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Il morso del Cobra (Spada)

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Il morso del Cobra
1st publication: Mandrake #22/1962
# of pages: 32 pgs
Writer: unknown
Artist: Senio Pratesi
Producer: Fratelli Spada

"Il morso del Cobra" is an Italian made Mandrake story from 1962.

Plot summary

Mandrake finds that he is too early to pick up Narda for a embassy party they are going to and has the taxi driver drive a few laps around the block while Narda gets ready.

What none of them know is that in his laboratory, the evil Cobra has hatched a diabolical plan to get rid of Mandrake once and for all. The first part of the plan is to kidnap Narda, which he accomplished by projecting a mental image of Mandrake into her apartment. When the mental image of Mandrake asks Narda to come with him, she does - and ends up in the Cobra's laboratory, that resembles a cross between an ancient alchemist's cave, a wizard's lair, and a modern laboratory. Surrounded by his faceless slaves, the Cobra tells his evil plan to Narda, who is now hypnotized into not resisting.

The Cobra has invented a machine with two cylindrical glass capsules. If he placed a human in one capsule he could transfer the physical features and thoughts to a faceless slave in the other. Then he got an identical physical copy that blindly obeyed his orders. Narda was to become his first slave copy and his weapon to kill Mandrake. The Cobra orders Narda to undress and place herself in one of the capsules, and shortly afterwards, a replica Narda stands in front of the Cobra and receives her instructions. A little later, Mandrake meets Narda in the hotel lobby, unaware that she is a replica who only obeys the Cobra. At the party, Mandrake meets the police chief who says he is there on official business as the ambassador has received death threats. By turning himself invisible, Mandrake is able to find the assassin. He hypnotizes the killer to stand still so that the police chief can arrest him. But Mandrake has not only made himself invisible, he has also created a projection of himself that walks around the party. So when replica Narda lures Mandrake out into the garden to shoot him with the gun she got from the Cobra, she doesn't shoot Mandrake - but the projection of Mandrake.

Invisible, Mandrake follows the replica Narda and finds the Cobra's laboratory, but is captured. Mentally summoning Lothar, he manages to help Narda escape to safety. Mandrake frees the faceless slaves and gives them their faces back. And after a fierce mental battle, he also defeats the Cobra, transforming him into a cockroach.

Appearances

Recurring characters

One-time characters

  • An ambassador
  • Augusto, does Narda greet the ambassador from her brother Augusto ?

Locations

  • New York City (?)


Behind the scenes

  • A car sign on page 18: 2-Y61 = second story year 1961, by the artist ?

Reprints

This story has been published in the following publications:

France

Italy

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