Marvel Mystery Comics #86

Jul 14

Jul 14 Marvel Mystery Comics #86

Carnival of Crime

At a costume makers shop, the costume maker finishes the final touches on a green goblin mask and has his daughter put it on display. Outside, the Human Torch and Toro drive into town and are surprised to find the locals purchasing masks. When they ask one of them what is going on, the man explains that the entire town is employed by the wealthy and miserly Garko, whom they throw an extravagant Mardi Gras style party in his honour on his birthday. The Torch and Toro decide to stay in town to participate in the festivities.

That night, the costume maker and his daughter are aroused by the sound of someone breaking into their shop. The costume maker confronts the thief, who shoots him before stealing the green mask. Hearing the shots from outside, the Human Torch and Toro flame on and fly into the shop. Although the two flaming heroes have the shooter on the ropes, he manages to escape when the mask makers daughter finds her fathers dead body. The Torch and Toro try to follow after the killer but lose him in the crowd of masked party goers. They return back to the costume shop and question the girl. She does not know who would kill her father, and when they suggest that she stay home, she tells them that Garko would be furious if some of the villagers didn't attend his party. Not liking this, the Human Torch decides to pay Garko a visit.

Meanwhile, in his mansion home, Garko gloats over the people who worship him in town and then selects the costume maker's daughter as the fairest girl at the party and invites her up to his home to cut his birthday cake. The Human Torch and Toro arrive to witness this just as Garko's butler barges in to inform his employer that his jewels have been stolen. Garko orders that none of the party goers be allowed to leave while the Torch and Toro go out looking for the thief. They spot him on the estate and follow him into a greenhouse. There he douses Toro's flames with a water hose. When the Torch attacks, the killer activates the sprinklers and knocks the Torch out with a bucket then flees.

Recovering from the attack, the Torch realizes that the masked man seemed to know his way around and they soon pay Garko a visit. When questioning him the old man cackles, revealing that the jewels he put on display were fakes. The killer soon realizes this when he reaches his hideout and then rushes out to get the real jewels. Meanwhile, the Torch and Toro question the costume maker's daughter about what she might know regarding why the killer stole the mask instead of purchasing it, but she doesn't have any answers. They instead go to see the mayor and convince him to tell what he knows about town history to try and figure out who the killer is.

Elsewhere on the estate, Garko is busy changing the combination on his safe when the masked killer appears from a secret tunnel and attacks the old man, demanding that he reveal the combination to the safe. Hearing Garko's cries for help, the Torch, Toro and the girl rush to his aid. The Torch melts through the steel door keeping them out of the room and attacks the killer, easily subduing him. The Torch then unmasks the killer, revealing him to be Garko's own step-son, however Garko dies from the torture he endured from his attacker. After the police take Garko's step-son away, the Torch is informed that Garko disowned his step-son and the young man, desperate for money sought to steal his step-fathers jewels.

Recurring characters

Human Torch, Toro

Case of the Disappearing Watchman

A young boy named Ronnie Dowell comes to the Sub-Mariner and Namora seeking assistance. The boy tells them that his father "Blinker" Dowell was recently paroled after a stretch in prison and decided to go straight. He was able to get a job at the Case Importing Company, despite his checkered past. However shortly after his father took the job, the warehouse was robbed and his father went missing. Ronnie then asks the two Atlanteans if they can help find his father and find out if he has returned to a life of crime. The two agree to help when Ronnie offers to pay them $15. They take the money and send Ronnie home while they go to the Case Importing Company. There they are allowed to search the night watchman's office. There they find a bullet hole in one of the holes and searching they find the spent shell in the trash can. Examining the bullet, Namor identifies that it was fired from a Japanese pistol.

Deducing that the shooter must have been a soldier during the War, they pay a visit the State Employment Office. They then get records of veterans who have registered Japanese firearms and then match it up to the employment records of the Case Importing Company, identifying that one man named James Stenchly is a match. In order to learn more about the operation, Namor and Namora disguise themselves as shady characters on the lamb from the law and convince the owner of the company to hire them for shipments. They are told to go out back where a man named Louie instructs them to drive a shipping truck and not ask any questions. Along the route they are ordered to stop by a man in the cargo area of the truck. He gets into the cab and points a Japanese pistol at them and orders them to drive to Delancy Street. Namor identifies the man as Stenchly and agrees to follow orders. When they arrive at their destination, a silk warehouse, men come out of the back of the truck and shoot down the night watchman and steal a supply of silk. When the police arrive, they gun down and officer and get back into the truck and order Namor and Namora to drive.

They are taken to the hideout they are brought inside where they see Blinker Dowell tied up in a chair. Stenchly explains that they have been using the shipping as a front to steal valuables and plan on framing Blinker for the robberies. The two wait until night and doff their disguises and knock out a guard and free Blinker and make an escape just as the other crooks notice what's going. Getting away, Namor exits the truck and has Namora take Blinker back home while he flags down a police car and leads them back to the crooks hideout. Namor and the police quickly round up the crooks and bring them back and then send the police to arrest James Stenchly. With his fathers name cleared, Ronnie thanks Namor and Namora for their help. They have one more surprise for the boy, and present him with his own news-stand which they paid for with the $15.00 that they gave him so he can earn a living and go back to school.

