Marvel Mystery Comics #43
Mystery of the Air Raid Spotters
A local train yard and small town is suddenly bombed by Nazi Fifth Columnists led by Captain Von Sar and escape into the night. When the bombing hits the news, the Human Torch and Toro investigate and lend their aid to the FBI in determining where the Nazis are hiding out. When they learn that plane spotters did not warn of the incoming plane they rush to their location to find the spotters have been murdered. They find spies fleeing the scene, but when they attempt to capture one of them he commits suicide rather than talk, leaving the Torch and Toro back at square one.
However the Nazis plot is soon stopped when they begin an attack on Pittstown, a local hub of defense factories. They are spotted by the authorities who call in the military to come in with anti-aircraft weapons. The Torch and Toro lend a hand downing the enemy planes as well. Von Sar and his men attempt to escape by landing their plane in a local baseball diamond and try to make a run for it, but they are quickly captured by the Torch and Toro who turn them over to the FBI.
Recurring Characters
Human Torch, Toro, Nazis
The Mystery of the Vanishing Sub
A Nazi U-Boat has appear in US waters sinking American ships and disappearing before anyone can stop it. This prompts the military to call on the Sub-Mariner to investigate the situation and stop it.
Later, when the Nazi U-Boat sinks a freighter heading to Russia with supplies, the Sub-Mariner is on hand to try and stop it. When the Sub-Mariner goes after the U-Boat, they fire a torpedo at him. Although Namor manages to dodge the torpedo, it strikes him enough to temporarily knock him out, allowing the Nazis to escape.
Searching along the docks but finds nothing but a massive showboat. He becomes suspicious of it when he notices a beam of light coming out the water during a blackout and decides to investigate further. Calling his friend Betty Dean, the two decide to go on a date aboard the showboat in order to investigate it.
Splitting up, the Sub-Mariner finds a pack of Nazi spies hiding in the lower level of the boat and battles them. He is outnumbered and taken aboard the U-Boat, but breaks free and sabotages its engines. Fearing the Sub-Mariner the Nazi captain orders their ship to retreat, however out at sea they realize that their motors have been damaged. Forced to surface in order to make repairs, the U-Boat is then spotted by the cost guard who sinks the vessel.
Recurring Characters
Sub-Mariner, Betty Dean, Nazis
The Birthday Wish
Jimmy Jupiter feels sorry for Sidney, an immigrant from Britain who is having a hard time fitting in with his new classmates. When Sidney is bullied by some of the kids, Jimmy comes to his aid and sends the bullies packing.
Later that day, Jimmy happens upon a bike and hopes he gets one like it for his upcoming birthday. Spinning its wheel he summons Eenie-Meenie and his wish wheel and offers to grant Jimmy a birthday wish and encourages him to climb aboard the wishing wheel. Jimmy's wish brings him to Sidney and the two begin to play together.
Their fun is interrupted when a bull breaks out of his pen and chases them up a tree. The branch they are on breaks under their weight and the two boys fall into a nearby pond. Sidney can't swim forcing Jimmy to come to his rescue. But when Jimmy pulls Sidney to shore his new found friend is unconscious and he calls Eenie-Meenie for help. Eenie-Meenie tries to take them to help but the wishing wheel crashes.
Jimmy wakes up to find himself on the ground next to the bike he was checking out and the whole thing was nothing but a dream. The following day, Jimmy gets a new bicycle for his birthday and he rides it around town. Running into Sidney, he and the boy hang out and become fast friends. When the other local kids give Sidney grief, Jimmy convinces them that he is okay and they all go off to play a game of baseball together.
Recurring Characters
Jimmy Jupiter
Suicide Headline
When Mary Morgan and Jack Casey decide to interview Professor Tang about the recent suicide of his daughter Celia, Jeff Mace declines to join them. Left alone, he looks into the files of the newspaper and learns that Celia's mother had disappeared a number of years ago and had not been found and that Celia was looking to inherit her mothers fortune. This causes Jeff to become suspicious, especially when his friends fail to return. Jeff travels to the Tang home and learns that his friends were apparently never there.
Seeking an audience from Professor Tang, but Tang refuses to talk to him. When Jeff notices a lipstick container on the counter Tang's butler knocks him out and he is dumped in the cellar to be dealt with later. Coming around, Jeff changes into the Patriot to find out what's going on. Going up into the attic of the house he finds Professor Tang's wife is alive and well and that he's been keeping her alive and hidden over these years in order to find a means to eliminate his daughter so that he could claim the family fortune.
Struggling with Tang, the Patriot knocks a gun out of the mans hand and his wife uses it to shoot him dead. When the butler, also in on the scheme, tries to attack the Patriot she warns him and the Patriot lands a knock out punch. When Mary and Jack finally arrive with the authorities the Patriot disappears. When the two return to the paper they learn that Jeff has scooped them and called in the story already.
