How I feel at work, all day:

Last year, I had a quarter-bin copy of Detective Comics #351 that was missing several interior pages; something that didn't happen to me very often--but did again with today's issue! From 1972, Action Comics #415, "Meet the Metropolis Monster!" Written by Cary Bates, art by Curt Swan and Murphy Anderson. The lead story isn't great, as a Frankenstein's Monster-looking creature attacks Clark Kent, knowing he's Superman! A dying man implores Supes to bring him back to life, to stop the creature, and Supes obliges! But neither the dying man, the monster, nor the hostage girl are what they seem! In the sense that none of it seems to make a helluva lot of sense, even missing some pages.

So, let's go to the back-up story! "Fill My Grave with Money!" Written by Bob Haney, art by John Calnan. Tycoon scientist and horrible person Simon Stagg is closing and filling in the "Darling Sapphire" mine, as a tax write-off. Mine foreman Weeks has a son with a "rare kidney ailment" and now no job or pension, 'cause Stagg rolls like that. After the mine is filled, though; Weeks contacts the surface on closed-circuit TV--which Stagg had put in to make sure the miners were working, because Stagg rarely did anything not absolutely Grinch-like. Weeks trapped himself in the mine, planning to escape unaided, to "dramatize my plight to the world." Stagg doesn't really care, since it's closed-circuit TV, so who'll know? Um, Metamorpho points out Weeks notified the networks and papers.

The gathering public makes donations to Weeks's family, and Sapphire Stagg begs-slash-extorts Metamorpho to rescue him; which he does, even though Weeks had a brief bout of monsterism from weird mine gases. Still, Stagg isn't through with Weeks, billing him for the rescue attempt. The government also shows up for their cut of the donations, and the sheriff arrests Weeks for "creating a public hazard, disturbing the peace, and fraud!" Weeks attempts to kill himself in the mine a second time, but Metamorpho stops him. Later that night, