The Dandy #1356

In a dusty frontier town, Desperate Dan finds himself tangled in a wild chase when a stranger claims his horse is worth a fortune. With the horse stashed in a hotel room and a thief lurking in the shadows, Dan’s night takes a surprising turn—literally—when he’s woken by a frantic call and races out to stop a runaway ride that’s not quite what it seems. As the thief flees, Dan’s quick thinking leads to a showdown that ends at the sheriff’s office, where justice rides in on a twist of fate.

Terry Ball and Fatty Gibbons are locked in a heated debate over an oil tanker when a sudden broom tap reveals Captain Whoosh hiding behind a false panel. With Smart Alec Bone already causing chaos inside a bank by gassing the staff, the duo’s pursuit takes a wild turn as Captain Whoosh’s rocket pack malfunctions, sending him tumbling onto a bus roof. Fatty trips up the fleeing accomplice, only to be gassed in return, and as the villainous pair escape aboard a passing lorry—Smart Alec clinging to a ladder thrown down by the reassembled Captain Whoosh—Terry must now find a way to outwit them from his hidden position on the moving vehicle.

When food starts vanishing from Andrew Glenn’s cottage, suspicion falls on a mysterious Great Dane. As Glenn prepares soup for himself and his dog Black Bob, an unseen assailant strikes—locking Glenn in the coal-house while the mystery dog attacks Bob. With the door barricaded and Bob unconscious inside, Glenn must break free and race to his dog’s side, unaware of what the assailant plans next.

In a mischievous twist of schoolyard chaos, a pair of pranks escalate when a wayward cork and a cream horn take aim at the School Crossing Man—only to set off a chain reaction involving Greedy Pigg, a cleverly rigged trap, and a very sticky chase. With food, flour, and flying desserts in the air, the line between punishment and payback blurs as the SCM and the school’s most notorious snack thief end up on opposite sides of the joke.

Smasher’s mum insists he play with his cousin Cynthia, who’s eager to pretend they’re in a hospital. Reluctant at first, Smasher tries to humor her by finding “patients” — starting with a brick under a hat, then sabotaging Bully Brown’s bike. But when the prank backfires, Smasher ends up on the receiving end of Cynthia’s bandages, much to his dismay.

Butch is left in charge of keeping the fire lit for his bath, but a slippery dog and a closed cellar door set off a chain of mishaps. With help from the coalman and a rope tied by his pooch, Butch tries to escape the cellar—only for the postman’s arrival to complicate things further. When the door shuts and the fire goes out, Butch’s plans for a warm bath are dashed.

Charley Brand and Brassneck accidentally break Dad Brand’s alarm clock just before he’s due to meet his boss, setting off a chain of increasingly absurd wake-up schemes. As each attempt backfires and leaves Dad Brand groggy and late, the boys brace for the consequences—only to find themselves stuck with the same exhaustion when school starts.

Beefy’s sudden turn to heroism is as suspicious as his latest scheme: pretending to help Tommy after sabotaging his bike, all while stealing Jimmy’s. When Chips and Jimmy accuse Tommy of theft, Beefy steps in—only to get a brick to the head for his trouble. The old lady, ever generous, rewards his dazed confusion with yet another shilling. With the money, Chips and Jimmy treat themselves to ices—while Beefy’s latest plan sinks faster than his victim’s bike.