Recurring characters

Sub-Mariner, Namora

The Not-So-Perfect Alibi

Detective Skip McCoy is told by the desk sergeant that a murder has been called in. Skip rushes to the scene and finds a woman dead and her husband tied up next to an overturned phone. Skip unties the man who tells him that his wife was killed by a robber who tied him up and left. Skip sees through this and accuses him of killing his own wife. Later at police headquarters the man confesses to the murder and Skip reveals that he knew he was lying as there was no way he could have called the police if he was tied up.

Recurring characters:

Detective Skip McCoy

The Lightning Cult

At the apartment of Jeff Mace and Fred Davis, our two heroes read over the newspaper which is reporting yet another of a series of strange fires and the appearance of a cult that claims that it's founders are the Greek gods Jupiter and Jove. Suddenly they spot a fire out the window and change into Captain America and Bucky to investigate.

There they find the individuals claiming to be Jupiter and Jove as Jupiter apparently sets fire to the building with lighting bolts seemingly shot from his hands. They attack just as members of the Lightning Cult attempt to enter the building. But Jupiter tries to keep them back with lightning bolts, but Cap blocks them with his shield. They suddenly watch in surprise as the cult members enter the burning building. Unable to enter the building due to the flames, Cap and Bucky are forced to wait until fire fighters arrive on the scene and douse the flames. Searching the wreckage, they find no trace of the Lightning Cult but find that a safe inside the building was blasted open. Captain America and Bucky realize that the fire was a front to steal from the safe and decide to track down the cult and shut them down.

After doing some research on the Olympian gods, Jeff and Fred recall the news story about the cult and how they are scheduled to have a meeting outside of town. As Captain America and Bucky they spy on the cult. Jumping some of their members and stealing their robes. They witness as Jupiter and Jove order their minions to jump through a flaming hoop. Realizing that the robes are somehow fire proof, the two heroes follow them into a nearby cave. There their ruse is discovered and the cultists disrobe the heroes and bring them to Jupiter and Jove. The two reveal themselves to really be Arson Anne and Andy and that they have been using the cult as a front for their crimes. They try to strike the two heroes down with their "thunderbolts", but the heroes duck out of the way. Cap and Bucky then knock out the two masterminds behind the cult and discover that their "thunderbolts" are really specially made Roman candles and use them to round up the rest of the cult.

recurring characters

Captain America, Bucky

continuity notes

Captain America and Bucky here are depicted as the originals, Steve Rogers and James Barnes. However, per Avengers #4, the pair went missing in action in 1945. As revealed in What If? #4, the US government covered it up their disappearances with successors. The Captain America here is Jeff Mace and Bucky is Fred Davis, Jr.
This is the last appearance of Fred Davis as Bucky in the pages of Marvel Mystery Comics. This is because, shortly after this story, Bucky is shot in Captain America Comics #66. While recuperating from his injuries Bucky is replaced with Golden Girl.

Staged For Murder

At the office of Private Detective Mark Mason, Louise Grant is allowed to go on her lunch break. She goes to a new place called Club 86 for lunch. There she over hears two script writers trying to come up with a new murder mystery play and also discuss how to kill off their female lead played by Millicent Gilles. Vincent however wants to get rid of her as he doesn't believe she would be good for a role and abruptly leaves. As he leaves he accidentally sends a waiter's tray falling on Louise. When Vincent's assistant Jackie Scott helps clean Louise, she offers to have Mark Mason provide his expertise to help them write the perfect murder mystery.

Later when Millicent and Vincent visit the office, Louise drops in as the Blonde Phantom to also provide her expertise. They come up with a plot for the play: That host of a party is murdered, and the killer shoots her with a silenced gun and then uses a faked phonograph recording that makes it seem like she is shot later when the killer is away from the body. With the plot figured out, Jackie and the Blonde Phantom leave and Jackie confides the difficulty in getting rid of Millicent, but Vincent seems determined to keep her in the production for some unknown reason.

Later they meet with Vincent to discuss the new plot, and the Blonde Phantom meets Gilles, who doesn't like the new plot and insists that the play stay the same and asks the Blonde Phantom to leave. Before she does, Millicent notices that one of her earrings is missing. As Blonde Phantom and Jackie leave, Jackie expresses her frustration confiding that she could kill Millicent if she can get away with it. The next day at the theatre, Vincent prepares for show time. Meanwhile, in her dressing room Millicent finds her missing earring on a phonograph and when she removes it, it triggers a bomb that explodes killing Millicent.

Later Jackie and Blonde Phantom hear a radio report about Millicent's murder and that Jackie is wanted for questioning. Blonde Phantom brings her to see Mark who suggests that Jackie turn herself over to the police. Mark and Blonde Phantom then look over the murder scene and the Blonde Phantom finds the earring clutched in Millicent's hand. After they question Vincent, Blonde Phantom decides to investigate further while Mark goes back to his office. When she investigates further she finds the clue she needs and while she is calling Mark to tell him she learned who the killer is, Vincent suddenly enters the room with a gun. Vincent explains he used their plot from the play to murder Millicent who was blackmailing him in order to keep quiet over the fact that Vincent once spent time in prison. However before he can shoot the Blonde Phantom, Mark and the police arrive and disarm Vincent. Weeks after Vincent is arrested, Jackie opens the play as she wanted to present it and it is a huge success.