Heroes Inc – Issue 19 – East and West

Heroes Incorporated, Issue 19: East and West

Appearing in this issue: Playboy, Human Jackrabbit, Kid Comic, and Plasma-Man with Lt. Steele. Guest Appearances by: Rebel and Torch.  Villains: The Grandmaster, various Russian Marines, and a huge atomically mutated armadillo.

Cover: Split Cover, on the left a Soviet submarine on the left a pastiche of the cover of Fantastic Four #1 (except with the Heroes Inc team in Las Vegas fighting a giant mutant armadillo) with East and West emblazoned across the bottom.

Opening page: The DISC (Diamond Industries Submersible Craft) cutting through the icy waters of the North Atlantic.  Caption: Two Hundred miles East and four hundred feet down from New York City . . .

First Story: “East.” The DISC closes with a Soviet submarine and initiates boarding.  Kid Comic and Plasma-Man cross over and fight their way through a horde of Elite Soviet Marines, including two with minor superpowers.  They then rescued Jack, retreated to the DISC and fled back to the United States.

Second Story: “West.” Opening splash page divided into four parts: Jack playing the piano and entertaining at the Sands (looking close Torch’s secret identity can be seen in the crowd).  Human Jackrabbit playing an entire row of slot machines (lots of speed lines).  Plasma-man flying above the neon lights of Las Vegas.  Rebel performing on a Los Vegas stage with dancers behind him.

Next page explaining that Jack is in Nevada opening a new Diamond Industries research station and new he, and the team, are enjoying a well earned vacation in Los Vegas.  (Notes saying: 1- that Janice is holding down the HQ in NY with 54-40 and X.  And 2- That Lt. Steele has been transferred to active duty with the US Army forces serving in Vietnam.)

Heroes Inc – 80-Page Giant

Heroes Incorporated, 80-Page Giant, Number 1 (August 1964)

Appearing in this issue: Our Heroes, Full Members of the Team: Playboy, Human Jackrabbit, Kid Comic, Plasma Man, and Lt. Steele.  Probationary Members: Askar the Untamed.

The Grandmaster’s Deadly Games
Cover: The Heroes Inc team as chess pieces with the Grandmaster reaching down to take Jack Diamond/ Playboy.
Banners proclaim: Three Stories of Heroic Action! Heroes Inc in Danger! Thrilling Adventure!

Part One: Bank Shot
Opening page: A large suit of powered armor tearing open a bank vault, “Only three left to go!”

Splash page: The team (except for Askar) around the Heroes Inc situation room table. A call from the police chief informs the team that a group of five suit of powered armor are rampaging through downtown Manhattan.

The team deploys to meet the threat. A battle ensues in one of the banks. The heroes quickly defeat the powered armor team (who are using armor based on French designs). Upon returning back to the HQ, they find Janice tied up in a chair and that Sirius has been kidnapped! A quick search of the building reveals nothing except a black chess piece, specifically, a pawn. This indicate the involvement of the Soviet super-spy, the Grandmaster.

Interlude: The team investigates but does not find the location of Sirius. Though Elaine Elizabeth, girl reporter, is on the trial. The villain group Force Five begins raiding scientific/ research corporations in the New York/ New Jersey area.