The Secret Mission
| The Secret Mission | |
  (Re-released in 2016) | |
| Start date: | February 15th, 1999 |
|---|---|
| End date: | July 3rd, 1999 |
| # of strips: | 120 (20 weeks) |
| Writer: | Fred Fredericks |
| Artist: | Fred Fredericks |
| Preceded by: | "The Fisherman" |
| Followed by: | "Siege at Xanadu" |
"The Secret Mission" is the 231st Mandrake daily story. The story was written and drawn by Fred Fredericks.
Plot Summary
In New York City, two murders are committed and an old calling card is left at the crime scene - the old signature "8" in bullet holes. The Police Chief calling Mandrake to warn him that the dreaded gang may "8" have returned. Mandrake is actually on his way to a cruise that he, Narda, Lothar and Karma are going on, but he promises that he will check in to see if there might be something to the fact that 8 has reappeared. After investigating the case, he concludes that this is an internal gang settlement where someone has used the 8 symbol to intimidate the other party. With the mystery solved, Mandrake boards the yachts where Lothar, Narda and Karma are waiting and they set the course to a secret mission.
Appearances
Recurring characters
One-time characters
- Captain Hooker, vice admiral in the navy.
- The Raft People
- The old sailor
- Benbova, drug smuggler and terrorist trainer.
- Kabal, Benbova's assistant.
- Gunny, a marine.
- Corporal Skilling, a marine.
Locations
- New York
- Panama Canal
- South Pacific
- Klipper Island, owned by Benbova.
Organizations
- 8
- Inter-Intel, mentioned by Mandrake.
Vehicles
- Phandrake, a giant navy yacht.
Behind the scenes
Title
- At the deepwoods.org index the title for this story is "The Secret Mission", which is lifted from the plot.
Related stories
- Narda is retelling the Sunday story The Raft People from 1948.
Easter Eggs
- Phandrake, named after The Phantom and Mandrake.
13 Mar, 1999
Re-released story in 2016
- Start date: 25 July 2016 / End date: 10 December 2016
Reprints
This story has been published in the following publications:
India
- Mandrake the Magician #3 (2022)
Turkey
- "Gizil gören", Sihirbaz Mandrake ve Abdullah (2009)