All-Star Squadron #133, homage to Avengers Annual issue #20

Latest "Continuation Project" commission - All-Star Squadron #133, art by John Watson, based as always on the cover of a comic written, plotted or scripted by Roy Thomas, in this case Avengers Annual #20, original art by Tom Morgan.

Title: "Up From Earth's Centre!"

Story: With many of their fellow heroes on the West Coast or in the Pacific searching for the missing Shining Knight and Firebrand, Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and Amazing Man hold the fort at the Perisphere, when they're joined by Plastic Man and Phantom Lady. The two new arrivals have determined that, despite no official comment (even to 'Eel' O'Brien in his role in the FBI), Ted Knight has gone missing whilst on an assignment for the Government - and they need their fellow heroes' help to try and track him down.

Later, the Batplane and Wonder Woman's invisible plane ferries the non-flying heroes (accompanied by Superman, flying alongside) South-West, as Phantom Lady and Plastic Man recount their attempts to find out what had happened to Sandra Knight's missing cousin, only to be stonewalled at every stage, until they were given a hint by a covert source. Landing, they find an abandoned army engineering camp, and a search turns up a stray wire-recording spool, which Superman's ultra-sensitive fingertips are able to read (he displayed this talent in America Vs The Justice Society).

The recording reveals that the scientists and engineers had reported missing equipment and potential acts of sabotage - and the recording is then is interrupted by a sentry reporting an attack coming from nearby caves and out of the ground! Separating into teams, Superman, Phantom Lady and Amazing Man investigate the caves, while Batman, Wonder Woman and Plastic Man find a concealed hole in the ground and follow it down.

Both teams of heroes are attacked whilst underground - by what they recognise as some of the race of sub-men enslaved by the Ultra-Humanite earlier in 1942 (issues #21-26 and Annual #2). Feigning capture, the heroes are brought to an underground cavern, where they find the missing engineers and scientists, including Ted Knight! As the two teams rekindle the fight, Knight sneaks away, changes into his Starman garb, and joins his fellow heroes.

The sub-men are subdued and ask Wonder Woman and Phantom Lady for mercy - with Amazing Man recalling that the underground race worshipped Ultra-Humanite in her female form as they had no females of their own, and are similarly overawed by the heroines. With Amazing Man - who picked up the basics of their language while working for Ultra - translating, the sub-men reveal that they had attacked the surface because excavating and explosives threatened their caverns --- and once Wonder Woman promises that the activities of the government will avoid certain areas, the heroes and captives are released.

Back on the surface, and with work by the scientists and engineers due to recommence, avoiding the sensitive sites, the heroes prepare to depart. Phantom Lady and Amazing Man remain confused, however - what possible business can the US government have in a tiny, out-of-the-way town like Alamagordo, New Mexico?

As usual, John Watson did an outstanding job with a complicated cover - and I should say that when I first thought of using this cover as a source, I planned to use the Mole Men (from the 1951 "Superman vs The Mole Men" film) as the antagonists, but that would have ruled out using Superman on the cover - so after a bit of research (and rejecting the underground race seen in All-Star Comics #66-67 as alternatives) I settled on the sub-men from the earlier Squadron story, who seemed to fit the bill.

Enjoy!