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"Justice Society of America: "The Case of the Patriotic Crimes! Part I"": The Wizard, after escaping from jail, steals the Liberty Train without a trace. He dreams of making crime triumphant on earth, and has formed a new [[Injustice Society (New Earth)|Injustice Soc

Quote1 Suppose we let the American people vote to decide the best crime! That's what they call the democratic way! Quote2
Huntress

All-Star Comics #41 is an issue of the series All-Star Comics (Volume 1) with a cover date of July, 1948.

Synopsis for Justice Society of America: "The Case of the Patriotic Crimes! Part I"

The Wizard, after escaping from jail, steals the Liberty Train without a trace. He dreams of making crime triumphant on earth, and has formed a new Injustice Society, recruiting the Fiddler, the Huntress, the Icicle, the Sportsmaster, and the Harlequin. Worse yet, using the Wizard's "Mind Eraser" machine, they have six of the JSA members in their underground lair, brainwashed, working as their servants!

In Gotham, the Black Canary, investigating the Liberty Train theft, tries to call an emergency meeting of the Justice Society, but finds their headquarters empty. She discovers the knocked out Harlequin under a table. Harlequin reveals that the JSA has been abducted (mostly by the Sportsmaster, using a lacrosse ball/concussion grenade), and she wants to doublecross the ISW and team up with Black Canary to stop the Wizard's gang. However unknown to her, the Injustice Society has already learned of her duplicity, and sent the Icicle back to JSA HQ, where he ambushes, freezes, and abducts them both. Icicle brings the girl outlaws back to the ISW's underground Gotham lair, in an abandoned coal mine. Now the ISW members plan to hold a contest to determine which of them will be the leader, with the one who commits the greatest robbery to be the winner. They plan the thefts of some famous American patriotic objects: the Freedom Bell, Plymouth Rock, Old Ironsides, and the Washington Monument. Most of the villains depart to get started on those crimes, while the Wizard, observing from a secret control room, remains behind.

Left unhypnotized and seemingly unobserved, the girls get free, and the Harlequin uses her special spectacles to hypnotize the brainwashed Justice Society members, and orders them to remember who they are. The revived JSA heroes set off in to prevent the robberies of the American treasures. Unfortunately, the Harlequin's hypnosis is only temporary, good for only an unknown length of time, and the heroes can be returned to a mindless state at any time, with the snap of anyone's fingers. Knowing this fact, the Wizard sets off to warn the other members of the Injustice Society.

Appearing in Justice Society of America: "The Case of the Patriotic Crimes! Part I"

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  • Bill, escort pilot
  • Steve, escort pilot
  • Wally, train engineer

Locations:

  • Gotham City
    • Gotham Central Station
    • Gotham FBI office
    • JSA HQ
    • ISW underground base

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Synopsis for Justice Society of America: "The Case of the Patriotic Crimes, Part II"

Hawkman goes to the South Boston Navy Yard to protect Old Ironsides. The Sportsmaster creates a diversion, then steals the old frigate, using portable rockets. The Hawkman chases him down, then knocks him out with one punch. But then the Wizard steps out of the shadows and snaps his fingers, instantly rehypnotizing Hawkman, who obediently helps the Injustice Gangsters to sail Old Ironsides back to their hideout.

Elsewhere in Massachusetts, the Huntress steals Plymouth Rock, by having some stolen circus elephants load it into a circus van. The Flash and the Atom overtake the van, and the Atom punches it hard enough to knock it backwards and stall it out. The Huntress almost manages to ensnare them both in her invisible lasso, but they turn the tables on her and she's soon tied up with her own rope. Unable to even snap her fingers, Huntress makes a loud snapping noise by leaping onto a wooden ramp and breaking it. Flash and Atom are instantly stopped, and await her commands.

In Philadelphia, the Fiddler drives his violin-shaped car into Freedom Hall, to steal the Freedom Bell. Wonder Woman and Doctor Mid-Nite arrive, wearing special earplugs to neutralize the Fiddler's powers, just in time to thwart the theft and bust the Fiddler. Except the Fiddler has been tipped off by the Wizard, and with a snap of his fingers, he puts the doctor and the princess under his control. He then orders Wonder Woman and Dr. Mid-Nite to help him steal the Freedom Bell, and they obediently drive his violin car, towing the Freedom Bell, to the Injustice Society's new headquarters.

The Icicle steals an experimental naval aircraft, with a super ram-jet, and uses this to steal the Washington Monument. Green Lantern intervenes, and they have a mid-air fight, which the Icicle loses. Green Lantern uses his ring to return the monument to its site, and punches out the Icicle, but then ironically, he snaps his own fingers, returning himself to his slave state. The Icicle takes this opportunity to re-steal the Washington Mounument, and commands Green Lantern to fly the ram-jet and its cargo back to Injustice Society headquarters.

Appearing in Justice Society of America: "The Case of the Patriotic Crimes, Part II"

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Synopsis for Justice Society of America: "The Case of the Patriotic Crimes, Part III"

After escaping from the Wizard's Mind-Eraser, Black Canary and Harlequin explore the Injustice Society's coalmine/cavern/railroad-tunnel hide-out. They find the stolen Liberty Train in a secret railroad tunnel. The Wizard attacks them, aboard a railroad hand-car. They leap aboard it to fight him but the propulsion lever is electrically charged, and when they grab it, they both are jolted unconscious.

To ensure the JSA will no longer threaten them, the ISW drops them, and the Harlequin, to the bottom of a deep coalmine elevator shaft. Then, to determine who won their contest, the villains decide hold an election, and to this end they use the Icicle's stolen super airship to steal Gotham Stadium, during a baseball game. They plan to ask the crowd of captured baseball fans to vote on who committed the best theft. The stadium is lowered to earth inside an enormous abandoned quarry, in which are arranged all of the stolen national treasures.

Trapped in the bowels of the earth, the Black Canary and Harlequin work feverishly to convince the JSA of their true identities. Harlequin's glasses aren't working now; she thinks the Wizard has tampered with them. With constant urging, Canary and Harlequin convince Green Lantern to employ his ring, freeing the JSA from their stupor. The team then rockets up the shaft and confronts the ISW, who have reached a murderous level of frustration with their captives. Surprising the villains, the heroes quickly round them all up, and deposit the ISW in jail. In all the confusion, Harlequin slips away.

Returning to their headquarters the Justice Society inducts Black Canary as a member.

Appearing in Justice Society of America: "The Case of the Patriotic Crimes, Part III"

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Recommended Reading

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