Adventure Comics #418

“The Face of the Dragon.” Starring Supergirl.

"The Face Of The Dragon"

In Chinatown, a fleeing man is incinerated by a dragon. The police ask Supergirl to aid in the investigation. Heading up his own investigation into the matter is private investigator, Johnny Double. Nasthalthia Luthor had entered Double's office, fearing for her life. As if on cue, a sniper's bullet burst through the window. Luthor accuses photographer's assistant, Linda Danvers, of the crime. Danvers is on assignment in Chinatown. Double saves Danvers from being crushed to death by a falling statue.

Double feigns interest in Danvers' work, inviting himself to spend the day with her. Danvers attempts to duck Double, during the Chinese Heritage Parade. Though Double tries to keep Danvers close, he loses sight of her when the parade is attacked by armed assassins. The killers, calling themselves "The Dragons". surround the Mayor. Danvers, as Supergirl, intervenes. While the Mayor flees, the Dragons fire on Supergirl, coating her body in quick-drying cement.

Supergirl easily overcomes her momentary binding, then dispatches the Dragons. Double finds Supergirl, as Danvers, collapsed in a doorway. Danvers offers an explanation for her disappearance, and current state. Double escorts Danvers through Chinatown. Double, and Danvers, encounter one of the Dragons, Chin, in an alleyway. For his cowardice in the attack, Chin prepares to commit suicide. Double stops Chin from killing himself. Before Double can turn Chin over to the police, Chin flees into the crowd.

Double and Danvers follow Chin to a warehouse. Double tells Danvers to contact the authorities, while he goes in alone. Double is immediately taken prisoner by Doctor Tzin-Tzin. Doctor Tzin-Tzin reveals that he is building an army, of children. To prove their subservience, Doctor Tzin-Tzin orders Chin to murder Double. Chin, though, cannot bring himself to do it. Doctor Tzin-Tzin orders his child soldiers to kill both Double, and Chin. Danvers intervenes, as Supergirl. Doctor Tzin-Tzin unleashes a dragon on Supergirl.

Supergirl battles against the dragon for several moments, before realizing that it is merely an illusion. Doctor Tzin-Tzin prepares to press the attack, against Supergirl, when the sound of police sirens prompts him to flee. Doctor Tzin-Tzin seemingly perishes, when he leaps into the river. Supergirl, as Danvers waits for Double, outside the warehouse. Double meets with his client, Luthor. Double knows that Luthor hired the sniper, herself, to frame Danvers. Luthor storms out of Double's office. Double considers the possibility that Danvers is Supergirl, but quickly dismisses the idea.

Death's Strange Deputy!

This story was originally published in Phantom Stranger #2 (October, 1952). A plot synopsis for this story can be found at the link.

"Circle Of Doom"

The Black Canary is being held, at gunpoint, by three men in fright masks. The Black Canary, as Dinah Drake Lance, bemoaned the absence of her lover, the Green Arrow. To occupy her time, Lance, as the Black Canary, answered an employment advertisement, for a judo instructor. At the offices of the Women's Resistance League, the Black Canary's fighting prowess was tested. Impressed with the Black Canary's demonstration, the president of the league, Bertha Kane, hired her on the spot. The League's mission statement is to make women the equal of men in every way, including physically.

For five days, the Black Canary trained the women of the League. On the fifth day, the Black Canary returned from a break to find armed men, seemingly, holding the League captive. The Black Canary was quickly taken prisoner, as well. Turning the tables on her captors, the Black Canary was quick to subdue them all. While the Black Canary is occupied restraining the gunmen, Kane clubs her into unconsciousness. Two of the masked "men" remove their hoods, revealing themselves to be members of the Women's Resistance League. Kane gives the order to murder the Black Canary.

"The Sight Stealers!"

Doctor Charles McNider has completed his work on the "Echo Flashlight", a device to aid in guiding the blind. McNider is invited to demonstrate his invention, at a fundraiser for the Blind. En route, McNider is accosted by a couple of shady characters, looking to steal his invention. McNider "trips" into some shrubbery, only to emerge as the costumed vigilante, Doctor Mid-Nite. A brawl ensues. Doctor Mid-Nite is just about to win the fight, when the crooks' boss, Murvis, arrives, barreling into Doctor Mid-Nite on an antique bicycle.

Doctor Mid-Nite is bound to the bicycle, which is then pushed down a steep hill. Using the echo-flashlight, Doctor Mid-Night is able to navigate the bicycle around several deadly obstacles. Murvis, and his two gunsels, hold up the fundraiser. Doctor Mid-Nite runs down Murvis' getaway car, in a horse drawn chariot. The collision casts oil onto Doctor Mid-Nite's goggles, blinding him. Using the echo-flashlight, Doctor Mid-Nite is not only able to battle the three crooks, but triumph. At the fundraiser, Doctor Mid-Nite, as McNider, makes the case for the echo-flashlight, in the hopes of raising funds for the manufacture of the device.

Note--"The Sight Stealers" was originally written, and drawn, in 1948, by creators unknown. Sal Amendola inked the story, which was then published, for the very first time, in this issue of Adventure Comics.