Smash Comics #53

In "null," Lady mob boss Darla Dee makes a bold move in 1944, confronting Dave with an ultimatum: lead her to the elusive Midnight or face a false murder charge. With her power rising and trust shattered, Dave must navigate a web of deception before the city falls under her control.

Rookie Rankin takes on a revival of the notorious Black Hand Gang when the extortionists target a prominent banker with threats and violence—and their ringleader, the cunning Ronnie the Rat, proves to be a criminal mastermind Rankin has tangled with before. As the gang escalates their scheme and Rankin closes in on their hideout, the detective finds himself in deadly peril, forced to use his wits and courage to turn the tables on the criminals. It's a classic battle of law against organized crime as Rankin works to dismantle the gang and bring their operation to justice.

Daffy Dill opens a muscle-building gymnasium for women with her partner Deke Parsons, pitching it as a path to strength and independence—but their real goal is turning a quick profit. When a dissatisfied housewife named Mrs. Torrent becomes their star pupil and discovers the newfound confidence that comes with physical power, word spreads fast, and soon the gym is flooded with clients eager to stand up to their husbands. What starts as a business boom, however, snowballs into something neither Daffy nor Deke anticipated, as the newly empowered women of the city begin reshaping society in ways the men in charge never saw coming.

Black X, ace agent of the Allies, must unravel a dangerous conspiracy lurking beneath the surface of an occupied territory. When a mysterious masked saboteur begins turning the liberated civilians against their American liberators, Black X discovers that the real threat may come from an unexpected source with grand ambitions for the future. It's a tense game of deception and loyalty where the spy must separate truth from manipulation before the enemy's scheme destabilizes the entire region.

When rookie officer John McMurry Spencer accidentally lets the escaped convict Stoneface slip through his fingers, he's ready to turn in his badge—but the Jester has other plans. Alongside his partner Quinopolis, the Jester shows Spencer that a crook can be brought to justice through quick thinking and clever law enforcement, turning the tables on Stoneface and his gang of racketeers. It's a hard-won lesson that transforms Spencer from a rule-bound newcomer into a cop who understands that sometimes humor and ingenuity beat a straight book.