Like last week, Stolen Squad Cars brings back another recurring Spirit character to involve them in war-related intrigue. This strip it’s Squire Samson, a corrupt political operator who’s been a thorn in Commissioner Dolan’s side for ages. Last time the Squire appeared, Spirit outed him as a criminal. Unfortunately, the Women’s Civic Club—and its twenty thousand voting members—didn’t read the Spirit that week; they still think the Squire’s a saint, which will eventually be very important, but not at the start.
The strip begins with Dolan and the police department doing a city-wide blackout drill. It’s the first time Central City’s had to do it and Dolan wants to get it right. He’ll be incredibly upset when ten of his squad cars are, well, Stolen. Except the stolen cop cars aren’t a plot point for a few pages, because Spirit and Ebony have a gadget-testing plot to get Spirit involved with the case early (only to inexplicably ignore it).
Spirit’s figured out a way to create a ghostly glow around himself and have it dissipate as black smoke above, meaning he can walk around in blackout conditions and still be seen. It doesn’t seem like it’d particularly help Spirit see in the dark, since he’s only lighting the area immediately around his body. It scares the crap out of at least one beat cop before Spirit calls it a success and heads home.
On the way, Ebony notices ten police cars driving in a peculiar procession and headed towards a single house, but Spirit’s not interested. He wants to go home. We never find out why, though it’s definitely not to listen to jitterbug music, which Ebony had been enjoying earlier. Spirit’s got no time for that kind of music. The strip’s got a lot of dialogue in its scenes, with Eisner and studio padding it out a little. There’s not even an emphasis on the (eventual) fisticuffs because the strip’s got to get along to the next dialogue-driven beat.
Anyway.
The next morning the newspapers are demanding an explanation for Dolan’s incompetence in losing the cop cars. The mayor’s there, and the Squire’s there. Spirit disguises himself and poses as Dolan’s new secretary, just in time to witness the mayor appointing the Squire as Dolan’s assistant. Corrupt gangster or not, the Squire’s got those twenty thousand votes, and the mayor’s going to make them happy. It does not make Dolan happy.
The Spirit’s got a plan, however; they can make sure the Squire’s exposed as a crook. We get some plan details, but then some are for the plot twists, but they also enable the one fisticuffs scene. The glowing doesn’t come back. And it’s never clear what’s part of Spirit’s plan and what Dolan’s doing on his own. The effect’s the same, it’s just herky-jerky with what receives abundant exposition and what doesn’t.
The finish doesn’t even involve the Spirit, who wraps up one part of the case then vanishes until the last panel for a postscript.
It’s an all right strip; a little rambling. Lots of ideas kicking around all at once; instead of filling them out, Eisner introduces them, maybe even executes on them (the glowing bit), then moves on directly.