The Best of DC #52 is an issue of the series The Best of DC (Volume 1) with a cover date of September, 1984.
Synopsis for "Siege!"
This story is reprinted from New Teen Titans #35.
Sarah Simms is accosted on the street by Mark Wright, who insanely persists in claiming to be her fiance after she has told him repeatedly that they were never more than friends and co-workers. When a police officer intervenes in their altercation, Mark attacks him and takes his weapon. Now armed and raving, he drags Sarah into a nearby sporting goods store, which he takes over at gunpoint, wounding a cashier who tries to stop him. Using a rifle from the store merchandise, Mark holds off the police, who surround the shop, while Sarah takes advantage of his distraction to place a whispered phone call to Titans Tower. Cyborg, Changeling, and Raven, the only Titans on hand at the moment, arrive almost immediately, but their initial efforts to enter the store and disarm Mark meet with failure. While Changeling talks to the police, Raven teleports inside and tries to calm Mark, while Cyborg uses a finger-laser to enter the building through the ceiling. Finally, confused and surrounded, Mark puts down his weapon and collapses into Raven's arms.
Appearing in "Siege!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Mark Wright
Other Characters:
- Bethany Snow
- New York City Police Department
- Carter
- Frank
- Vigilante (Flashback only)
Locations:
Items:
Synopsis for "The Death of Blackhawk Island"
This story is reprinted from Blackhawk #258.
For the past six days and nights, five Blackhawks have been investigating a Nazi movement of heavy research supplies into a castle in the Keslavik Mountains, while Blackhawk has stayed on the island and monitored Stan's recovery from his bullet wound.
Later that day, the 6-plane team arrives at the site in the Keslaviks, which triggers a ground-to-air rocket response and some equipment-destruction protocols among the German scientists, who then flee. The Blackhawks discover an opening in the ground which leads them to a gigantic tunneling vehicle, likely another Professor Merson invention, and some notes indicating that the Nazis have developed an atomic bomb. The squad dismantles Blackhawk's plane and reassembles most of it, in the tunnel made by the gigantic tunneling vehicle, which Blackhawk and Chop Chop then pursue. About a hundred miles, in some direction, from the castle in the Keslaviks, the mole machine returns along its own path, and wrecks the wingless Skyrocket, but Blackhawk and Chop Chop both dodge it, in that tunnel, for a second time. Blackhawk and Chop Chop then press ahead on foot and soon find, of all things, a ladder leading to a secret unguarded entrance to Himmler's personal office in his palace in Wewelsburg, in mid-Germany, where they arrive just as Himmler is murdering a key research scientist and securing for himself the sole copy of the secret recipe for an atom bomb.
In a scuffle with the guards, Bart and Chop escape with the bomb plans, in Himmler's personal courier's stolen BF-109, fly it to Blackhawk Island, without being followed or intercepted, they decode the plans, and find themselves standing on ground zero for the imminent A-bomb test, indeed a missile-launched A-bomb test. They evacuate the island, but the Allied nurse assigned to monitor Stanislaus is overlooked in the confusion, and killed in the blast, and the bomb plans are also destroyed, or so Blackhawk claims.
Appearing in "The Death of Blackhawk Island"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- unnamed nurse (Dies)
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- unnamed nurse
Locations:
- Keslavik Mountains
- First Blackhawk Island (Destroyed)
- Germany
- Wewelsburg
- Heinrich Himmler's personal office
- Wewelsburg
Items:
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "The Birthright"
This story is reprinted from Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld #1.
Appearing in "The Birthright"
Featured Characters:
- Amy Winston (Amethyst) (Origin)
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters
- Fauna
- Herb Winston (First appearance)
- Laral (First appearance)
- Lady Amethyst (Dies in flashback)
- Lord Amethyst (Dies in flashback)
- Marion Winston (First appearance)
- Taffy (First appearance)
Locations:
Items
Vehicles
Synopsis for "Violet's Story"
This story is reprinted from Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 2) #305.
After learning that Colossal Boy has married a Durlan impersonating Shrinking Violet, the Legion try to locate the real Violet, who was kidnapped months ago by an Imsk terrorists group.
Appearing in "Violet's Story"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Imsk Liberation Terrorists
- Micro Lad
- Yalo Muldron
- Marlu
- Sun Emperor (Cameo)
Other Characters:
- Mist Rider
- Moonwalker
- Henna
- Megra
- Froxx
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "The Dummy - Part 2"
This story is reprinted from Sgt. Rock #376.
Appearing in "The Dummy - Part 2"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "Stopover in a Place of Secret Truths"
This story is reprinted from Swamp Thing (Volume 2) #16.
