In More Fun Comics #58 (August 1940) we find Congo Bill and Professor Kent having a leisurely rest in a "peaceful native village" where Professor Kent is "absorbed in the study of African plant life" - so Kent is a botanist, then? The hapless henchmen of the Skull in More Fun #56 seemed to have taken him for an archaeologist - perhaps, in the heady, adventurous days of the early 1940's, any advanced degree would do!
Bill and his new aide-de-camp, O'Toole, are itching for action, as all manly men do! Prof intuitively senses Bill's unease...a crack in the thus-far seamless veneer of their May-December bachelor friendship....?
The peace is disturbed by news that a pack of vicious Leopard Men have been attacking peaceful natives, following the bidding of our old nemesis THE SKULL!
Bill is ready to spring into action and rid the Dark Continent of the threat of The Skull once and for all, when he is interrupted by a dapper and polite newcomer!
An interesting exchange ensues - Bill introduces himself....as CONGO BILL!
Could this be his given name??!? What's more, Inspector Slade of Scotland Yard has heard of him...and doesn't flinch at not being offered a traditional surname!
Bill prepares to set sail with the Inspector....but what's this? Could it be- separate vacations for our gentlemen companions?
Tracking The Skull - - the Leopard Men attack!
The Leopard Men are no match for Inspector Slade's sub-machine gun (de rigeur for all Scotland Yard Inspectors!) and scatter into the jungle. For the first time in the chronicles, we discover a not-so-impressive fact about our pal Bill...he's sold himself to the inspector as an experienced jungle tracker, BUT....
....um, wouldn't the ability to track someone through tangled underbrush be kind of a vital skill for a JUNGLE TRACKER?
Bill and his new aide-de-camp, O'Toole, are itching for action, as all manly men do! Prof intuitively senses Bill's unease...a crack in the thus-far seamless veneer of their May-December bachelor friendship....?
The peace is disturbed by news that a pack of vicious Leopard Men have been attacking peaceful natives, following the bidding of our old nemesis THE SKULL!
Bill is ready to spring into action and rid the Dark Continent of the threat of The Skull once and for all, when he is interrupted by a dapper and polite newcomer!
An interesting exchange ensues - Bill introduces himself....as CONGO BILL!
Could this be his given name??!? What's more, Inspector Slade of Scotland Yard has heard of him...and doesn't flinch at not being offered a traditional surname!
Bill prepares to set sail with the Inspector....but what's this? Could it be- separate vacations for our gentlemen companions?
Tracking The Skull - - the Leopard Men attack!
The Leopard Men are no match for Inspector Slade's sub-machine gun (de rigeur for all Scotland Yard Inspectors!) and scatter into the jungle. For the first time in the chronicles, we discover a not-so-impressive fact about our pal Bill...he's sold himself to the inspector as an experienced jungle tracker, BUT....
....um, wouldn't the ability to track someone through tangled underbrush be kind of a vital skill for a JUNGLE TRACKER?
Never mind, Bill, you're still our man. Besides, O'Toole is along to ferret out the Skull's hideout - and Bill is right behind to exhibit his real gift - FISTICUFFS!
As well as quick on-the-job problem solving!
Yeah! Take THAT, Savages!
With every foe defeated, THE SKULL faces the nightmare criminals everywhere - the terrible swift sword of the BRITISH JUDICIAL SYSTEM!
I hope, dear reader, that you haven't grown fond of O'Toole, Inspector Slade, OR The Skull - because none of them will ever appear again. Professor Kent, though - will he be able to reconcile his love of botany with Bill's itch for action? STAY TUNED!
Yeah! Take THAT, Savages!
With every foe defeated, THE SKULL faces the nightmare criminals everywhere - the terrible swift sword of the BRITISH JUDICIAL SYSTEM!
I hope, dear reader, that you haven't grown fond of O'Toole, Inspector Slade, OR The Skull - because none of them will ever appear again. Professor Kent, though - will he be able to reconcile his love of botany with Bill's itch for action? STAY TUNED!
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