Mystic Comics #6 — Nick Peron

Jul 27

Jul 27 Mystic Comics #6

The Destroyer

American newspaperman Keen Marlow is on assignment in Germany and is interesting in getting a scoop on the Strohm prison. When he is refused entry and ordered to go to the German Ministry of Propaganda, Marlow instead decides to sneak into the prison and get a first hand account. Spotted and accused of being a slave, Keen is easily over powered by the Nazi guards who toss him into a prison cell after he refuses to answer all lines of questioning. When he refuses to be taken to his cell without a fight Marlow is once more overpowered and then whipped for his attempt at escape.

Soon Marlow finds himself joined by German scientist Eric Schmitt. Schmitt refused to give his scientific secrets to the Nazis and was beaten half to death. Dying he passes Marlow his invention a serum that will boost Keen's natural strength and abilities. Ingesting the formula, Marlow is endowed with enhanced human abilities and fights his way out of his cell. He easily overpowers his captors, freeing their prisoners before locking the Nazis up in their own cells.

Deciding to use his powers to fight against Nazi tyranny, Marlow develops the costumed identity of the Destroyer. Coming to the aid of German citizens being brutalized by their corrupt leaders, the Destroyer leaves a calling card at the scene of every rescue earning him the ire of the Gestapo. Their leader Captain Frederick Von Banger vows to capture and eliminate the Destroyer. The Destroy comes to von Banger instead and almost wins a one-on-one duel if not for Frederick activating a trap door causing the Destroyer to fall in a pit that is rapidly filled with water.

Still armed with his knives, the destroyer breaks out of the trap and fights his way out of Banger's headquarters. When the Gestapo commander returns he finds that the Destroyer has escaped and is still on the loose.

Recurring Characters

Destroyer Nazis

Continuity Notes

Both Invaders #18 and Marvels Project #7 state that Kevin Marlow does not exist and that the Destroyer was actually Brian Falsworth, who made up Marlow to add to the mystery of the Destroyer’s true identity. However, Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Golden Age 2004 and Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #3 and the subsequent Destroyer limited series all confirm that Kevin Marlow was the original Destroyer. OHOTMU A-Z #3 clarifies that Schmitt gave Marlow the formula that turned him into the Destroyer, while Falsworth managed to find another sample of the formula while imprisoned in the same concentration camp a short time after Marlow escaped.

The Destroyer

Nazi officials are having a hard time quelling dissent from the German people, so they enlist the aid of mad German scientist known as the Scar. When citizens at a food rations line attempt to riot over the lack of food, the Scar arrives with a ray that removes the air from the immediate area and causes all the people to suffocate to death before moving on. Florence von Banger arrives on the scene and finds that her father is one of the Scar's many victims. Angered at her father’s death, Florence vows to avenge his murder. this proclamation is overheard by the Destroyer who offers Florence the chance by being his ally.

The Destroyer then tracks down the Scar to the sight of a looting in progress. When the Scar attempts to use his weapon on the crowd, the Destroyer stops him getting hold of the weapon and threatening Nazi soldiers with it. With his back turned on the Scar, the Destroyer is quickly knocked out and taken prisoner. The Scar decides to test out his new ray weapon that harnesses the power of the sun, but the Destroyer manages to break free and turns the weapon on the soldiers operating it. Learning that the Scar has setup anti-aircraft cannons in town to deal with on-coming Allied bombers, the Destroyer uses spot lights to illuminate the hidden cannons allowing the Allied Forces to bomb them without any casualty.

Deciding to lure the Destroyer into a trap, the Scar has it publicly broadcasted that he intends to execute prisoner that have recently been captured. Knowing it's a trap, the Destroyer goes anyway and battles the Nazi soldiers and the Scar directly. During the struggle, the soldiers are knocked out leaving the Destroyer and the Scar to struggle one-on-one. Ironically, the Scar is killed by the explosion of one of his own grenades. With the Scar dead, the Destroyer returns to Florence and tells her that her father’s death has been avenged.

Recurring Characters

Destroyer, Florence Von Banger, Nazis

Continuity Notes

Per the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #3, this appearance of the Destroyer can be attributed to Kevin Marlow.

Identity Unknown

Dr. Eisenberg is a German scientist that has defected to the United States during the outbreak of World War II and has begun a series of lectures against the Nazi regime at Bronson University. His talks have not gone unnoticed as Nazi agents have sent spies to eliminate Eisenberg for daring to speak out against the Third Reich. Eisenberg is attacked in broad daylight, and while he is injured during the attack he is rescued by the Black Marvel who stops the assassination attempt. However, despite the efforts of the Black Marvel, Eisenberg is murdered in his sleep. When the police question the captured spies the refuse to talk.

