Say ... You're Black X, aren't ya? I follow your adventures in Smash Comics every month! 
- — Tommy Carrel
Smash Comics #10 is an issue of the series Smash Comics (Volume 1) with a cover date of May, 1940.
Synopsis for Espionage Starring Black X: "Mission to Finland"
Probably circa 1939-Nov, in Washington DC, Russian spies (D-4 and Axel) steal a complete schedule of the arms shipments for Finland, and they murder Mr. Carrel the US Commissioner of Finnish Aid, and they kidnap his young son Tommy Carrel. Black X is in the house as all this happens, and the bad guys get away. Several hours later (incl at least one trainride from WDC to NYC), acting on a clue left by Tommy, aboard the steam liner Doena, disguised as an old man, Black X pursues the spies from New York to Finland. There's no official backing for this mission. A Russian U-boat intercepts the Doena, directed by a radio call from the Russian spies who are also aboard the Doena, with Tommy. Black X finds their cabin and starts beating up the two Russian spies when the first torpedo hits. Russian agent D-4 grabs Tommy and dives overboard, then swims to the surfaced sub, and away they go to Helsinki. That's twice this guy has escaped from Black X, who now is busy commandeering a motor launch and rescuing survivors.
A week later Black X is in Helsinki, again on Tommy's trail which, Black X deduces, leads north along the Murmansk railroad, to a giant Russian supply base. He gets captured by a Finnish patrol, somewhere north of Lake Ladoga, and talks his way into leading a ski patrol into Russia, to retrieve the schedule and the kid. This patrol encounters and engages a Russian detachment, equipped with a power sled; Black X kiboshes the power sled with a well-rolled snowball. Then this patrol gets to, or near, Murmansk, ahead of the train, massacres a Russian artillery post, and uses (threat of) the captured fieldpiece to stop the train. Black X shoots the Russian spy D-4; it's not clear if D-4 lives or dies, but the schedule is retrieved and Tommy is rescued. Now the Finnish patrol plans to steal this Russian train, and run it backwards, all the way into Finland.
Appearing in Espionage Starring Black X: "Mission to Finland"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- KGB
- Axel (Single appearance)
- D-4, Russian Spy (Single appearance)
- detachment of Russian soldiers
Other Characters:
- Mr. Carrel the US Commissioner of Finnish Aid (Dies)
- Tommy Carrel
Locations:
- Washington, D.C.
- Helsinki, Finland
- the Russo-Finnish border
- vicinity of Murmansk, Russia
Items:
- schedule of the arms shipments for Finland
Vehicles:
- S.S. Doena, passenger liner
- Russian U-boat
- Russian power sled (Destroyed)
- a steam-engine-powered, 3-wooden-car passenger train
Synopsis for Chic Carter: "The Jersey Bank Job"
Chic Carter rescues Betty Darrah from Lefty Fenton, and in the process punches Fenton over the wall of his own penthouse, to fall to his death.
Appearing in Chic Carter: "The Jersey Bank Job"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
- Lefty Fenton (Dies)
- Joe
- Limpy
Other Characters:
- Betty Darrah
Locations:
- New York City
- Daily Star newspaper office
- Hotel Royal, w/ Lefty Fenton's penthouse
- New Jersey
- small town
- Third Avenue Garage
- small town
Vehicles:
- taxis and other cars
Synopsis for Clip Chance at Cliffside: "The Ball Game of Death"
A baseball game is played between the Colleges of Cliffside and Tilton. Crooked gamblers involve themselves in the contest, and Clip exposes them and finds the evidence that confirms their guilt.
Appearing in Clip Chance at Cliffside: "The Ball Game of Death"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Spud
Antagonists:
- Slug
- Dutch
Other Characters:
- Dick Arnold (Cameo)
Locations:
- Cliffside College
Synopsis for Flash Fulton: "Tom Manning Mysteriously Disappears"
Assistant District Attorney Tom Manning is kidnapped and stashed in the County Jail by the Big Shot, who is, as Flash Fulton already knows, secretly the Chief of Police. Big Shot's gang have secretly turned the jail into their own hideout. Flash and Andy break into the jail, and break Manning out of it, plus get filmed evidence of the whole corrupt set-up.
