WC: ACTION COMICS #329

Now this was a cover that promised to live up to the title of the series; ACTION COMICS! Surely if Superman was about to go into a kill-or-be-killed battle to the death bereft of his super-powers and brandishing a sword and shield, the story within was going to be chock full of action, right? Well, wrong. This was another of editor Mort Weisinger’s come-ons to lure in kids. But the story was as safe and sanitized and bloodless as any he ever produced. Still fun, still entertaining, but hardly an example of limitless action.

The first hint that the cover might have been overpromising is that the story in question was drawn by Al Plastino. Plastino was one of the journeyman artists of this era, but his work tended towards the stiff and lifeless. As Weisinger was looking for artists who could lay out stories in the direct storybook fashion that he preferred, Plastino fit in perfectly well. But I never really warmed to his approach. His Superman often seemed to be in his mid-40s rather than young and vibrant, which also didn’t help.The story was written by Edmond Hamilton.

The story concerns the appearance of a strange armored figure in Metropolis. The armored man goes on a crime spree, evidencing strength equal to that of Superman–and then the Man of Steel tries to bring his rampage to a halt, he discovers that his foe’s sword can even cut through his indestructible costume–and presumably his similar skin. Time and again, this Knight causes damage to the surroundings that Superman must repair or face the possibility that a bystander will be hurt. While this happens, the Knight makes its getaway. The people of Metropolis are getting a bit fed up with Superman not being able to stop this thing, and the Man of Tomorrow even snaps at Jimmy Olsen when he asks what’s wrong. Despite what the cover indicates, Superman never loses his super-powers, they’re just ineffective against the Knight. Finally, the pair meet in a duel, Superman knocks himself and his enemy into the river, and only the Knight emerges.

The Knight is actually a robot, build by criminal scientist Jon Smatten, whom Superman had caught and arrested several times over the years. When he came across the wreckage of super-metal from the planet Krypton, Smatten was able to figure out how to work it into a robotic figure that would be even more powerful than Superman. Then, he sent his robot out to pillage and to destroy the Man of Steel should he interfere. This is all Superman needs to hear–he bursts out of the shell of the robot which has returned to Smatten’s base, surprising the scientist. Having realized the origin of the metal, Superman used a De-Coherer Ray on it to make it stop, then clad himself in its parts to track down the one behind it. Superman does keep the indestructible sword, though, thinking that there might be a time in the future when it might come in handy. As far as I can tell, it was never used again, even though there were likely plenty of instances where a Superman-strong sword would have come in handy.

Next up is the Metropolis Mailbag letters page, which among other things plugs the fact that the 1950s ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN television show would now be broadcast in color. The latter half of the series had been shot in color, even though it had only been transmitted in black and white up to this time. The page also squeezes in some always-welcome Coming Super-Attractions for upcoming issues! Superman performs a Beatles-style dance! Four Legionnaires are married! Superman and Batman become deadly foes! These small vignettes continued to pack a lot of sell-power into a relatively small space.

The cover promised that this issue contained a great Imaginary Story featuring Supergirl, but I can find no evidence that the story in this issue was intended to be an Imaginary Tale. o I don’t know what wires may have gotten crossed there. It is the first part of a multi-part adventure, and was written by Leo Dorfman and drawn by Jim Mooney. It opens with Linda Danvers and her quasi-boyfriend Dick Malverne going to see a conjurer at a local campus hangout. The conjurer, Fantasta, selects Linda as the volunteer for a disappearing girl trick. But Linda is genuinely disappeared, finding herself on a space ship on its way to parts unknown.

Supergirl learns that Fantasta is actually an alien from the planet Gotha, home of the Circle of Evil. In order to join their nefarious ranks, Fantasta had to prove her merit by defeating Supergirl. When she can’t do it, Fantasta is forced to annihilate herself through the use of an Execution Bird that she was required to carry. Approaching Gotha, Supergirl decides to pose as Fantasta in order to learn more about the Circle of Evil so that she can bring them to justice. On Gotha, Supergirl is shocked to discover that she doesn’t have her super-powers, but she’s able to prove her bona fides to the Circle by claiming to have killed Supergirl and brought them back her indestructible costume as a trophy. For some reason, Supergirl’s costume retains its indestructibility even though she has lost her powers–a mystery.

And a brief stop here for another House Ad promoting an upcoming 80 Page Giant stuffed with classic reprints, this one devoted to WORLD’S FINEST COMICS and tales of Superman and Batman and Robin working together.

Having passed her first test, Supergirl as Fantasta is given an even greater challenge; she’s to proceed to the Purple Planet and capture Drang the Destroyer, a tyrant who refused to ally himself with the Circle of Evil. Drang has already beaten five of the circle’s best–and Supergirl doesn’t have any of her super-powers to help her. Trapped in a spaceship that’s locked on a course to the Purple Planet, Supergirl tries to figure a way to divert its course, but ultimately fails. and as this story is To Be Continued, Drang himself reaches out with a telepathic projection, telling Supergirl that he awaits her coming. Uh-oh. This adventure would continue the following month, though I wouldn’t read it at the time, as that next issue wasn’t among the issues of ACTION COMICS that were a part of my Windfall Comics purchase.