who requested their help on international missions. Their members were active both in the United States and across the world, including "the Far East" and the Caribbean. Among their headquarters was the Carmody Institute on the coast of Maine. The membership of the First Line included Black Fox, Blackjack, Doctor Mime, Effigy, Firefall, Flatiron, Frankenstein's Monster, Katyusha, Major Mercury, Mister Justice, Morph, Nightingale, Oxbow, Pixie, Positron, Professor Carmody, Rapunzel, Rebound, Reflex, Vulcan, Walkabout, and the Yeti.
• Flatiron, an African-American hero and member of the First Line. Little is known about Flatiron; he seems to have had no superpowers, but built and used suit of power armor as well as various advanced computer systems. He seems, based on his accent, to have been from the South. He died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Frankenstein's Monster. Just which Monster this is remains unclear, as there have been a number of them in Marvel continuity. He went by the name of "Frank" and was a member of the First Line. His final fate remains unknown.
• Gadfly, a light-hearted criminal who seems to have gotten into crime in order to get the attention of the Black Fox, who she knew in her civilian identity. She was Ruth MacCrae, the daughter of Captain Hip and Sunshine. In her civilian identity she was a pre-law student at Northwestern University (she was from Chicago) who took classes with Dr. Robert Paine, the civilian identity of the Black Fox. Gadfly's powers are unknown. Her powers seem to have included super-agility and possibly super-speed. She died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Katyusha. Katyusha was a former member of the Soviet Space Program who gained superpowers and defected to the United States. She joined the First Line and served with them. She is assumed to have died in the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Kid Justice. Kid Justice was the sidekick identity of Mr. Justice when he was partnered with Black Fox.
• Dr. Cassandra Locke, an African-American woman. She is a traveler from the future--the late 22^nd Century, from "Tranquility City"--who came back in time from approximately 180 years in the future to investigate the deaths of the Lost Generation. The time-traveling "Tachyon Belt" she uses is very similar to the belt of the Yankee Clipper (II), and it is known that she traveled back to the very beginning of the Lost Generation, whenever that might be. It is also known that in her later travels, back to the beginnings of the Lost Generation, she warned the heroes against alien domination, or something similar. She died in 1955.
• Major Mercury. This was the pseudonym of Makkari. I'm assuming that the speedster seen in issue #1, page 16, panel 1 is actually a miscolored Major Mercury, who is seen in issue #5. He was a member of the First Line.
• Mako, a female with some link to Atlantis. A savage, athletic warrior with claws and teeth capable of shredding Skrull power armor, she may be a mutated Atlantean or a mako shark turned sentient by the Atlantean scientist Vyrra (who also created the heroine Namorita). Her origin may be something else altogether; she says she was "bred...to kill or be killed!" It is implied that she was kept out of jail by the efforts of the Templar. She died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Mr. Justice, a hero who from his statements was familiar with the Yankee Clipper (II) and looked up to him. He is described by Effigy as "the living legacy of the Yankee Clipper." He seemingly began fighting crime as a child or teenager, when he was partnered with the Black Fox and went by the name "Kid Justice." His powers, if any, are unknown; during the final battle with the Skrulls, when he died, he was using a gun. His first name was Timothy, and his life was saved at least twice by Nightingale. He also used a personal jet/hovercraft. Mr. Justice was a member of the First Line.
• Morph, a shapeshifting hero about whom little is know. He or she was a member of the First Line. He is presumed to have died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Nightingale, an empath and healer. She had many "lives," which she spent in healing the wounded; this ability gave her knowledge of the future, up until the time of her death. She died healing Dr. Locke during the final battle with the Skrulls. She was a member of the First Line.
• Nocturne, a villain. He was a long-running enemy of the Black Fox, Professor Carmody and the First Line, but was not totally gone to evil, having stowed away on the heroes' ships in order to fight the Skrulls. He killed Professor Carmody with his automatic before being killed during the final battle with the Skrulls. Nocturne was a scientist and alchemist, which explains one of his creations, the virus-like mechanical "alchem-tech" which mutated to battle its opponents. He was also a vampire, although after drinking some of Diablo's formula for immortality during the late 1960s he became partially human again, presumably losing some of his abilities. He was responsible, many years before, for breaking the Black Fox's legs and killing the only woman the Fox ever loved.
• Oxbow, a massive archer. He carried a series of special arrows, such as a "concussion shaft," and had at least slight invulnerability, being impervious to blaster fire. A Canadian, he was the partner and perhaps lover of Pixie. He was a member of the First Line, joining its original incarnation during the 1960s. He seems to have died at the end of the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Pixie, a light-hearted heroine capable of flight; she also carried "pixie dust" which turned its targets to stone. (They crumbled to dust soon afterwards.) She was an Eternal and was the partner and perhaps lover of Oxbow. From her words she had some experience with the time-traveling conqueror Kang. She was a member of the First Line, having joined its original incarnation during the 1960s and stayed with the team through all of its incarnations. From her words we can assume that she has had affairs with humans before Oxbow and that she is familiar with Romania and Eastern Europe. She is presumed to have died at the end of the final battle with the Skrulls, although given her abilities as an Eternal she may have somehow survived the final explosions.
• Positron, an African-American superheroine and member of the First Line. Her powers apparently included the ability to generate explosions from her hands. Her first name was Ronnie, she was romantically linked with Blackjack, and she died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Rapunzel, a heroine about whom little is known. She could stretch and manipulate her hair, Medusa-style. She was the partner of Dr. Mime and was a member of the First Line.
• Rebound, a heroine about whom little is known. She seems to have had some sort of force field or kinetic reversal abilities. Her final fate is unknown.
• Reflex, a hero about whom little is known. He had a "reverse-kinesis field" which bounced objects off of him. He had a not-particularly-loveable personality and was a member of the First Line. He is presumed to have died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Riot-Act, a foul-mouthed woman, who was perhaps a villain and whose powers, besides flight, are unknown. She died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• a Skrull woman, who may or may not have been in love with the Yeti. She may have been an agent of the Skrull Empire sent to Earth to lure the Yeti away from the heroes, or (more likely) she was a good soul who wanted to help the Yeti and who opposed the expansionist aims of the Empire. She died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• The Squire, the son and partner of the Templar. He seems to have been unpowered, although he was certainly capable of using his father's lance as a weapon. He died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Sunshine, a superheroine about whom little is known. She was a hippy heroine; her first name was Autumn, and she was capable of light and possibly energy projection. Her powers were caused by "top secret CIA tests." She married Captain Hip and was the mother of Gadfly. Her final fate is unknown.
• The Templar, a hero who wore armor and had a knightly motif. He was the father and partner of the Squire. He died during the final battle with the Skrulls. His powers are unknown; he carried with him a lance, which he presumably used as a weapon. It is possible that the Templar was the adult version, decades later, of the Silver Squire.
• Vulcan, a hero about whom little is known. He could project energy blasts of some kind. He was a member of the First Line and is presumed to have died in the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Walkabout, a sentient robot originally created by Professor Carmody and which acted as host to him late in both of their careers. Walkabout, a member of the First Line, was ideological, seemingly an ardent American patriot. He was superstrong, capable of flight and of projecting his limbs if need be, but was vulnerable to blaster fire and died during the final battle with the Skrulls.
• Yankee Clipper (II). He had a power belt that was either quite similar to or the same belt that Dr. Cassandra Locke used to time travel with. He was also very influential on Mr. Justice, who on at least one occasion, when faced with a difficulty, asked himself "What would the Clipper have done?" He was not present at the final battle with the Skrulls, having time-jumped ahead of the battle, and his final fate is unknown.
• the Yeti, a superhumanly large, strong, and clawed beast who was definitely in love with the Skrull woman. The Yeti is a member of the race of Himalayan Yeti seen in Siilver Surfer v1 #1. The Yeti was for a time a member of the First Line before quitting them; he seems to have had self-image issues, being described as "a lonely soul in need of love and understanding." He is presumed to have died at the end of the final battle with the Skrulls.