Watching over the funeral, the Black Marvel watches as some men attack another man named Volk and stops the fight. Volk having suffered a blow to the head does not remember who he is, but the Black Marvel suspects him of being a Nazi spy. Examining him, he notes how the amnesia victim passes out at the mention of Eisenbergs name. The Black Marvel then allows a story detailing the location of the "John Doe" to be published in the newspaper and waits out any attackers. Sure enough, one of the remaining Nazi spies attempts to murder the John Doe, but is stopped by the Black Marvel, who sends the spy hurtling out the hospital window backwards to his death. With the corpse identified as a Gestapo agent, the Black Marvel rushes back to the home of the late Dr. Eisenberg.

There, he poses as the dead doctor and grants the John Doe entry when he comes calling. After a brief struggle, the John Doe is knocked out and his memory restored. The Black Marvel identifies him as a Nazi spy as well, who felt compelled to eliminate Eisenberg even though he was already dead due to his amnesia, and that his colleagues sought to eliminate him so he wouldn't talk.

Recurring Characters

Black Marvel, Nazis

The Dolls of Death

On the birthday of President Roosevelt, Americans from all over head to the White House to personally give gifts to their leader, among the celebrators is the Terror. When a man pushes his way to the front of the line to drop off his gift, the Terror transforms into his monstrous form and briefly clashes with him, however he drops off his gift and flees. Finding the package contains a strange doll, he turns it over to the President who is shocked to find that it's Senator Thompson who has somehow been killed and shrunk down to size. The Terror decides to investigate this strange murder and examines the package, learning the dolls came from a company called the Life-Like Doll Company.

Going to the company's factory, the Terror recognizes one of the men inside as the man he clashed with earlier and transforms into his super-human form again. Beating the man into submission, the Terror enters the factory proper he spots a Nazi spy using a shrinking potion to do the same to Admiral Pierce as what was done to Senator Thompson. The Terror is told that the Nazis are using a formula that shrinks human bodies much like primitive tribes shrink heads. The Terror easily overpowers the spy and uses his own shrinking potion on him, shrinking him down to size. Noticing that Admiral Pierce is still alive, the Terror finds the antidote and restores him to his normal size and then dumps out the remainder of the formula so it can never be used again.

Reporting back to the President directly, the Terror is commended on a job well done.

Recurring Characters

The Terror, Nazis, President Franklin Roosevelt

The Challenger

There is a strangler on the loose who goes out at night picking off his victims under the cover of darkness. With no evidence, the police are stumped leading them to call the Challenger for assistance. Deciding to play against the killers pride, the Challenger issues a challenger in the paper that he would survive an encounter with the killer. Reading this story in the paper, the Strangler -- a man who goes mad and feels the urge to kill under the moon light -- decides to go out and make good the Challengers challenge.

The Challenger wanders about the streets when he is attacked from behind by the Strangler. The Challenger gets a good feel of the killers hands around his neck. When he breaks free the killer manages to escape, but the Challenger manages to remove one of his gloves, shocked to find that it is police issue. As it turns out the Strangler poses as a police officer for direct attacks, lulling his victims into a false sense of security.

In order to catch the crook, the Challenger orders the chief of police to call all officers back to the station and then has them enter one by one into a darken room to wrap their hands around the Challengers neck. Having deduced that the killer reacts to moon light, and that he would know the feel his the Stranglers hands around his neck the Challenger eventually points out the true Strangler. In their scuffle, the Challenger jumps out the window onto some nearby telephone wires. The Strangler follows after him and in their struggle gets the cables wrapped around his neck. Ironically, the Strangler ends up being strangled to death ending his threat.

Recurring Characters

Challengers

Blazing Skull

While out on patrol in the streets of London, the Blazing Skull witnesses an attack on the Prime Ministers under-secretaries. He learns that Nazi spies have found out about a secret flight taking Winston Churchill over Nazi Germany. Rushing to the spy's headquarters, he fails to stop the message from being broadcasted.

As Churchill and his pilot take off, the Blazing Skull fights off Nazi spies an manages to get aboard a plane to follow after them. While over Nazi Germany, Churchill's plane is attacked by Nazi planes who force his pilot to land or crash. Seeing this, the Blazing Skull bails out of his own plane and rushes to the Prime Ministers aid.

The Blazing Skull causes a departing Nazi plane to crash into the airfield where Churchill is being held prisoner. Fighting through Nazi agents, the Blazing Skull rescues Churchill and steals a Nazi plane. The pair manage to escape out of Nazi Germany alive and return to the United Kingdom.