DOUBLE Z was originally published in the June 1932 issue of The Shadow Magazine. A double "Z" is the mysterious symbol of a master crook. It stands for fiendish horror. It stands for a fanatic who has terrorized New York with a series of murders. Murders that are publicized in advance. Yes, Double Z taunts the police with advance notice of upcoming murders. And then commits them before the very eyes of the police.
It all starts with Judge Harvey Tolland, who disappeared fourteen months ago. He was the first to be menaced by Double Z. He received the first note from the hidden mastermind, warning of the judge's impending death. He recognized the secret identity of the madman, and took the warning to heart. Knowing he couldn't prove the identity of Double Z, the judge went into hiding until the time he could present the authorities with such proof.
Now, Joel Caulkins, reporter for the New York Classic known as "The Wise Owl," has tracked down Judge Tolland. He confronts the judge in his hotel room where he goes by the name of Joseph T. Dodd. The judge finally breaks down and admits his identity and the reason for his sudden disappearance over a year ago.
Judge Tolland confides the true identity of Double Z to Caulkins with the instructions to quickly get the information into print in the paper before he's killed. Hurriedly, Caulkins calls up the Classic and gives the story to the copy editor. But as he is about to reveal the name behind the hidden terror of Double Z, a shot rings out. And another. And another. And another. When the stunned editor sends the police to investigate, Caulkins is found dead. And Judge Harvey Tolland is nowhere to be found. Double Z has struck again!
There are more murders to come! There's the strange death of millionaire banker Philip Farmington. Strange because of an unusual oriental poison used to dispatch him. And crime boss Arnold Bodine is killed, despite a half dozen bodyguards hired to protect him. Each of these murders is committed by Double Z. And each murder is preceeded by a note sent to the police notifying them of the upcoming crime. A note signed by a strange symbol: a Double Z!
Just who is this strange character known as Double Z? Detective Joe Cardona is stumped. His boss, Acting Inspector Fennimann, is putting the pressure on poor old Joe to produce results. But there's just no clues to be had. This sounds like a job for The Shadow! And, yes, The Shadow is involved. In fact, he's been secretly involved for some time, without the knowledge of the authorities. It's going to take the keen mind of The Shadow to penetrate the secret identity of the sinister figure only known as Double Z.
This story introduces several new characters. The most important is that of Rutledge Mann, The Shadow's contact man. Previously, Claude Fellows had maintained a similar role for The Shadow. But he was killed six months earlier, and The Shadow needs a replacement. Mann has been running an investment firm, but has fallen on hard times. He's about to loose his business. He's penniless, and stares at his gun, intending... Then, out of the darkness, steps The Shadow. He offers Mann a new life. A life with honor. In return, The Shadow demands obedience. Full obedience. And thus, as we know, begins a long and faithful relationship as Rutledge Mann begins to act as contact and information gatherer for The Shadow.
Clyde Burke, formerly a reporter with the defunct Evening Clarion, is now handling special assignments for the tabloid Classic. In this story, he's given the assignment to replace the murdered reporter Joel Caulkins and take over the crime column of "The Wise Owl."
A minor character introduced here is Acting Inspector Fennimann, who temporarily takes the place of Inspector Timothy Klein. He doesn't really do much, except put pressure on Cardona to produce results. Klein returns later in the story and Fennimann fades away.
This was only the eleventh story in the magazine series, and as was typical in these early stories, mention is made of The Shadow's weekly radio broadcasts. Even though The Shadow has seemingly dropped out of sight at the beginning of our story, the weekly broadcasts are going along on schedule. That brings up the conjecture that perhaps some other man has taken The Shadow's place in the broadcast booth. Or perhaps The Shadow, crime detector, is a separate person from The Shadow, radio broadcaster. Interesting how the magazine sought to meld with the radio show in these early magazine stories.
In this story, Cliff Marsland's wife is mentioned. Yes, Cliff has a wife! This is one of the few stories to mention her. "Darling," he says to his wife at the beginning of the story, "I think it would be a good idea for you to take that Florida trip with your father." She does, and that's the last we ever see of her. Makes one wonder why Walter Gibson even gave him a wife to begin with.
In this story, The Shadow appears in disguise as Lamont Cranston and also in a second disguise as secret service man Terry Blake. Cranston is a very common disguise for The Shadow. Terry Blake, on the other hand, is a disguise he rarely used. Can someone tell me other stories in which The Shadow appears as Terry Blake? Or was this the only one?
Other familiar characters appearing in this story are Burbank and Harry Vincent. That's it for the regular gang. Police Commissioner Ralph Weston hadn't been introduced into the series yet, nor had cabbie Moe Shrevnitz, so naturally no mention is made of them.
In these stories, we see that The Shadow is a master of many languages. Adding to The Shadow's list of languages, this story indicates he speaks fluent Italian. Whew, makes you wonder if there's any language he doesn't know!
This story gives us another enjoyable visit to Chinatown. There, The Shadow comes up against the old, bespectacled Mongolian Loy Rook. And once in Rook's hidden lair, he must surmount tremendous odds as he encounters several insidious death traps. There are hidden passageways, sliding bookcases, poison gasses, and a trapdoor that reveals a three-story-deep pit lined with sharp-pointed metal spikes on the bottom. All these things The Shadow must overcome in order to rescue his agents and defeat the wily Loy Rook.