Fantastic Four Vol 1 226

Fantastic Four Vol 1 226

Reed, Sue, Johnny and Franklin are watching a television news broadcast about a giant robot reported to have attacked a Czechoslovakian train and made off with its cargo of gold bullion. Reed surmises that it may have something to do with the Shogun Warriors, as they are the only people on Earth in possession of such technology, and decides the situation is worthy of investigation.

Meanwhile, as they are returning from a Broadway show, Ben and Alicia engage in a heart-to-heart that attracts the attention of passersby, the pair oblivious to the crowd that has gathered until they burst into applause. Ben is clearly piqued by the crowd's interest and drags Alicia back to the Baxter Building with impatient haste. As the couple arrive at the Fantastic Four's headquarters, Ben notices three mysterious figures loitering by the elevator, whose presence triggers an alert signal upstairs in the penthouse suite. As Reed, Sue and Johnny scramble to investigate the alarm, they find that Ben has already dealt with the situation as he introduces the Fantastic Four's three guests: Richard Carson, Ilongo Savage and Genji Odashu -- the human pilots of the Shogun Warriors. Carson explains that the giant robot responsible for the bullion theft had already systematically sought out and destroyed each of their own robots, hence the trio's need for the Fantastic Four's help.

As Franklin wanders in with a transistor radio it picks up a news bulletin describing the sighting of a giant robot near Mt. Fujimoto, and so the seven heroes are soon on their way to Japan in the Pogo Plane. As the Fantastic Four try to deal with the giant robot which is rampaging through a Japanese city, the Agents of the Light investigate the Sanctuary, their former base of operations now being used as a storage facility for the robot's plunder. The Fantastic Four are unable to halt the robot's rampage as it rips a bank off its foundations and absconds with it, before returning to the Sanctuary where it confronts the trapped Agents. The Samurai Destroyer, as the robot introduces itself, is actually a fourth Shogun Warrior-type robot, found half-built and constructed by its unnamed occupant, whose goal is nothing greater than wanton destruction and the acquisition of tremendous wealth.

The combined efforts of the Fantastic Four and the Agents of the Light are enough to overpower and destroy the robot, whose occupant is taken into custody. For the Agents, however, the victory is hollow, for with their giant robots destroyed they must face the prospect of living ordinary lives away from the superheroics to which they had become accustomed.

Cover Date: January, 1981

Appearances

• Fantastic Four
  • Mister Fantastic
  • Invisible Girl
  • Thing
  • Human Torch
• Samurai Destroyer
• Agents of the Light
  • Ilongo Savage (Main story, flashback and flashforward)
  • Richard Carson (Main story, flashback and flashforward)
  • Genji Odashu (Main story, flashback and flashforward)