comicbooks.com Join Free
A-1 Comics: A Retrospective #142 cover
Cover: L. B. Cole

A-1 Comics: A Retrospective #142

Jan 2015 · Boardman Books · [none]
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join free
About this Collection

This volume collects crime-themed stories from the anthology series A-1 Comics, originally published in the 1940s and 1950s. Part of Boardman Books' A-1 Comics: A Retrospective series, it presents a selection of hardboiled tales featuring detectives, gangsters, and femme fatales from the Golden Age of comics.

In "The Case of the Frightened Informers," Undercover Girl races against time to recover Ming Lee's missing ring—a seemingly ordinary piece of jewelry hiding the secret formula for a device capable of triggering atomic detonations across a hundred miles. Penciled and inked by Ogden Whitney, this gripping tale blends Cold War tension with classic mystery, showcasing the artist’s sharp, expressive style. The cover, by L. B. Cole, captures the story’s suspenseful mood with a striking, period-accurate design.

Contains 35 stories
The Case of the Frightened Informers
6 pp · Crime
Scott HunterMr. ZinTongYangCourtland Palmer BroadstreetPoppyLimeyLotus LeeTommy MingQuid
The Killer Behind the Killer
6 pp · Crime
John Paul ChaseMr. ClancyFatso NegriJimmy Burnett [Baby-Face Nelson]Helen NelsonMr. Green
Poison Claw Killer
6 pp · Crime
Tom RiceBentleyDr. WatsonMrs. BlackDoctor Ogden
They Tricked the Schoolgirl's Killer!
6 pp · Crime
Pencils Charles QuinlanInks Charles Quinlan
Raymond Stormer (detective)Neumann (detective)Frank Heideman (killer)Black Ace (suspect)
The Magic of Murder!
7 pp · Crime
"Ace" HighAdelineAsmodeus (magician)Mrs. LormondGuts Leonard
The Case of the Hobbyhorse Homicide
6 pp · Adventure, Detective-Mystery
Inspector Ronald KirkCynthiaCecil BlakeEddieMartaAnne
The Puzzle of the Picture
7 pp · Adventure
Starr FlaggBaba LaFleurLarryHankChuck
Untitled Science Fiction story
6 pp · Science Fiction
Jet BlackPrism PirateTel HanJak Tal
The Girl and the Gold
6 pp · Adventure
Red FoxBarbe ToutainTinpan JacksonSourdough SamMarie LaFranceBlack Tonte
The House on the Dotted Line
7 pp · Crime
James FallonLady SatanApples Hardin
The Robbers of the Road
7 pp · Crime
Jim FallonHuskGrelton"Rats" Poogle
The Fangs of Folly
6 pp · Crime
Red Fox [Sergeant Jeffrey Fox]Barbe ToutainHomer TrevorBlackhairChinook Joe
The Dagger of Death
6 pp · Crime
Walter WaverlyInspector Ronald KirkEbenezer NorenBabs VaughnElva KasterRick FarrMrs. SwalahamiAnnie
The Being in the Box
6 pp · Science Fiction
Space Ace [Jet Black]Jak TalPor TanViceroy FarragutMyrrl
The Man Who Was Yesterday!
7 pp · Spy
Undercover Girl [Starr Flagg]Ernst KruverBryan Flobbly
The Horror of the Hearse
6 pp · Crime
Inspector Ronald KirkGaye KailyJaime MendozaCarlotta SorollasHodges
The Man With the Right Hand!
7 pp · Crime
Jim FallonHomer LawsonMrs. LawsonGeek Thomas
Untitled Science Fiction story
6 pp · Science Fiction
Space Ace [Jet Black]Jak Tal
The Saga of Shaggy
6 pp · Adventure, Animal
Shaggy (dog)UmshlukRed FoxKing (dog)JeffBarbe Toutain
Jeopardy in Jade!
6 pp · Adventure, Spy
Undercover Girl [Starr Flagg]Ming LeeLu

Undercover Girl slips into a high-stakes espionage game when she’s tasked with retrieving Ming Lee’s ring—a seemingly innocuous piece of jewelry hiding a formula capable of triggering atomic detonations across a hundred miles. With time running out and secrets buried in plain sight, she must navigate a web of deception where every ally could be a threat.

The Secret of the Statue
7 pp · Spy
Undercover Girl [Starr Flagg]Thomas Jones-FarrBoris OrrskiSergeiAlexis
Untitled Science Fiction story
6 pp · Science Fiction
Space Ace [Jet Black]Mark TreakFan SanJak Tal
The Faery and the Fireplace
6 pp · Crime
Inspector Ronald KirkSir Kenneth MenkieSir Ian MacClaymorePegAnneShepherd
The Adventure of the Fur Robbers
6 pp · Crime
Red FoxRaoul MetisChief CornstalkHeavyhandBarbe Toutain
The Girl and the Gorilla
6 pp
Jim FallonMike MakleBillLetty
Jeopardy in the Jungle
7 pp · Spy
Undercover Girl [Starr Flagg]Bakka (gorilla)MarieTanya DarkovaAlexis Pauloff
The Man Who Fished for Men!
6 pp · Spy
Inspector Ronald KirkConnie GreggJason Reel
The Adventure of the Invisible Pirates
6 pp · Science Fiction
Space Ace [Jet Black]Jak TalNev Ran
The Enemy Within!
6 pp · Spy
Agent Jim FallonNed FalkirkMyrrl RusselJan UmberlyMasque
The Voice of the Petrel!
6 pp · Crime
Red FoxNano-LakMartin Gander
The Secret of the Assassins!
7 pp · Crime, Historical
Hassan Ibn SabahNizam Al MulkSultan MalikshahSultan Sinjar
Dying! Dying! Dead!
5 pp · Crime
Tom RiceBenHoppy Harry
The Killer on the Loose
7 pp · Crime
Scott Hunter (detective)Portland Palmer (lawyer)Mr. Zin (killer)Madame Wu LengWilliam Phifer
Murder in the Mine
7 pp · Crime
Ace High (detective)James van Allwin (mineowner)NostrandCiucci
The Mask of Mabu Bhu!
6 pp · Crime, Jungle
Chief Naka-NakaDeputy Commissioner Jan DrumsM'abu Bhu

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta
Valueinsufficient data
Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

Find on

Search eBay for A-1 Comics: A Retrospective #142
No confirmed live listings for this exact issue right now — this opens an eBay search.

Where to buy

$9.95 🛒 Buy on Amazon
A-1 Big Book of Crime Comics

Read it digitally

Amazon Kindle Buy the digital edition GlobalComix Indie & digital reader
Opens a search on each platform — digital availability varies by title.

Sell my copy

Have this issue — or a whole collection? Get a fair offer from us, skip the marketplace fees and the hassle.

We Buy Collections ▸
Fast, fair offers · we handle grading & shipping

Full credits

artist, inker Ogden Whitney
cover pencils, inks L. B. Cole

Reprints

↩ Reprints The Killers #1 (1947), Manhunt #1 (1947), Manhunt #2 (1947), Manhunt #3 (1947), Manhunt #4 (1948), The Killers #2 (1948), Manhunt #5 (1948)

Variants (1)

Reviews

Reader reviews

No reader reviews yet.