Prog 7 - MACH 1

Mach 1 creates a diversion so he can sneak into Armstrongs hotel.
He tells Armstrong that he has come on behalf of Her Majesty's Government and he is to take him back to London. Armstrong stares in disbelief...Probe is just one man and he's not going to risk his life with 'schoolboy heroics'.

He calls in a guard to arrest Probe. Probe does what's neccessary to convince Armstrong.
Armstrong is convinced. Probe lowers him on rope out of the window. He steals an army truck and both men are on their way out of the city. Then, Probe spots a secret police car with an escort. He tells Armstrong to keep his head down. He doesn't want them to recognize him. But Probe spots something else...
He turns the truck around and goes back to help Pepe. Armstrong is enraged! How dare Probe endanger his life for a 'dirty peasant brat!'

Probe smashes the truck into the side of the Secret Police car. He leaves the truck and engages the escort.
Inside the car is the Bolavian Head of the Secret Police - Colonel Villarcho. He can't believe his eyes. Mach 1 is killing all his men! He orders his driver to lock all the car doors...but Pepe smiles and tells him that that won't stop 'Senor Johnny.' And he's right. Probe rips off the car door to free Pepe...but Colonel Villarcho is cunning.
Mach 1 surrenders. Villarcho takes him, Pepe and Armstrong to the secret police H.Q.
Probe decides to have his computer brain shut off his hyperpower. He wants to give them the impression that his power has left him. Villarcho thinks he's faking and has a doctor examine him. The doctor tells him that Probe is not faking, that he is in fact 'as weak as a baby!'

Villarcho takes advantage of the situation. He punches and kicks Probe around. After the beating, they dump Probe into a cell...tomorrow they are going torture him.

Alone in the cell...Probe orders his computer brain to switch his hyperpower back on.

The next day he is brought in front of Villarcho. Villarcho has his men tie Probe to two pillars. He tells Probe that what he is about to feel is 'beyond the normal meaning of pain.' The whipping begins...but with Probes hyperpower back to fool strength, the whipping feels just like a tickling across his back.

Probe makes his move and breaks free...
The toppling of the pillars causes the building to cave in...Probe rescues Villarcho. He uses Villarcho as a human shield while he sets Armstrong and Pepe free. Villarchos' troops won't shoot as long as Probe has him in his grasp.

Probe commandeers a chopper and they escape. But what to do about Villarcho?
Problem solved! That wraps up another chapter in John Probes life.

We get another fictional country here...Bolavia. Gosh, I wonder what country that could be? ;-) And something I didn't think Probe could do. He turned off his power. I didn't know that he could that. It will be interesting to see if it is explored further in the series. My memory is a bit fuzzy and I can't remember if they address this again.

Good writing by Mills again and solid art by Enio.

Prog 4 - MACH 1

I love the title of this MACH 1 installment, 'In 24 hours a President must die!'

John Probe is on a mission to eliminate the President of Irania, (No prize for guessing what country 'Irania' is based on.)before the President can launch an invasion on their neighbors Turkostan. It's going to be a tough mission. The Presidents palace is heavily guarded.

Rather than waste time, Probe tries the direct approach.
He's arrested and taken to the secret police headquarters and is interrogated by a Colonel Krall.
The Colonels henchmen are surprised that Probe has no weapons. Probe responds that he 'doesn't need fancy gadgets. I'm going to kill the swine with my bare hands!'

Krall says that Probe is full of it and he's going to skin him alive. The interrogation begins... Thanks to MACH 1's hyper-strength, he's able to withstand the torture with a minimum of discomfort. The interrogation is interrupted by an officer that informs Krall that the President is curious about his British prisoner and would like to see him. Krall chains Probe, he wants to make sure that he can't carry out his threat to kill the President.

Probes gamble has paid off...now, he will get face time with the dictator.

President Mudar is just as vicious as his underling Krall. Probe tells him, quite nonchalantly, how he is going to die.
Mudar is interrupted by one of his men. The officer tell Mudar that his invasion force is ready. Mudar has no time to waste on Probe and orders that he be taken back to Colonel Krall for futher interrogation. MACH 1 makes his move. He snaps the chains that bind him and kills Mudar's men.
And true to his word, Probe kills Mudar by a hyper-powered karate chop!
Krall has been watching and decides to take Probe out with one of his hunting guns. A gun so powerful it can stop a charging rhino! Probe races forward in an effort to stop him...but too late. He takes the brunt of the blast!
With his hyper-power depleting, Probe takes a huge risk, he charges forward, crashing both him and a stunned Krall, through a window.
Krall is dead and MACH 1 makes his escape. He steals an armored car, crashes it through the palace gates and makes his way across the border. We end the strip with Sharpe paying Probe a visit in hospital where he's recovering from his wounds.
He has completed his mission. By assassinating Mudar he has stopped Irania from invading Turkostan.

Lots of good stuff in this strip.

We see that Probe is human after all. He barely makes it out alive. And his computer brain has a weakness...it doesn't have any working knowledge of old weaponry. When Probe steals the tank, it can't give him any data on it because it's an old tank, it can only give him data on 'new' vehicles.

The strip ends with a conversation between Sharpe and Probe and we're left with the impression that Sharpe is glad that Probe made it out alive because he's cost the government so much money. It speaks a lot about Sharpes character.

Nice fun script by Mills and decent art by Enio.