Synopsis / Summary / Plot
The previous issues have been centred on Human Torch, Sub-Mariner and Angel, with only a brief cameo by Steve Rogers. But one thread of the story has followed Prof Erskine whose super-soldier project takes centre-stage this issue as we move into Fall 1940.
In New York Major Kerfoot, the Nazi spy we have seen infiltrating the US super-soldier project as Prof Hamilton, welcomes Heinz Kruger who has just arrived by U-boat. It turns out that the smuggling operation that Phantom Bullet died investigating in #2 was smuggling Nazis and guns into the US. Kerfoot gives Kruger the identity of Frederick Clemson, with access to the project. Kerfoot himself intends to get hold of Erskine's super-soldier formula. When he has that, Kruger will kill Erskine.
Kruger was named in Captain America #109, but Kerfoot wasn't identified there. The Clemson alias was revealed in CA#255. Their handler is I believe an invention of this series, and is never identified by name.
P.I. Ferret has been trailing Hamilton, whom he suspects of murdering a cleaning woman in #2. But Kerfoot (and now Kruger) have a handler who has also been watching the meeting. This handler now kills Ferret, searches his office and burns it down. Ferret's death here explains the short life of another Timely series, like Phantom Bullet's in #2.
Angel discovers the body. They have met a few times before. Angel takes in Ferret's pet ferret Nosie, but can't find out what Ferret was working on because his office is destroyed. Angel is also still working on Phantom Bullet's murder. (Investigations seem to take a long time in this series.)
Kruger reads Kerfoot's dossier on Steven Rogers, the chosen test subject for the super-soldier project.
Rogers was born in New York and came of age in the Great Depression. He was skinny and sickly with artistic talents. His father died early, and his mother followed 3 years ago when Steve was 16. Since then he has been scratching a living.
He was driven by a newsreel of the invasion of Poland (as seen in #1) to repeatedly try to enlist, but was always rejected as 4-F. His determination attracted the attention of General Phillips, who recruited him for the super-soldier project 2 months ago. I think Gen'l Phillips was first named in Giant-Size Invaders #1.
In occupied France super-man John Steele, escaped from the Nazi superhuman Project Nietzsche last issue, has been fighting Germans, and comes across Nick Fury, Red Hargrove and the Sky Devils. One would assume from last issue that Fury and friends are in France looking for Project Nietzsche sites to destroy. However next issue's events suggest they're there just for general mayhem.
A bit more than a week after Kruger arrived the super-soldier experiment is about to be tried on Rogers. Kruger will be there as Clemson, and must kill Erskine then. Meanwhile Kerfoot has copied Erskine's notes but fears some part of the procedure isn't recorded there. CA#155 will show that Vita-Rays are the bit that Kerfoot doesn't have. They were added to Cap's origin story in CA#109.