Recurring Characters
Patriot, Jack Casey, Mary Morgan
The Crypt of Good and Evil
Professor Blaine and Professor Roche are examining the finds of their latest dig in Egypt. Blaine completes the translation of some hieroglyphs that identify the tomb they are in as belonging to the legendary Tut-Kan-Amon whose body was buried in the Temple of Good and Evil with the Lamps of Good and Evil. While Blaine finds this a remarkable discovery, Roche -- a Nazi loyalist -- decides to use the Lamp of Evil for the benefit of his homeland.
Going to the temple, they find the tomb of Tut-Kan-Amon and Roche reveals his true stripes, taking the Lamp of Evil and using the smoke inside to turn their guide into an evil maniac. The Vision appears and comes to Blaine's rescue but he too is doused with the evil gas and made a slave to Professor Roche.
He orders the Vision to destroy the Lamp of Good, however the Vision instead unleashes its smoke to increase his strength and is freed from Roche's control. The Vision fights off Roche's men, and then uses the gas from the Lamp of Good on Roche. Roche repents his evil ways and the Vision then destroys the Lamp of Evil before departing once more.
Recurring Characters
Vision
Black Market Boogie Woogie
Terry Vance is in for a surprise when Deadline Dawson shows up with his bosses daughter Shirley Booth and her parrot Gossip. Shirley insists that she is a better detective than Terry Vance and decides to prove it. there is a brief scuffle between Gossip and Dr. Watson, then suddenly Shirley disappears leaving Terry a note with a clue on how to find her, and claiming that he is not good enough of a detective to find it out.
However, Terry quickly finds the clues and it leads him and Terry to the Snake's Den, a gambling joint owned by Snake-Eye Smith, whom the police have been trying to nab for various crimes but have been unable to find evidence.
They learn from a man inside that Snake-Eye Smith is out on his yacht and head to the wharf where it is kept. Arriving with the police they begin to search the yacht much to Snake-Eye's dismay. They find Shirley and Gossip who claim that Smith is using his boat to smuggle goods, and was hiding out on the boat to hear proof. Smith orders them off his property, but Dr. Watson slips away and uncovers his smuggled goods: tires which he is selling despite the rubber ration due to the war.
When Sam attempts to shoot Terry, he knocks the crook out with a single punch and turns him over to the authorities.
Recurring Characters
Terry Vance, Doctor Watson, Deadline Dawson
The Death That Walked
Limpy Marcus rats out on his former boss, mobster Maxie Muggs and tells the police that the mobster is going to be at the Grove Tavern. The police arrive to arrest him leading to Maxie resisting arrest and he is shot dead. However, in the morgue, Muggs revives and strangles the janitor to death before leaving. The papers report the disappearance of Muggs' body, leaving the authorities to wonder what happened.
The Angel also becomes interested and he is soon sought out by Limpy Marcus. Marus tells the Angel that he was the one who ratted out Maxie Muggs and tells him some shocking news: Maxie Muggs is still alive. He asks the Angel for protection and agrees to help the hero bring Maxie Muggs to justice again. The Angel agrees but soon leaves the hotel room. However, no sooner is he out that he hears gunshots and rushes back to Limpy's aid. The Angel attacks the gunman demanding he tell him where Maxie is hiding out. The gunman instead falls off the fire escape and instead of capture shoots himself in the head.
Finding a business card for Dr. Weldon Fisher on the mans body, the Angel decides to go and investigate him. At the doctors home he finds some strange experiments have been conducted on guinea pigs. He soon is confronted at gunpoint by Fisher and his daughter. The Angel easily disarms the frightened doctor and learns that he had been experimenting on a means to prevent death and succeeded on guinea pigs. When his daughter told this to Maxie Muggs, he blackmailed them into performing the procedure on him so that he could cheat death as well.
Muggs and his men arrive right after and hold everyone at gunpoint. He orders Fisher to conduct the final human trail on the Angel, strapping the hero into the chair and rigging up the electrodes to his body to see if he will survive. Suddenly, Limpy bursts in with guns blazing, mowing down Muggs men. Muggs, unable to be killed flees in pain, and ends up stumbling onto an electrode, the electricity from the device reverses the effects of the experiment and kills Muggs once and for all.
Before the Angel can be freed, Limpy -- who was forcefully experimented on and maimed by the device -- is about to shoot the doctor when he collapses from blood lose from a wound he sustained in the gunfight. With Limpy out cold, the doctor frees the Angel and vows to destroy his invention finding it too dangerous for mankind to control. With the threat now over, the Angel then departs leaving his trademark shadow to mark his presence.
Recurring Characters
Angel
