- Your last mission's finished, old friend! What bitter irony! If I stayed inside your skull... your second life could continue indefinitely... but Ray Palmer's life would be discontinued!
- — Atom
The Brave and the Bold #115 is an issue of the series The Brave and the Bold (Volume 1) with a cover date of November, 1974.
Synopsis for Batman and the Atom: "The Corpse That Wouldn't Die!"
Well known champion of the disadvantaged, Debbie Manton, has been kidnapped by Bugsy Cathart, who she witnessed killing one of his competitors in the hijacking business. Cathart has put a ransom on the girl's head for her safety, and the Batman takes a very personal crusade to see the girl returned to her family safely. After probing all his sources and putting pressure on the criminal world, Batman learns where she is being kept: an abandoned police station. Batman tries to go in without police back-up and is jolted with a powerful electrical current placed on the outside of the building.
Believing the Batman to be dead, Cathart and his goons have Batman's "corpse" dumped in front of police headquarters. Rushed to the hospital by Commissioner Gordon, the doctors tell him that Batman is brain dead and that within hours his organs will all shut down. Learning that Ray Palmer (whom Gordon knows only as a friend of the Batman) is in the hospital to demonstrate some new technology, Gordon has the scientist called in to see what he can do. Palmer concedes that he's only a physicist and there's nothing he can do but asks if he can have a moment alone with his friend during his final hours.
Left alone with Batman's body, Ray decides to try and help Batman solve his final case, and changes into the Atom. Shrinking down in size, the Atom travels into Batman's brain and stimulates his brain so that he can control Batman's body (viewing the Batman's activity by a video camera mounted on his chest.) Although clumsy and hard to operate, the Atom manages to take Batman back to the location of his accident and, operating as much on Batman's instinct as on Atom's skill, manages to save Debbie from her captors. However, in order to do so, Atom has to leave Batman's body, supposedly sealing the caped crusader fate. But as luck would have it, the forced activity initiated by the Atom's actions has caused Batman's brain to restore to normal activity and he's revived. Not knowing the Atom's involvement, everyone believes it to be a miracle.
Appearing in Batman and the Atom: "The Corpse That Wouldn't Die!"
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Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Buggsy Cathcart (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
- Gotham City Police Department
- Debbie Manton (Single appearance)
- Mr. and Mrs. Howard Manton (Single appearance)
- "Army" Eddie (Single appearance)
Locations:
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Synopsis for Challengers of the Unknown: "The Three Clues to Sorcery"
This story is reprinted from Challengers of the Unknown #12.
A mad professor, and his men, kidnap June Robbins in order to have the Challengers collect three different mystical stones. However, the Challengers turn the tables when they use the power of the stones to overpower the kidnappers and rescue June.
Appearing in Challengers of the Unknown: "The Three Clues to Sorcery"
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Other Characters:
- Dr. Fenton and his henchmen
Locations:
- Africa
- Challengers Mountain (First appearance)
Items:
Vehicles:
- Challenger Jet
Synopsis for Doctor Fate and Hourman: "Solomon Grundy Goes on a Rampage!"
This story is reprinted from Showcase #55.
Solomon Grundy has returned to Earth after his last encounter with Green Lantern and he is released from the energy capsule in which Lantern had locked him. Once free, Grundy returns to Slaughter Swamp, where he recovers most of his supernatural powers.
Meanwhile in Salem, Kent and Inza Nelson notice the crystal ball inside the Tower of Fate is glowing strangely and upon investigating, they learn there is trouble near the Tyler Chemical Company and Kent soon goes to investigate as Doctor Fate. Meanwhile, Rex Tyler also finds out someone has entered the radioactive waste dumpster of his company and he goes to investigate as Hourman. Doctor Fate is first to arrive and spots Green Lantern's former energy capsule shattered. At that moment, Hourman confronts Grundy, but the un-living monster is stronger than Hourman. Doctor Fate arrives to help Hourman, but he has no better luck than his associate. Eventually, Fate tries to use his most powerful magic against Grundy, just as Hourman attacks the zombie, but the monster is untouched and the heroes end up knocked unconscious.