Swamp Thing and his friends head for Washington, D.C. to uncover the roots of the conspiracy against them. On the way they come to a small secluded town inhabited by a man with a chest full of Soul Masks, one of which appears to transform Swamp Thing back to Alec Holland.
Appearing in "Stopover in a Place of Secret Truths"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Abby Cable
- Dennis Barclay
- Harry Kay
- Cyrus Harmon
- Ida Harmon
- Mallory Harmon
- Liz Tremayne
Antagonists:
- Hec "Dallas" Brandon
- Frank
- General Sunderland
Other Characters:
- Jimmy Spurlow
Locations:
- Washington, D.C.
- Virginia
- New Moon Motel
Items:
- Mask for the Soul
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "Look to the Mountaintop"
This story is reprinted from Detective Comics #533.
While James Gordon is in a coma at the Gotham General Hospital, a group of criminals organize a plan to murder the Police Commissioner. Meanwhile, Barbara Gordon is looking after her father, remembering how a positive influence in her life the man has been and recalling the best advice she could ever receive: "look to the mountaintop".
Bruce Wayne and Jason Todd have returned to Gotham City after their quest in Guatemala and they discuss the fact that Jason adopted the Robin identity and how uncalled that decision was. Despite the argument, both understand each other and their bond is strengthened.
Short moments later, the criminals have started their hit on the hospital and they start taking over the place, one floor at the time. Barbara realizes the danger and makes a quick call to the Gotham City Police Department to warn them about the threat before the telephone lines are cut off. Barbara then takes her father out of his room into the elevator, where she finally falls unconscious to the knockout gas the crooks have used in the whole building.
Without the Commissioner, the GCPD turn to Harvey Bullock who was pondering the consequences of his actions and when he learns about the threat on Gordon's life, he organizes a SWAT team to rescue the police commissioner, but he also decides to get the best man available. A few minutes later, the Bat-Signal is activated and Batman goes into action.
Bullock and the SWAT team make it to the hospital in little time, but by then, the criminals have already reached Gordon's room. They are shocked to find the place empty and this hesitation allows Batman to attack them by surprise and take most of them down. A couple of crooks manage to escape from Batman and they start looking for Gordon, while the Dark Knight does the same to prevent any harm coming to his friend.
Batman finds Gordon and Barbara in the elevator before the crooks and he takes them to the rooftops, where he summons the members of the SWAT team and Bullock follows Batman's instructions, much to his own men's surprise. As the SWAT team make it to the rooftop, the crooks get there first and Batman has to take them down, with help from Barbara, who has recovered and is determined to save her father. When the crooks have been stopped, Batman and Barbara are ecstatic to learn that James Gordon has come out of his coma and his first words in a still weak voice are "look to the mountaintop".
Appearing in "Look to the Mountaintop"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Berford "Mr. Bang" Bannon (Single appearance)
- Zeke "Cobra" Kowalski (Single appearance)
- Johnny "Hitman" Hinton (Single appearance)
- Ray "Slinker" Dawson (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
- GCPD
- Ray (Single appearance)
Locations:
Items:
See Also
Recommended Reading
- Teen Titans Recommended Reading
- Teen Titans (Volume 1)
- New Teen Titans (Volume 1)
- Tales of the Teen Titans (Volume 1): #41-58
- New Teen Titans (Volume 2)/New Titans (Volume 1)
- Team Titans (Volume 1)
- Teen Titans (Volume 2)
- JLA/Titans (Volume 1)
- Titans (Volume 1)
- Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day (Volume 1)
- Teen Titans (Volume 3)
- Titans (Volume 2)
- Blackest Night: Titans (Volume 1)
- Teen Titans (Volume 4)
- Teen Titans (Volume 5)
- Convergence: New Teen Titans (Volume 1)
- Convergence: Titans (Volume 1)
- Titans (Volume 3)
- Teen Titans (Volume 6)
- Teen Titans Academy (Volume 1)
- Titans (Volume 4)
- World's Finest: Teen Titans (Volume 1)
- Teen Titans: Year One (Volume 1)
- Teen Titans Go! (Volume 1)
- The New Teen Titans: Games (Volume )
- Amethyst Recommended Reading
- Legion of Super-Heroes Recommended Reading
- Adventure Comics (Volume 1)
- Adventure Comics (Volume 2)
- The Legion (Volume 1)
- Legion Lost (Volume 2)
- Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 2)
- Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 3)
- Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 4)
- Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 5)
- Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 6)
- Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 7)
- Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 8)
- Legionnaires (Volume 1)
- Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 1)
- Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 1)
- Sgt. Rock Recommended Reading