Appearing in Flash Fulton: "Tom Manning Mysteriously Disappears"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Andy, sound man
Antagonists:
- the Big Shot, secretly the Chief of Police
- Hank Rocco, fake jail guard
- Big Shot's big gang
Other Characters:
- Tom Manning, assistant district attorney
Locations:
- County Jail
Items:
- Fulton's newsreel camera
Synopsis for Hugh Hazzard and his Iron Man: "The Pact Papers Robbery"
Newspaper headlines announce that the U.S. and Canada have drawn up a secret arms trade alliance. And a radio broadcast announces that a U.S. agent is "speeding the secret arms pact papers to the War Department in Washington." This intel is acted on by the Darmanian spy, Herr Getzer, who already knows which road this agent will take, and sends out two tough spies (Herman and Fritz) to bring back those plans and that agent, alive. The same broadcast is noted by Hugh Hazzard, America's #1 crime buster, who also figures out that the U.S. courier will be coming down Taft Highway; it's the shortest route. Hugh uses his Teleradio to pick up a long distance picture of the agent's car. The teleradio is able to do this because the teleradio has a Super-Sepericonoscope, enabling Hugh to see and hear what is going on.
A smaller, faster car forces the G-man's car off the highway and two gunmen confront him on foot; one gets punched in the head while the other one konks out the agent, with a stick. Hazzard observes all this, clambers into his super robot, and flies away to the rescue.
Bozo quickly spots the spy gang's car, but they don't spot him, so he follows them rather than attacking right away. The spies drive to a dismal old house in the country, and march the G-man inside. Bozo quietly lands and walks up to the house, finds iron bars across the windows, and yanks them out, not all that quietly. The Iron Man invades the spy hideout and bullets are useless against him. He knocks out one of them, then he interrupts Getzer's interrogation session with the captured agent, and frees him, then knocks out two more spies, then flies off in pursuit of the fleeing Getzer and his remaining spies. He overtakes them at an airfield, where Getzer is running across the field after a biplane that is taking off.
Bozo catches Getzer and questions him, while snapping a treetrunk in half to show he means business, and doing more strong-robot stunts with a really big rock. Getzer spills his guts. The pilot who just took off has the papers, and by now is halfway across the Atlantic. Bozo knocks Getzer unconscious then flies off in pursuit of the biplane. He catches it, and cows the pilot into handing over the papers. Getzer and his gang all end up under arrest. The next day's papers announce this, plus "G-Man Claims He Was Aided by a Talking Iron Man … and Proves His Story!"
Appearing in Hugh Hazzard and his Iron Man: "The Pact Papers Robbery"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
- Herr Getzer (Single appearance)
- Herman and Fritz
- other spies
Other Characters:
- unnamed U.S. agent (Single appearance)
Locations:
- Darmania
- Taft Highway
Items:
- secret diplomatic documents
- Hazzard's Teleradio
- Hazzard's Super-Sepericonoscope
Synopsis for Captain Cook of Scotland Yard: "The Bat Mystery"
Appearing in Captain Cook of Scotland Yard: "The Bat Mystery"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Chief of Scotland Yard
Antagonists:
- The Bat, secretly Mr. Graystone
- Graystone's son
Other Characters:
- charter pilot (Dies)
Locations:
- Graystone Manor, near London
Items:
- The Bat's antiaircraft ray defense (causes engines to stall and catch fire)
Vehicles:
- chartered 2-seat, open-cockpit airplane
Synopsis for Abdul the Arab: "Rousting the Renegades"
Abdul and Hassan use an airplane and a parachute to infiltrate a camp of well-supplied renegade Arab raiders, and blow up their ammunition supply.
Appearing in Abdul the Arab: "Rousting the Renegades"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Hassan
Antagonists:
- Renegade Arab bands
Other Characters:
- Captain Riggs, the Military Head of the District
Locations:
- a fort in the desert
Vehicles:
- 2-seat, open-cockpit biplane
Synopsis for Invisible Justice: "Treasure of the Sargasso"
Kent Thurston's wealthy friend Professor Clark undertakes a scientific expedition to the Sargasso Sea aboard a small schooner, equipped with a diving bell that can get a mile deep into the ocean, and invites Kent along. Crewman Sanchez organizes a mutiny, and orders Clark and Thurston to confine themselves in their quarters. Once on-site in the Sargasso Sea, Sanchez and two other mutineers are lowered to the bottom in the diving bell, then walk out of the bell through an airlock, wearing diving helmets with air hoses. Witnessing this is the Invisible Hood, who has stolen an unguarded diving helmet and connected it to an ill-monitored air pump, lowered himself to the bottom, and who is still wearing the very visible helmet, while otherwise invisible.
