DC Database
Register
Advertisement

"Adam Strange: "Invaders from the Atom Universe"": Taking a Zeta-Beam from the Rocky Bara Country of Southern Madagascar, Adam Strange once more travels to the world of Rann. Arriving in Alanna's home city, Adam is shocked to find that the people of Rann have been replaced by strange

Showcase #18 is an issue of the series Showcase (Volume 1) with a cover date of February, 1959.

Synopsis for Adam Strange: "Invaders from the Atom Universe"

Taking a Zeta-Beam from the Rocky Bara Country of Southern Madagascar, Adam Strange once more travels to the world of Rann. Arriving in Alanna's home city, Adam is shocked to find that the people of Rann have been replaced by strange alien creatures. Before he can find out what's going on, he's knocked out and brought before the Hall of Justice.

There he is questioned by the one of the rulers of this race that communicates via telepathy. But before Strange can learn anything about the current situation he is blasted with a device called an Orkinomikron and shrunken down to microscopic size. He soon finds himself on a micro-world where he soon learns is where the people of Rann have been exiled. Being reunited with Alanna, he learns that the people of Rann were doing their daily routine one moment, and then there was a bright flash, and they soon found themselves on a dead world in a ruined city.

Deciphering some hieroglyphics, Adam Strange learns that the being that took over Rann are telepathic creatures known as the Vrenn. The Vrenn originated from a frozen planet in yet another sub-atomic world,in which they exhausted it of natural resources. They built the Orkinomikron when they realized that there were other worlds to exploit if they increased their size, Rann being their most recent hostile colonization. Finding a picture of the Orkinomikron, Adam sends out a search party to find the one the Vrenn used to arrive on Rann. When they eventually find the device, they find it suspended over a bottomless pit.

Scaling the device, Adam finds that the fuel source had been burnt out, but analyzing a fuel cell, Adam manages to mix just enough of the chemical for him and Alanna and with miniaturized versions of the Orkinomikron to grow enough to reappear on Rann, small enough in size so that the Vrenn cannot see them. Traveling to the Hall of Justice they learn that the Vreen have realized that this is the last universe they can invade, but once Rann is exhausted of it's resources there are many other planets. The Vrenn leader then unveils a new weapon they designed to defend themselves.

Returning to the sub-atomic world, Strange and Alanna fit the people of Rann with minature Orkinomikron devices and they all return to a deserted part of Rann where build a new large Orkinomikron. When the Vrenn catch wind of this construction they arrive with their weapons to destroy the people of Rann. However, Strange uses the new Orkinomikron to make the people of Rann grow to giant-size, making them invulnerable to the Vrenn weapons, which are easily smashed. Realizing they're outmatched, the Vrenn return to their sub-atomic world.

Later Alanna's father learn that the Vrenn will never threaten them again because they have no more fuel to operate the Orkinomikron on the sub-atomic world. At which point, the Zeta Beam wears off and Adam is returned to Earth.

Appearing in Adam Strange: "Invaders from the Atom Universe"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Sendal of the Vrenn (Single appearance)

Locations:

Items:

Vehicles:


Synopsis for Adam Strange: "The Dozen Dooms of Adam Strange"

In Sydney, Australia, Adam Strange intercepts a Zeta Beam that was to strike in the city's downtown core, sending himself instead of it's intended target -- a traffic cop -- to the planet Rann. There he is shocked to find a group of Adam Strange duplicates waiting for him. Alanna explains that they're just life sized dolls and that they are all the rage on Ranagar since Adam is heralded as a hero there.

Taking him back to Ranagar, Alanna tells him that lead scientist Tak Vall of the city of Dys has closed off the city to all outsiders and is plotting an attack on Ranagar. The people of Ranagar decide to try and smuggle in a number of the Adam Strange dolls, with Adam himself posing as one of them, an assignment Adam accepts. Flying to the city of Dys, Alanna radio's the city telling them that she will crash if they do not let them land. After landing, soldiers inspect the ship until Tak Vall arrives. Vall orders Alanna to be imprisoned and then plots to send back the Adam Strange dolls back to Ranagar, each one loaded with a KYL bomb.

The night Adam springs into action, getting rocket fliers out of their ship, he tracks Alanna via the tracking ring she was wearing. He soon finds however that Tak Vall gave it to his wife Moora. Wondering how Strange managed to get into Dys, Vall investigates learning the truth, and so launches his attack on Rann.

Realizing what's happened, Adam speeds after the ship when it appears that Alanna is thrown out of it. Adam goes to rescue her, but it turns out that "Alanna" is a doll as well set to explode when Adam gets too near. In the city of Dys, Tak Vall and Alanna watch the apparent demise of Adam Strange, when suddenly Adam appears on the ship alive and well. Punching Vall, he explains that at the last moment he realized it was a trap and set off the explosion by tossing a fuel cell close to the fake Alanna. Vall gets close to the machine that would set off the explosives in the doll, but Adam explains that he set the ship to crash into the sea of Mormeen and that the explosions did not destroy Rann.

Days later back on Rann, a celebration of continued peace on Rann is held where Adam Strange would be honored, but before they can honor their hero, the Zeta Beam wears off sending him back home to Earth.

Appearing in Adam Strange: "The Dozen Dooms of Adam Strange"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Tak Vall (Single appearance)

Other Characters:

  • Moora (Single appearance)

Locations:

Items:

Vehicles:

Notes

Trivia

  • The tagline for this issue is, "Adventures on Other Worlds".


See Also

Recommended Reading

Links and References

Advertisement