Strange Tales 138

Continuing... SHIELD finds the Hydra missile base seconds too late to stop the Betatron Bomb rocket, but they blow up the launch dock anyway.

The daughter of Imperial Hydra condemns him for ordering the bomb into orbit. He orders her out, but does not punish or execute her.

Next Imperial Hydra alerts the Hydra Chiefs of Staff to receive final instructions. We see the 10 departments around a giant wheel with an animal logo depicting the animal designated to that department.

• Naval Action - Sea Dragon
• Administration - Mole
• Reconnaissance - Leopard
• Heavy Weapons - Rhino
• Air Action - Falcon
• Supply - Camel
• Engineers - Beaver
• Assassins - Tiger
• Planning Staff - Owl
• Diplomacy - Fox

With this he summons the Fox department to commence Operation Doomsday!

Back with SHIELD Tony Stark is about to show Fury a new weapon as a team of Hydra Tiger assassins try to take out Stark. Fury stops them while relying on his newly issued bullet proof suit (which they introduced in the last issue). There's too many of them and Fury goes down, captured. Stark is left in his invincible cubicle or something as their Rhino tank smashes in and then shoots them off in an escape rocket with Fury in tow.

The next scene is a board meeting for Imperial Industries International. We have Mr. Farrington pushing some members to vote the way he desired when suddenly the lights go out. Farrington recognizes this as the signal that Nick Fury has been captured so he quickly wraps up the meeting. He asks one of the board members, Brown, to stay behind and simply asks Brown to report any overheard rumors, dismisses him and then opens a secret panel after Brown leaves. 

He dons his Hydra costume and goes down to meet Fury, his new prisoner. Imperial Hydra starts to get ready to interrogate Fury when another Hydra goon reports that it is exactly 2 o'clock. At that very moment two Hydra Fox agents are giving the President of the US an ultimatum. 

And that's where we end.

I can see the influences on Hama's G.I. Joe comic more than ever here. It's almost as if this issue was the blueprint for Cobra. Good stuff.