Marvel Mystery Comics #4

Jul 26

Jul 26 Marvel Mystery Comics #4

New York Hit by Green Flame

After reports of a strange army of "Green Flames" attacking New York, the Human Torch is called into the city by his friend Johnson to face a new threat. Asked to take on an alias, the Torch decides on Jim Hammond. Arriving on Broadway, he is stopped by the police who tell him the city (which is in ruins) is under martial law. The police demand to know his identity when suddenly, a Green Flame arrives. The Torch flames on and battles the foe, realizing that green flame is freezing cold. Pouring on the heat, the Torch kills the Green Flame before he can give any information. Thinking the Torch had killed Jim Hammond, the police attempts to arrest him, however, the Torch manages to escape.

Meeting up with Johnson and his colleague Maizie, the Torch learns that the chaos has been caused by Dr. Manyac. He is threatening to destroy New York City if his demands of ransom are not met. When the city refuses to comply, he sends an army of Green Flames to take out the slums of New York. The Torch goes into action, and when Manyac takes Maizie hostage, the Torch frees her and easily defeats Manyac, turning him over to the authorities. When Inspector Reiss tries to arrest him for the murder of "Jim Hammond", the Torch flames off and reveals that they are the same man.

Recurring Characters

Human Torch, Pete Johnson, Doctor Manyac

Continuity Notes

Although most Golden Age villains are one-off characters Doctor Manyac makes a return years later in the Marvel Mystery Comics 70th Anniversary Special #1.

Butch the Giant

The Devil's Playground: Location of some of the worst mobsters in the city. A small time mobster named Brink usurps control of his boss's mob with the help of his giant, Butch. He sends Butch out to do his bidding causing chaos and murder across the city and stealing millions in loot. When the police attempt to stop Butch, they find that nothing they throw at him can harm the creature.

Learning of the trouble, the Angel swings into action and confronts the creature, who quickly becomes frightened by the Angel's superior fighting skills and flees. The Angel follows the creature with the police not far behind and they end up at Brink's hideout. While Brink and his men attempt to flee the scene, the Angel fights the creature to the death. Butch crashes through a wall and falls to his death to the street below. After the creature's death, Brink and his men are easily captured.

Recurring Characters

Angel

The Sub-Mariner Goes To War

Continued from last issue...

Betty Dean convinces the Sub-Mariner to help to stop Nazi U-boat raids on supply ships, and Namor leaves her on the island to be recovered by the Navy. Returning to Atlantis, Namor convinces the Holy One to allow him to use the warships of Atlantis to stop the war. As Namor rushes off to find conflict, he vows to stop the war but not choosing sides, just stopping conflicts caused by the power mad governments forcing it's people to war.

He comes across an Allied cargo plane being shot out of the sky. Namor orders his fleet of sky subs to attack the Nazi fighters and then keeps the cargo plane afloat while the crew and cargo can be loaded into one of the Atlantean vessels to be taken to their destination. Checking the plane, Namor comes across a newspaper reporting how an American ship is being held by the Nazi's under suspicion of carrying contraband.

The Sub-Mariner rushes out to investigate the situation alone and sneaks aboard the ship, where he convinces the crew to secretly take over one of the U-Boats and use it to sink the other vessel guarding their ship. Their plot is a success, thanks to the help of Namor. He also orders his Atlantean comrades to submerge the mines to eliminate their threat and dives into the water ordering ship to continue on its course to Scotland.

This story is continued next issue...

Recurring Characters

Sub-Mariner, Betty Dean, Holy One, Nazis

The Claim Jumpers

When gold prospectors Zeb and Luke find gold, Luke sends Zeb into town to stake their claim and warns him against telling anyone about it. However, when Zeb stops for water he tells his friend Manuel about their find. It is overheard by a pair of thugs who decide to follow him into town and try to trick Zeb out of his claim.

After Zeb has filed his claim, he is confronted by the men who convince him to go to the saloon for a drink, but instead attempt to rob him of his claim paperwork. When he refuses to give it up, they beat him badly and ride off to confront Luke.

Zeb is found by the Masked Raider who revives the man and promises to help him and protect Luke. They arrive just in time, as Luke has been tricked with a white flag and captured. Whole gang, except its leader Buck, flees when they see the Masked Raider. Buck tries to resist but The Masked Raider makes short work of him. However, when Zeb and Luke offer the Masked Raider a partnership in their gold operation, the hero has already departed.

Recurring Characters

Masked Raider, Lightning

Electro: The Marvel of the Age

Professor Zog creates a robot that he dubs Electro a crime fighting robot that he hopes will be his greatest contribution to mankind. With a successful test, he sets up an operation in which he hires a dozen law abiding men to be his field agents. Equipping them with portable telephones, he sends them out to investigate crimes and -- if need be, contact him to send Electro to help.