He observes as the mutineers dig a large iron box out of the rocky ocean bottom. They can talk and he can hear them. The box is filled with gems and gold. One of the divers spots the uninhabited helmet moving towards them and freaks out, while Sanchez is defiant, and pulls a knife. The Hood grapples with him, and he quickly figures out that this is no spook he's fighting. Then a really big and aggressive octopus comes along and grabs Sanchez, causing him to drop his knife, which Thurston recovers, and uses to hack the octopus to death. Sanchez has passed out, and the other two thugs have fled, so the Invisible Hood hides the treasure behind some rocks. Then he rises to the surface, dragging unconscious Sanchez with him, gets rid of both of their helmets, and dumps Sanchez onto Thurston's own bunk, then leaves the room.
Prof. Clark walks in, finds Sanchez, seizes the opportunity to regain control of his schooner, and goes on deck with a handgun to confront the crew (five or more of them). He tells them that Sanchez is in the brig, in irons, but Sanchez shows up to shoot down that story right then. The crew all charge at Clark, but the Invisible Hood swings the big diving bell through the midst of them, scattering them, and knocking all of them cold. Professor Clark then goes belowdecks to tell his friend Kent what just happened, at least, as best as he can understand it himself.
Appearing in Invisible Justice: "Treasure of the Sargasso"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
- Sanchez
Other Characters:
- Prof. Clark
Locations:
Items:
- diving bell and diving suits
Vehicles:
- Professor Clark's small schooner
Synopsis for John Law, Scientective: "Double Or Nothing"
Albert Lewis turns out to be the Avenger, then he turns out not to be the Avenger. James Rowan turns out to be the Avenger. John Law proves all of this at trial.
Appearing in John Law, Scientective: "Double Or Nothing"
Featured Characters:
- John Law, Criminologist, Lawyer, and Scientist
Supporting Characters:
- June Carter
Antagonists:
- The Avenger (James Rowan)
- Albert Lewis
Other Characters:
- Roger Gates, industrialist
- Mr. Carter, June's father
Locations:
- New York City Area
- John Law's Law Office / Laboratory
- John Law's Law Office / Laboratory
Synopsis for Wings Wendall: "The Secret South American Air Base"
Appearing in Wings Wendall: "The Secret South American Air Base"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Wendall's boss, at Army Intelligence
Antagonists:
- many well-armed foreign agents (many die)
Other Characters:
- Captain Brewster, U.S.Army
Locations:
Vehicles:
- Wendall's unmarked Army fighter plane
- Pan-American Clipper seaplane
- two armed biplanes
- squadron of B-17 Flying Fortresses
Notes
- Abdul
- Abdul's sidekick Hassan can fly airplanes.
- Bozo
- This feature's title has been lengthened to "Hugh Hazzard and his Iron Man Featuring Bozo the Robot". Next issue it goes back to "Hugh Hazzard and his Iron Man".
- In the Quality Universe, the Axis Powers included: Aryania, Austria, Barbaria, Bothnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Darmania, Dunland, Germany, Govania, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Jarmania, Kampfland, Latavia, Nordicha, North Germany, Romania, Tokoya, Tuvania, and others.
- Two months earlier, in Smash Comics #8, in the Espionage feature, Germany was being called Germany. One month earlier, in Smash Comics #9, in the Bozo the Iron Man feature, Germany was being called Germany. Now in May 1940, in the Bozo feature, Germany is back to being called by a new fake name, "Darmania."
- Captain Cook
- After Graystone is arrested, no apparent effort is made by Scotland Yard to find the "glaring light" device which destroyed Cook's chartered airplane.
- Clip Chance
- The Cliffside College baseball field has a big tree growing in the outfield.
- On the 4th page of this issue's "Clip Chance" episode, "Dick Arnold" is sent in to pinch-hit in the big game. Managing Editor Everett "Busy" Arnold's son was Dick Arnold.
- Also appearing in this issue of Smash Comics were:
- Philpot Veep: "The Episode of the Uninvited Wedding Guest", art by John Devlin
- Kidding the Kids, by Arthur Beeman
- Archie O'Toole: "The Night After New Years", by George Tuska
- "The Sea Bat" (text story), by Robert M. Hyatt
- Wun Cloo: "Ting Ling's Circus Gorilla Man", by Gill Fox
Trivia
- "Wayne Reid" was a pseudonym used by George Brenner.
See Also
Links and References
