We begin with "The Iron Messiah" plotted by Joe Orlando, scripted by Len Wein, and drawn by Jim Aparo. John Kweli has returned to Africa to visit his home village and finds it in conflict with a land developer who is trying to claim the land by any means possible. When diplomacy with the owner of the company doesn't work, John creates the Iron Messiah, a robot based on their tribe's god Chuma, and based on his own personality.
Things get complicated when the Iron Messiah develops feelings for John's lover Ororo, however, her love is spurned. The Phantom Stranger, who has been watching and helping John whenever there was danger tries to convince the Iron Messiah to act like a man. The robot helps the villagers fight off their opposition, however, in a moment of jealousy it kills John in cold blood. The villagers don't react to this very well and destroy the robot with grenades. Reprinted in Showcase Presents Phantom Stranger Vol. 1 TPB (2006).
Next up is "I Battled for the Doom-Stone" by France Herron and Alex Toth and reprinted from My Greatest Adventure #61 (1961). An explorer discovers that a missing scientist has undergone a fantastic transformation.
That brings us to the other new tale in this issue, Doctor 13 in "Satan's Sextet" by Robert Kanigher and Tony DeZuniga. Dr. Thirteen is asked to stop a group called Satan's Sextet, a musical group that somehow manages to take control of their audiences and make them walk out into the ocean to drown. Thirteen learns their secret: bead and flower necklaces given to the audience members have a hallucinogenic effect on the audience.
Breaking free of their control, Dr. Thirteen goes after the members of Satan's Sextet. Taking them off guard and easily knocks them all out, turning them over to the police after. Reprinted in Showcase Presents Phantom Stranger Vol. 1 TPB (2006).
Our final story is Mark Merlin in "I Scout Earth's Strangest Secrets" by Bob Haney and Mort Meskin and reprinted from House of Secrets #23 (1959). Mark Merlin, the private investigator of the supernatural, takes on several cases that appear to have unnatural explanations. Some of the cases have a natural explanation, such as mountainside creatures that are really just large shadows. In another case, Mark is able to expose a deliberate hoax. Mark proves that a museum, which is believed to be haunted, has actually been the victim of a hoax using magnets to move metal objects invisibly.
Merlin also has a "Question Mark File" containing cases he can not explain or classify. In one such case, a strange creature is found in an unmapped cave. When Mark investigates he falls through a seam in the rock and discovers an entire species of giant single-celled creatures. The creatures attack him, but he seals off the seam, trapping them inside.
Edited by Joe Orlando.
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