This re-coloured cover was intended for the issue that followed the withdrawal of Action. “Hook Jaw” took a break from bothering hi-jackers as he had just been depth-charged by H. M. Coastguard.

The tag above the story read: ‘Julian should have listened to his mummy…’, the use of soft language like mummy and an effete name like Julian were obviously intentional. Julian really should have listened instead of pretending not to hear her, then perhaps he wouldn’t have taken his softie’s rubber ring out on the sea, and wouldn’t have been eaten by Hook Jaw.

Elsewhere, the Karson City Killers were losing more men in their attacking game against the Alcatraz Assassins. Meatface Malone attempted a Death Run, but ended up with a very minced meat face as he was pulverised by a flipper arm, having come off of his spike iron on some oil. Karson City, reduced to five players, must now defend for their lives against the Assassins. Taggart explains how he swapped bikes with Kruger because he suspected that his had been tampered with.

This is the last episode contained in the IPC archive, although Tom Tully told me many years ago that the idea was to lose all the Killers except Taggart and Yo-Yo, who eventually win the match and gain their freedom, with Smailes vowing to get them, even in the final panel.

“Kids Rule O.K.” saw Ray Spencer escape from the custody of the police cadets only to see his gang being interrogated through torture. The cadets have ammo, but no guns, the Malvern Road Gang know where to get some. Spencer finds some fireworks in a store room and uses them as a decoy to free his friends. As they flee, they reach a dead end. Stryde and his cadets come to bear on them, having finally located a shot gun. Stryde announces he is now their judge, jury and executioner.

Dredger and Breed battle with terrorists who have released a nerve agent in a small village killing 28 people. Lefty comes home to find his Grandad tarred and feathered by the Rotherfield Rippers. After a match against Sholton F.C., he and Angie ride to Rotherfield for revenge.

There are no published pages from “Hellman”, “Hell’s Highway” or “Probationer” from this issue, so what happened to them is still a mystery, but it can be assumed that the first two stories were re-used in an edited form after the ban.

Text © Moose Harris 

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