We begin with Batman in "Asylum of the Futurians" by Robert Kanigher, Irv Novick, and Frank Giacoia. At night, on a dark road on the outskirts of Gotham City, Batman finds a young woman, who is desperately looking for help. She has been trying to find someone to save her husband, who has been abducted by a group of strange people. Batman agrees to help her and she takes him to an ancient house where he witnesses the strange behavior of the group of people holding the man hostage. Batman assumes that they are all mentally unstable, but when he breaks into the place to save the man, he learns that the gathering of people calls themselves "Futurians". They claim to be a cabal of ESPers who intend to rule the Earth and who believe that Batman may be a potential leader according to some prophecy.
Batman decides to play along and he is crowned as the new ruler of the Futurians, but the crown makes Batman lose his consciousness and when he recovers, he realizes that he has been locked inside a coffin and dumped into a lake, as part of the final test for the Futurians' leadership. As the Futurians have removed his Utility Belt, Batman uses the crown to open the coffin and escape. The Futurians are glad that Batman survived the test, proving his worthiness for the leadership, but Batman takes advantage of the situation and captures the entire gang including their leader, a young woman called Michelle, and debunks their society as phonies and megalomaniacs, who seek power through deception.
Finally, Batman returns to the couple he rescued and the man tells him that he had been mentally calling for Batman's help and the Dark Knight realizes that maybe that's the reason why he changed his nightly patrol routine, but he is not certain of that, nor of the truth behind the Futurians' claims. This story was reprinted in Showcase Presents: Batman Vol. 6 TPB (2016).
Our back-up story features Robin in "Temperature Boiling... and Rising" by Mike Friedrich, Irv Novick, and Frank Giacoia. Continuing from Batman #227, when a photograph surfaces showing congressional candidate Professor Stuart taking a payoff, his campaign is derailed. Dick Grayson realizes that the photo is fake. As Robin, he checks out the newspaper which published the photo to locate the source. It leads to Dick's friend Phil Real.
When Robin checks on Phil, Bill Perkins, Phil's roommate attacks him. Perkins and another boy were the arsonists that burned Stuart's campaign office. They doctored Phil's photos to frame the professor. Robin exposes the fake, clearing Stuart just before the election. This story was reprinted in Showcase Presents: Robin the Boy Wonder Vol. 1 TPB (2008).
Edited by Julius Schwartz.
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