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December 1958 - January 1959 |
In a South American country, a train inches through jungle-covered hills. Oddly, it's full of armed guards. The train stops abruptly. A blazing man in a helmet and uniform sets the tracks afire. He orders his gang to "grab the loot". He melts the guards' rifles. "What manner of creature is this?" In an apartment, the Challengers "take an exceptional interest" in the robbery. June sent them a wire. "Now we've got a case!" Soon the Challs' jet sets down in the jungle near ancient ruins. June Robbins looks spiffy in a pith helmet and scarf (as seen on the cover). She works with Professor Brandon. The archaeologist shows them a replica of the Star-Stone. The "flame-man who robbed the train" is Vreedl, "who belonged to my party!"  (We have to ask, What the heck kind of a name is Vreedl?) The stone is a meteorite fragment that landed centuries ago. An ancient sorceror used the zodiac to interpret the stone. Fit four gems into the slots, wait for the right conjunction of stars in the heavens, get bathed in mysterious rays, and you gain three temporary powers, then a permanent (unknown) power from the fourth. The four gems are a fire opal from the Sleeping Volcano, an emerald from the ring of the Stone Giant, the Royal Bengal Diamond of Djizari, and a pearl from the Bay of Sharks. (We have to ask here, How the heck did an ancient sorceror figure out all THAT?) Vreedl stole the fire opal from a local museum and gained fire powers. Next up, the emerald. "You Challengers must stop him! Vreedl must never gain the full powers of the Star-Stone!" (Whatever they are.) |
The Challs jet to the ruins of Chandowa (still in South America). Vreedl sends his gang on to the ruins. He hurls "flaming bolts" at the Challs to keep them back. The whole jungle will burn up. The boys grab armfuls of brush and soak them in a stream. Their "bucket brigade" extinguishes the blaze. But Vreedl's thugs have (somehow) started a stampede of jungle animals. Ace and Rocky duck behind rocks.  Red and Prof are caught in the open. Red has an idea, "using a stunt we once pulled in the circus." (That would be Red and his brother Martin, AKA Tino.) Running, Red vaults to the back of a water buffalo, grabs a branch, swings by his knees, and hooks Prof into the tree. "I've done a lot of flying, lad, but never like this!" (Look at the art! The animals seem to explode off the page. Could Jack Kirby draw or what?) Vreedl reaches the ruins. His fire powers are waning. He finds the giant statue and filches the emerald from its ring. He fits the emerald in the Star-Stone, but the cosmic alignment isn't right. He has to leave before the Challs arrive. They're two steps behind, wondering what power he'll gain. |
The next gem is the Royal Bengal Diamond, now in the possession of the Rajah of Djiizari. Leaving June and Professor Brandon behind, the Challs take to the air. They radio a warning to the Rajah. Someone (probably Rocky) asks, "Here's a good guessing game, chums. What's Vreedl's new power?" The Challs head for the palace, where they're expected. "Within the walls of ancient Djiizari, they witness sights little changed by passing centuries." Then, a new-old sight. It's Vreedl with flying powers! And the locals hail him as the Birdman of Djiizari from legend!  Meanwhile, the Rajah rides his elephant surrounded by guards. "There is no safer place for the diamond than here in my turban." Oops! The bird-man swoops down and hooks his headgear. Already Vreedl's second power fades. He makes the best of the transformation. "I'll give them a real eye-opener!" The locals are amazed at his magic. Vreedl, normal again, urges the spectators to seize the Challs and lock them up! |
Rocky and Ace try to fight free of the duped crowd. Prof and Red squirm free, only to be nabbed by elephants! Red snorts, "What a wind-up! If it weren't so serious, I'd laugh!"  In jail, the Challs wait for the Rajah to clear them. Vreedl will be long-gone. Ace gawks at the window. "Am I seeing a mirage or is that June Robbins?" Sure enough, June runs up to the guards. "Quickly! Up the street! The Birdman flies again!" The guards rush off to see. June springs the stunned Challs. "How on Earth did you get here?" Professor Brandon arranged for a plane. The guards return and mob the Challs. Rocky leads the charge like a football linebacker. Outside, the "good citizens" rush them. Red takes to the rooftops and pulls his pals up. Hopping over flat roofs like castle walls, they reach the flats. June's plane zooms away - Vreedl's stolen it! And he fouled the fuel line on the Chall's jet. They're stuck with a repair job. So far the Challs are dropping the ball. C'mon, guys! Wake up! |
In the Bay of Sharks (somewhere in the tropics), Vreedl's gang enters a diving bell to retrieve pearls. They get to keep all the pearls they find, except one. "That's all Vreedl wants - just one!" The Challs jet lands on its single pontoon. They break out the skin-diving equipment and drop into the bay. (Bay of SHARKS, remember?) Led by Prof Haley, they find Vreedl is a fish-man! Shock-bolts like an electric eel's let him drive off sharks. Yet his powers are fading already. Vreedl and his gang enter the diving bell - leaving the Challs to cope with circling sharks.  Prof steers the Challs into a sunken hulk. Rocky thinks, "I've wrestled everything from crocodiles to grizzly bears! Now it looks like I take on a shark!" While Rocky fights, and all run low on air, Prof spots an octopus and gooses it to squirt ink. Inside the dark cloud, the four Challs ascend and board Vreedl's ship. Vreedl's found the perfect pearl to fit the star-stone. Standing outside, he changes. Eight feet or taller, glowing with power, he even gets a classy costume with his new powers. |
"Now he's got the last - and greatest - of the powers!" gasps Prof. Rocky snarls, "Let's see if he really IS as strong as he looks!" He is. Vreedl swats all four Challs flat with one blow. Diving overboard, he swims super-fast to shore. The Challs are hard behind. Laughing, Vreedl makes a mighty leap, then flies! The guys rush to their jet, but Vreedl dive-bombs and smashes the jet "like a flying cleaver!" Undaunted, the Challs dog him. Vreedl uproots a tree (as seen on the cover) and warns them to "stay your distance!" Now what? He's got super powers - and they must be permanent. "Permanent?" wonders Ace. "That gives me an idea! Wait here, fellows!" Ace approaches Vreedl. "Listen! You're the first ever to defeat us! You're invicible, but..." But what? Ace adds, "Your powers were derived from the Star-Stone!" If someone else gets the stone, they might enjoy the same powers and be powerful as Vreedl. "I never thought of that. I'll destroy the Star-Stone - grind it to dust with my hands and let the winds blow it away!" Immediately, as Ace planned, Vreedl reverts to a normal man. His powers were only as permanent as the stone itself. Vreedl and his thugs are turned over to the police. Prof says, "Whew! That was close, Ace! Vreedl almost won!" Ace counters, "That's the way it is with his kind, Prof! They ALMOST win! But something always trips them up!" Ace is too modest. It's brains and brawn and hearts like the Challs' that defeat evil. |
Comments A straight-ahead adventure story. Mysterious powers, ancient curses, exotic settings, fist fights, not-so tricky escapes. And flat dialogue, though the capture by elephants is cute. Standard fare made superlative by Kirby's outstanding art, with nice finishes by Wood. Those were the days! Vreedl seems to be a prototype for Multi-Man, who gains a new power each time he's killed. MM becomes the Chall's arch-enemy. But that's another story... |