Detective Comics Vol 1 452

Detective Comics #452

Crackdown on the Crime Exchange

Summary

Volume: 1
Issue: 452
Month: October
Year: 1975

Credits

Editor in Chief: Julius Schwartz
Head Writer: David V. Reed
Cover Artists: Ernie Chua
Pencilers: Ernie Chua
Inkers: Mike Royer
Editors: E. Nelson Bridwell, Bob Rozakis and Julius Schwartz
Artists: Ernie Chua and Mike Royer

Synopsis

Cast of Characters:

• Batman
• Alfred Pennyworth
• James Gordon
• The President of the Crime Exchange
• Lt. Riley
• Walter Grimes
• Yak

Locations:

• Gotham City

• Crime Exchange
• Gordon's Office
• Tower Building

Items:

• Batmobile
• Batrope

First Appearances: No first appearances
Final Appearances: No final appearances

Synopsis: Batman responds to a police radio transmission and accompanies two officers into the Tower Building. Guards reported strange hammering sounds on the 25th floor. As an auction of valuable coins will soon occur on the 30th floor, Batman investigates the roof and finds a torn access door. Inside he confronts two men, including former circus strongman, Yak, and they fight. Batman is knocked out the window which buys the criminals time to heft a safe to the roof where a helicopter hauls it away. The villains climb down the exterior wall on previously installed mountain climbing equipment. Batman follows and the helicopter returns. Just then the villains fly out of a window on the 23rd floor and catch the passing helicopter's line and escape. A circus cannon is discovered that had been shipped in and installed over a period of weeks. Over the next few weeks the criminal organization, the Crime Exchange, continues to have successes and thwart the police and Batman. Batman, disguised as Yak, arrives at the Crime Exchange. He finds a place to change and confronts the criminals allowing himself to be captured in hopes of encountering the leader. Unfortunately the leader appears fully cloaked and on a giant screen. Batman pretends to be an undercover journalist but the cloaked President tests his bluff. They place a handgun with one bullet in it on a table and tell Batman to pick it up and fire the bullet into the floor. The real Batman, everyone knows, has sworn an oath to never use a gun even to save his own life. The other criminals aim their guns at Batman. If he does not fire the gun before the President counts down from five, they are to shoot him.

Hawkman

The Curse of the Ancient Weapons

Credits

Editor in Chief: Julius Schwartz
Head Writer: E. Nelson Bridwell
Pencilers: Jose L. Garcia Lopez
Inkers: Jose L. Garcia Lopez
Editors: E. Nelson Bridwell, Bob Rozakis and Julius Schwartz

Synopsis

Cast of Characters:

• Hawkman (Katar Hol)
• Hawkwoman (Shayera Hol)
• Konrad Kaslak
• Big Red

Locations:

• Midway City

• Airport
• Hall Residence
• Hawk Valley
• Midway City Museum

Items:

• Flail
• Crossbow
• Sling
• Speaking Serum

First Appearances: No first appearances
Final Appearances: No final appearances

Synopsis: Carter Hall is at the airport picking up some artifacts for his museum when a wizard and his raven appear. Carter changes to Hawkman and attacks with a flail but the wizard casts a spell causing the flail to swing towards Hawkman instead. Hawkman tries talking to the raven but is ignored. Hawkman attacks again, this time with a crossbow, but another spell causes the crossbow to fire Hawkman backwards. The raven, meanwhile, grabs a tablet of incantations and flies away as the man disappears. At home Carter and Shayera discuss the events and Shayera mentions that illusionist Konrad Kaslak has escaped. Carter forms a plan and flies to Hawk Valley where he finds a large hawk, named Big Red, and injects him with a serum that allows him to talk. Hawkman teaches him a few phrases. Later, athe the museum, the wizard and raven appear. Hawkman predicted this as the tablet they stole previously only contained half the incantations. As the raven goes for the tablet, Big Red appears claiming to see through the wizard's illusion and that he is hawkman. The hawk attacks the raven. Suddenly the wizard (an illusion all along) disdappears and the raven turns back into Kaslak in order to fight the bird. The real Hawkman appears and attacks with a sling. Kaslak uses the spell to cause the weapon to backfire but Hawkman was counting on that and positioned himself so he would be slung forward and into Kaslak who he knocks out in the process.

Notes

• Hawkwoman appears only as Shayera Hol. She refers to herself as Hawkgirl rather than Hawkwoman.

Trivia

• Batman disguises himself as circus strongman, Yak, in order to infiltrate the Crime Exchange.

• The Crime Exchange reference library contains the following books:

• Modern Criminal Investigation by Soderman and O'Connell
• Crime Pays
• Science of Crime
• Step by Step

• The spells cast by Kaslak are as follows:

• Tribula torquere homo (Flail whirl man)
• Sagitta conjicere homo (Arrow shoot man)
• Funda jacere homo (Sling hurl man)

Recommended Readings

• Batman
• Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight
• Detective Comics

Related Articles

• Detective Comics cover art gallery
• Batman appearances list
• Batman image gallery
• Alfred Pennyworth appearances list
• James Gordon appearances list
• Hawkman

External Links

• Detective Comics article at Wikipedia
• Detective Comics series index at the Grand Comics Database
• Detective Comics series index at the Unofficial Guide to the DC Universe
• Batman article at Wikipedia
• Batman biography page at the Unofficial Guide to the DC Universe
• Bob Kane article at Wikipedia

References

• None

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