“Did we have this fight last issue?”
Judomaster #96
Charlton Comics Group (August, 1967)
“The Final Phase Of The Plot To Destroy Judomaster”
WRITER/ARTIST: Frank McLaughlin
Sarge Steel: Case File 112: “Case Of The Village Moneyman” part 2
WRITER: Steve Skeates
ARTIST: Dick Giordano
LETTERING: A Machine
Judomaster learns, from another spy, that Suzikawa was feeding him information, but she claims she was forced to because the Japanese have her brother. Believing his foe now had to be too disheartened to fight, the Acrobat is surprised when his second round leads to a definitive victory for Judomaster, who rips off the attacker’s mask to find Suzi’s brother, who doesn’t care for family and just wanted to prove himself.
What they got right: At least Suzi isn’t one of the bad guys. I was worried about that last issue. The return fight is a good one, as Judomaster learned from their previous encounter, and used his anger rather than letting control him or weaken his resolve.
What they got wrong: Due to the Sarge Steel story, this wraps up a bit short.
Speaking of Sarge, snipers try to take him out, but he takes them out instead. He keeps the meeting with is client, who now tells him she’s canceling the case, but he sees an opportunity to find the counterfeiting ring…though stopping them means telling her that her father is dead so she’ll go for help while Sarge takes the boss down. Not sure what happened to his men, but it’s a satisfying conclusion of the case for the most part, since it also ends rather short.
What I think overall: It’s trying to shove both stories in that hurts both stories. While it’s a good thing they didn’t throw in (no pun intended) another judo lesson this issue, what we got could have benefited from more pages.
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