Agent number 3, Dick Gardner, finds a lead on the recent kidnapping of child actor Joyce Lovely and gets the drop of a crook and forces him reveal the girl was kidnapped by the Hymie Pazetto gang. He is taken to their hide out at the abandoned Pink Slipper Roadhouse where he gets the drop on the crooks and makes an escape attempt with the girl. As he drives away, Dick is shot and crashes. Captured, Gardner is thrown in a cellar along with Joyce.

Far from defeated, Dick calls Professor Zog who sends in Electro, who easily defeats the criminals and rescued both Dick and Joyce.

Recurring Characters

Electro, Philo Zog

Continuity Notes

Although he is identified as Philo Zog here, The Twelve #1 reveals that Philo’s full name was Philo Zogolowski.
There is no proper origin for Electro except for the fact that Philo created the robot. However, Marvels Project #1 explains that the scientist received government funding from the Roosevelt administration and that Electro was created as part of a secret super-powered arms race between the US and Nazi Germany.

Ferret: Mystery Detective

One day while at home, the Ferret is interrupted when a man who was earlier reported as shot on the radio arrives at his door and collapses dead. Taking the body to police headquarters, he and the police find a match book for the Monte Carlo night club. Going there they investigate two men, one named Doc the other named Prima. Doc does recall seeing the dead man, however Prima does not. Witnessing starlet Lynn Froheim being dumped out of a car after being robbed, he chases after the getaway vehicle in a cab.

When he gets out near New York Harbor, the crook known as Knuckles Johnson gets the drop on him and shoots him, causing him to fall into the harbor. Surviving thanks to his bullet proof vest, the Ferret calls in a favor from a stoolie to learn the home address of Knuckles. Arriving there the Ferret falls asleep and soon wakes up to find himself stuck in a blaze set by Knuckles himself. The Ferret manages to break free and escape alive, but learns that Knuckles was since assassinated.

Unsure who could have killed the man, he get Lynn Froheim to disguise herself as a rich woman to try and trick the killer into revealing himself. However, the plan backfires when Lynn's drive is knocked out and Lynn is kidnapped. Finally deducing who the killer is, the Ferret rushes to the Monte Carlo and finding a secret passageway stops Doc before he can eliminate Lynn.

After the police take Doc and his henchmen away, the Ferret reveals to Lynn that he realized it was Doc when he deduced that only a doctor would be able to fatally shoot someone and send them to his door as a message to him, but do so in a way so that the man would die at just the right time to avoid revealing the killers identity.

Recurring Characters

Ferret

Continuity Notes

Years later it is revealed that the Ferret previously was a costumed crime fighter prior to his first appearance. He fought crime as the Operative in the 1930s and wore the Eternity Mask. See Marvel Comics #1000 and Mystery Men #1-5.

Adventures of Ka-Zar the Great: Fourth Episode

Years after he murdered John Rand, Paul de Kraft makes a return expedition to the Congo to collect the riches of a emerald rich river bed near the domain of Ka-Zar. He brings along with him Ed Kivlin, who helped fund money on the expedition. Both men are crooked, and plot to betray each other to reap the benefits. Knowing that their native guides far a supposed "white jungle god" of the Congo area, they do not tell the guides where they are going until it is too late. When the guides revolt, De Kraft uses violence to force them to do his bidding.

Ultimately, they reach the river where they begin harvesting the gems. Both men begin plotting against one another, Kivlin hoping to turn the increasingly frightened natives against De Kraft. The humans presences does not go unnoticed and soon Ka-Zar learns of their arrival from the many animals in the area -- particularly Chaka the ape who is angry that they murdered one of his people. Investigating the situation, the jungle man sends his first warning to those in the camp by firing an arrow at one of the natives, killing him.

When the natives believe it to be their jungle god, De Kraft once more uses violence and threats to force them to do his bidding. Ka-Zar recognizes De Kraft as the "Fat Face" who murdered his father and vows to get revenge. When the other animals in the jungle gather seeking to attack the camp en masse, Ka-Zar with the support of Zar, Sha, and Trajah, convinces them to stay back and let him handle it. N'Jaga is the only one who does not fully trust Ka-Zar as he is also a human.

Ka-Zar nears the camp once more, scaring the natives into fleeing by letting out a lions roar. This sudden display of cowardice angers De Kraft even more. Later when Kivlin heads up river to collect more emeralds for himself, he spots Zar and is about to shoot him when he is confronted by Ka-Zar. The savage warns Kivlin that he and the natives are to leave, sending the man running back to camp in a fright.

This story is continued next issue...