Superman must help Captain Atom regain his superpowers.
Ray Palmer arrives aboard the Justice League Satellite, to inform Superman that he will not be relieving him on monitor duty. Palmer declares that his days as the Atom are over, and tenders his resignation. By way of explanation, Palmer recounts a recent encounter with a pair of muggers. As the two men violently beat an elderly man, Palmer moved to intervene, only to be overcome with a paralyzing fear of activating his power. Palmer waded into the two thugs regardless, and was promptly beaten down for his trouble. Fortunately, the elderly man turned out to be a police officer in disguise. After macing both assailants, the officer took them into custody. Afterwards, on the advice of his girlfriend, Jean Loring, Palmer decided to retire his Atom identity. Superman asks Palmer if there might be something that could have triggered this sudden phobia within him. Palmer produces a sketch of himself as the Atom, being crushed by an atom, a drawing he produced after a nightmare. Superman offers to take Palmer to his Fortress of Solitude, where he can run a battery of tests on Palmer. The Batman is summoned to the Justice League Satellite, to take over for Palmer on monitor duty. Palmer changes into a spare Atom costume, then teleports down, with Superman, to the Fortress of Solitude. While Superman prepares his equipment, the Atom wanders about the museum-like Fortress. Before Superman can begin his tests, he is alerted to the presence of an alien craft, parked outside the Fortress of Solitude. Superman recognizes the craft as being of Sabrom in design. Recently, Superman destroyed their entire invasion fleet, in a nearby solar system, thus earning their undying enmity. Before Superman can confront the Sabromians, an explosion blows Superman and the Atom through the Fortress wall, and out onto the frozen tundra. Superman bathes the Atom in his heat vision, to keep the Atom from immediately freezing to death.
The two heroes descend on the alien craft, only to be pushed back by weapons' fire. An energy field forms around Superman, cutting him off from the power giving rays of the sun. Rapidly weakening, Superman is easily taking out by the Sabromian's weapons, as is the powerless Atom. Brought on board the Sabromian space craft, Superman and the Atom are informed that, as Superman destroyed their fleet, the Sabromian's will now destroy Superman's Fortress of Solitude. Locked in a storage room, the Atom desperately tries to rally the Man of Steel to action, but the weakened Superman lapses once more into unconsciousness. In frustration, the Atom lashes out, denting the wall, as if his full 180 pounds were concentrated into the punch of a six inch man. Realizing he has actually been shrunk down, the Atom uses his size and weight controls to take down the aliens. Unfortunately, he is too late to stop the alien manning the solar cannon. Growing to his full height, the Atom lunges for the alien gunner to no avail. The shot, however, is deflected by Superman. The Sabromian's solar powered ship flooded Superman's cells with an intense bath of solar energy, restoring his powers quite rapidly. With the defeat of the Sabromians, Superman and the Atom resume their regular size. In truth, the explosion that first hurled the Man of Steel and the Atom outside the Fortress' walls was triggered by Superman, not the Sabromians, as the Atom believed. Superman surreptitiously shrunk them both down, knowing that the Atom's phobia was a purely psychological problem. Though quickly recovered on board the Sabromian ship, Superman continued to feign weakness, so the Atom could realize, for himself, that he was still capable of operating in a crisis situation. The matter resolved, the two heroes return to the Fortress of Solitude.
Notes
- This issue contains the Hostess Superhero Ad, Green Lantern vs. "Triclops Three-Eyed Keeper of the Cave".
- "Daily Planet" Volume 79 Issue 32 week of August 6, 1979 edited by Bob Rozakis, production by Anthony Tollin and lettered by Typeset. Featuring the disappearance of the Justice Society of America in Adventure Comics #466, and Scalphunter in Weird Western Tales #61 plus "Ask the Answer Man!" and "Direct Currents".
- "Hembeck" by Fred Hembeck.
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