• a man in a blue-and-yellow costume, powers unknown, who is presumed to have died during the final battle with the Skrulls. Appearances: page 2, issue #12.
• Note: This character might be Dr. Mime in a different costume. (Well, they've both got yellow in their costume, anyhow.)
• a frog-headed character. His powers are unknown, and he is presumed to have died during the final battle with the Skrulls. Appearances: page 2, issue #12.
• Note: For some reason this character reminds me of a character from an Atlas story. I can't remember which one, though. And, the hell, the similarity might just be in my head. Knowing Stern, though, this might well also be a deliberate reference.
• Note: This might also be a miscolored Morph.
• a Skrull. Now, granted, this might only be in my head, but this Skrull has a somewhat different look than the other Skrulls--bigger head, smaller ears, smaller eyes, and in general a more humanoid head. This might be Effigy in mid-shapechange, but what I was reminded of, based on the size of his head, was the villain the Gargoyle (I), who fought the Hulk in his first issue.  Appearances: page 2, issue #12, and who knows where else--he's a Skrull, he might be anyone or anything.
• a man in a yellow or gold-armored costume. His powers are unknown, although he was using a blaster in his only appearance. He is presumed to have died by the end of the final battle with the Skrulls. Appearances: page 3, issue #12.
• a robotic character. This character might be the same character as the armored figure on page 16, panel 1. Its powers are unknown. It is presumed to have died by the end of the final battle with the Skrulls. Appearances: page 3, issue #12.
• a woman in light blue and white. Her powers are unknown and she is presumed to have died by the end of the final battle with the Skrulls. Appearances: page 3, issue #12. I think this is supposed to be Katyusha.
• a man in a blue and white costume who either had blasters for hands or whose costume had blasters on its gauntlets. He is presumed to have died during the final battle with the Skrulls. Appearances: panel 1, page 16, issue #12.
• a man in a yellow or orange costume. His powers are unknown. He is presumed to have died during the final battle with the Skrulls. Appearances: panel 1, page 16, issue #12.

Marvel: The Lost Generation. A very good site by Richard Porter encompassing not just The Lost Generation characters but also other pre-FF #1 characters, both heroic and villainous. It's a good complement to my own Pre-FF #1 site, and I recommend it.

Lost Generation Roster Book. A game-oriented site which nicely summarizes the major Lost Generation characters.