Human Torch Comics #5A

Aug 1

Aug 1 Human Torch Comics #5A

The March of Death

The Torch & Toro are summoned to Police HQ to view a note from a Doc Smart, who threatens to steal $1 million being transferred to the 4th City Bank the next day. Meanwhile, in his penthouse suite, Dr. Smart goes over the plans to steal the money with his gang, and shows them an obit in the newspaper that will play a role in the heist.

The next day, the Torch & Toro look on as the money arrives at the bank, but a funeral procession passes by the bank at the same time and is stopped by the Police. When the fiery duo investigate, Dr. Smart and his men jump out of the hearse in a burst of gunfire at the Police, then don asbestos suit to deal with the Flaming Duo. Smart throws a spring bomb at Toro, and when it explodes, it throws out a steel spring wrapped in asbestos around Toro, dousing out his flame. A maddened Torch dives at Smart, who throws another spring bomb at him, it explodes but the Torch grabs the spring, which Smart then yanks on, forcing the Torch into a water hydrant, putting out his flame! Smart and his men then grab Torch & Toro, throw them into the hearse and take off.

When both awaken in the back of the hearse, the Torch figures out a way to send a flaming message outside the hearse, warning people of who is inside and what they've done, and to call the Police. The Police then converge on an intersection where they set a trap for Smart and his thugs. Meanwhile, the driver of the hearse barrels through a group of shoppers and Torch swears revenge for that. As the hearse reaches the intersection, Smart unloads a smoke bomb and is able to avoid capture as the hapless Police crash into each other in the blinding smoke. Torch is able to toss a fireball around the vehicle into the windshield, blinding the driver and forcing the hearse to slow down. Our heroes are able to cut their bonds and burn their way out the back and jump onto the top of the vehicle. Smart orders the driver to stop suddenly, throwing off the Fiery Duo into a wall, then take off again. As the Torch & Toro recover, they spot the hearse and toss fireballs into the sewer, igniting the gasses in an attempt to stop Smart....but it doesn't work! As the hearse crosses over a bridge, Torch fireballs the pavement, forcing the hearse off the bridge and into the water.

Thinking Smart and his men dead, Torch flames off and goes to phone the Police Inspector, who will send divers out to recover the money and the bodies. Meanwhile, Smart surfaces and is picked up by his gang. Later that evening, Police divers discover the hearse underwater along with its dead driver and the coffin full of money, but the doctor is gone. As they stand puzzled, a 3rd diver suddenly appears and cuts the Police diver's air hoses. When the Torch and Toro find out, they hover over the water, heating the temperature to the boiling point. The diver radios Dr. Smart about this, and Smart orders his thugs on the scene to shoot thermite bullets at the pair, driving them away. As the coffin and diver surface to load the money on a boat, the Torch and Toro come a running, only to fly into a spider web of hair-thin wire attached to a floating mine, which then explodes.

Blasted into the sky by the mine, Torch is dazed, but Toro drops into the water, unconscious. Torch flies down and pulls him out as Smart's speedboat races off with the coffin full of money, cutting the air hose of his diver. However, he is intercepted by a police launch, which is shooting shells at his boat. Smart shoots back with a deck gun, setting the police launch afire. Torch and Toro come on the scene, but Smart's men again shoot thermite bullets at the pair. This time, Torch sends fireballs at Smart's boat. As the fiery pair dive at his boat, Smart sets off a grey, vaporous cloud, which not only puts out the flame on Torch's hand, but freezes it as well!

Toro heats his hand back up, then the pair follow Smart's boat to shore and attack again. Smart throws a bomb of liquid air at them, allowing Smart to jump back into another hearse and beat it. The Torch and Toro discover this hearse is heat-proof, so Toro decides to land on the hood and juggle fireballs, thus hypnotizing the driver. Thinking quickly, Smart dispenses vaporous gas through the hood ornament, dazing the fiery pair. As Smart takes off, the Torch and Toro suddenly flit about, crazily laughing at each other, in some sort of trance. Torch snaps out of it, but when Toro won't, Torch grabs him and crash lands them both into a river, shocking Toro out of the trance.

