Fantastic Adventures #17

The USS Constitution, a revolutionary warship assembled from materials gathered across the nation, sets sail in 1797 with Captain Samuel Nicholson at the helm, ready to protect American commerce against foreign threats. When the Barbary Pirates capture the American frigate Philadelphia and press her into service, Lieutenant Decatur leads a daring midnight raid into enemy harbor to reclaim her, infiltrating the heavily fortified port with a small band of disguised sailors. This thrilling account captures one of the Constitution's earliest and most audacious missions, proving why she would earn her legendary nickname as a guardian of American waters.

When Marty discovers underwater tablets on a mysterious island, he takes the plunge—literally—and meets Myrna, a charming mermaid who introduces him to her father, the sea king himself. But Marty's underwater romance hits rough waters when Rocky, a territorial rival, challenges him to prove his worth, and Marty must balance romance with the clock ticking on his ability to breathe underwater. This 1964 tale by Franky is a lighthearted dive into the perils of love in the deep.

When a Moorish monarch plots to capture Queen Martha for ransom, his cunning spy Sira assembles a crew to intercept the royal vessel—but Captain Cutlass and his ship, the Smiling Lass, find themselves caught in the middle of a dangerous game of deception and ambition. Cutlass risks everything to outmaneuver both the Moorish forces and the queen's own escort, leading to a high-stakes clash on the open sea where alliances shift as quickly as the tide. In this swashbuckling adventure, a captain's wits and nerve prove just as valuable as his cutlass when the stakes are nothing less than a kingdom's future.