Without resistance, Grundy continues his quest to find Green Lantern and get revenge for their past encounter. Thanks to the radiation he absorbed, Grundy can manipulate objects with his mind and takes many wooden objects with him and starts wreaking havoc in Gotham City until Green Lantern finally shows up. The ensuing battle is short as Grundy uses the wood (GL's only weakness) to defeat Lantern and he grabs his mortal enemy to take him back to Slaughter Swamp. Doctor Fate and Hourman have already recovered and they follow Grundy's radioactive trail, but when they confront him, they are somehow drawn to attack each other and they knock each other out again.
Grundy continues on his path and he is eventually found by some of his former associates, who inquire about Grundy's journey back to Earth. The monster explains that after he was dropped in a planet far away, a comet passed nearby and lifted Green Lantern's energy capsule. Using this energy, Grundy steered the capsule back to Earth until he was pulled by gravity. Afterwards, Grundy assists his crooked friends by breaking the security measures of a bank.
Meanwhile, Doctor Fate and Hourman recover and they finally realize that Hourman's Miraclo pills have contrary effects when he is near Fate's magic, which turns them against each other. After making this deduction, the heroes resume the chase of Grundy, but midway, Hourman stops to fight Grundy's crooked friends and prevent them from stealing from the bank. Dr. Fate continues alone until he locates Grundy back at Slaughter Swamp, but the monster has already submerged the unconscious Green Lantern inside the swamp. Using an illusion of Green Lantern, Dr. Fate lures Grundy away from the swamp and Fate then uses his magic to rescue Green Lantern, who has been transformed into a creature similar to Grundy. Again, Fate's magic reverts the process and Green Latern returns to normal.
By the time Grundy realizes he has been duped, Fate, Hourman and Green Lantern have recovered and they attack Grundy with all their might. Although the villain is incapacitated, he is not defeated thanks to his supreme resistance. Green Lantern and Doctor Fate then create a new energy capsule, this time improved by magic and Hourman uses his super-strength to throw Grundy inside the capsule, trapping him for good. The heroes combine their forces and they toss the energy capsule to Earth's orbit, where Grundy will remain trapped and they heroes can keep a close eye on him.
Appearing in Doctor Fate and Hourman: "Solomon Grundy Goes on a Rampage!"
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Synopsis for Viking Prince: "The Origin of the Viking Prince!"
This story is reprinted from The Brave and the Bold #23.
Jon as a young man, his father King Rikk, and Princess Asa, Jon's beloved, fight against the Viking invader Torgo, and his fearsome band!
Appearing in Viking Prince: "The Origin of the Viking Prince!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- King Rikk (First appearance)
- Princess Asa (First appearance)
Antagonists:
- Torgo the Dragon King (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
Locations:
Vehicles:
- Viking Longboat
Synopsis for The Atom: "Case of the Innocent Thief!"
This story is reprinted from The Atom #4.
When a series of crimes are committed by people who have concrete alibis that put them far away from the robbery, Ray Palmer decides to figure it out as the Atom.
Realizing that the crook (a man named Elkins) spends his time studying his subjects, and then posing as a photographer would use a special camera to hypnotize his subject. He would then disguise himself as the person he intended to frame and take their place, while sending them off to commit the crimes in question.
When the Atom stumbles upon the plot, Elkins tries to use his special camera and hypnotic commands to try and hypnotically command the Atom to never try and apprehend him. The plot doesn't work because due the Atom's small size, Elkin's shouted commands were not audible. Because of the Atom's involvement, the men (who are all represented by Ray's fiance Jean) are cleared of any wrong doing.
Appearing in The Atom: "Case of the Innocent Thief!"
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Notes
- "The Corpse That Wouldn't Die!" is reprinted in:
- Showcase Presents: The Brave and the Bold Batman Team-Ups Vol. 3
- The Strange Deaths of Batman
- Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight - Jim Aparo Vol 1
See Also
Recommended Reading