The pair take off again after Smart, catch up to him and use fireballs to cut down trees to block the road. Smart's hearse suddenly turns off on a dirt road, and as the fiery pair catches up with him, he shoots a thick black smoke out of the exhaust pipe, forcing them to flame off and land. When they do, Smart's men knock them out, tie them up, and place them in the back of the hearse to take them to the cemetery. As the hearse enters the cemetery, and unknown to Smart, the Torch is able to flash a code message at the cemetery gatekeeper, asking him to call the Police. Meanwhile, the hearse reaches the site of a great pit. It stops, backs up to the pit, and dumps the hearse body (containing Torch and Toro) into it. Then they start filling the pit with dirt, as the Torch and Toro break out of the hearse and fire their way underground, causing the ground that Smart and his men are standing on to collapse. They capture Dr. Smart just as the police arrive.

Recurring Characters

Human Torch, Toro

The Human Torch and Sub-Mariner Battle the Nazi Super Shell of Death

Text story. The Human Torch, Sub-Mariner and Toro stop a Nazi attempt at invading England.

Recurring Characters

Human Torch, Toro, Sub-Mariner

Blitzkrieg of the Living Dead!

Near Bermuda, where the Sub-Mariner is visiting the Angel, a courier races towards them with a message, but collapses and dies at their feet. Namor picks up the message and suddenly hears a voice coming out of nowhere telling them that anyone who reads the message dies. The message from Carlos, one of Prince Namor's servants, tells the pair that zombies are overrunning the island, and Namor leaves to investigate. He sees the zombies rounding up all of his servants, but Carlos gets away and fills him in on the invasion and how they are making slaves of the island people. Infuriated, Namor swims from island to island, cleaning out the zombies, then discovers a huge base of theirs, armed to the teeth. He allows himself to be captured to get to the captives, then breaks free and orders the captives into planes and tanks to defeat the zombie menace.

Meanwhile, Namor discovers a flotilla of submarines just off shore, and begins destroying them. However, the zombies have made up human shark diving suits, and dive in to battle Namor with bullets. With Namor on the run, they begin dropping depth bombs on him. Sub-Mariner tries to contact the Angel, but with no success, although he does discover the zombies' base underwater, near the base of the island. He sees them trying to destroy the foundation of the island, so he wades into them. Unfortunately, the zombies are successful in dynamiting the base of the island, then he discovers the Angel, prisoner of the zombies and being tortured by them. Namor flies in, cuts the Angel free, and together, they make short work of their foes, discovering the chief of the Nazis disguised as one of the zombies.

Recurring Characters

Sub-Mariner, Angel, Nazis

Death Dirge of the Veiled Violinist

Late one evening, a reformed street musician is playing his violin on a lonely street corner for a few coins from passersby. Then, he begins moving down the street, where he spots some children, stops and plays a few tunes for them as they dance. The violinist is also watching a soldier emerging from an armory across the street, a soldier who stops by and drops a few coins in the cup... then he suddenly grabs his head, screams in agony, and collapses. The frightened children then see the soldier rise to his feet, but now with a hideously contorted face! Slowly his bones and teeth begin to melt away, then he drops dead, as the violinist continues to play a high, weird note.

At that moment, Jeff Mace and friends walk out of a restaurant, and run into the children, who tell the story of what they have seen. Jeff then notices the veiled violinist and follows him until the violinist suddenly turns and smashes his violin over Mace's head. Angrily, he picks up a bottle and is going to kill Mace with it, but he is startled by a noise and runs away. Jeff's friends have caught up to him, including a doctor who reports about the remains of the soldier... apparently, all of his bones were ground to sawdust!

Later, as Jeff and Mary walk home, they stop in front of a music store and Jeff goes in to buy a violin. He takes it home and practices on it until he can break a glass with its sound vibrations. He then phones the police and tells them that the Patriot is calling and that he has discovered how the soldier was killed: the single note played by the veiled violinist somehow shatters human bones. But the police think it is a crank call, so the Patriot must take matters into his own hands.

Two days later, a parade of new American soldiers march down one of Broadway's biggest streets, when suddenly the veiled violinist steps forward and begins playing his note of death. Immediately, soldiers and civilians are struck down with cries of agony filling the air. Meanwhile, back at his apartment, the Patriot leaves and begins questioning people as to whether or not they have seen this violinist. Finally, a person points out his house to the Patriot, which he enters, and he finds a short wave sending and receiving radio inside. The Patriot tunes in Berlin and gives the Nazis a phony report before the violinist suddenly returns to the house and knocks out the Patriot with his violin music. But the Patriot is playing possum, and jumps to his feet, and clobbers the man, who then confesses as to why he does what he does. When the Patriot tries to force the violinist to play his note into the short-wave radio to kill thousands of Nazis, the violinist breaks away and crashes out a window to his death.