Issue 1600 - Fortnightly, 2011

• "The Skull Murders" - story by Claus Reimerthi and art by Sal Valluto.

For Those Who Just Came In, a little background to The Skull Murders will be invaluable!

The main villain is a weird character known as The Black Carnation. He is not new to Phantom adventures! The Phantom first encountered him in a story called The Jungle Rally published in 2001 in Frew No 1306.

He was then already a master of disguise and was later to polish his talent in The Jury of Death (Frew No 1509 published in 2008) and later the same year, in The Hunt for the Black Carnation (Frew No 1521).

It was in the latter story The Phantom left his skull mark on the villain’s chin.

Far more important however, was the discovery by The Phantom that The Black Carnation’s habit of disguising himself as somebody completely new, was his way of blotting out his inner evil.

At the end of The Hunt for the Black Carnation, this strange criminal is left to serve a long jail sentence, but even The Phantom is worried—The Black Carnation always had a super talent for escaping custody!

This time around however, it seems The Black Carnation’s strange ‘career’ has come to a gruesome end. Read on and discover why!

Whatever conclusion you draw, do not bet on The Black Carnation disappearing from the scene!

The arch-villain is near bullet proof and always capable of reappearing looking like anybody he cares to imitate.

Check out the earlier stories mentioned above!

The Black Carnation has already disguised himself to look like a wide range of politicians, legal identities—and even The Phantom himself!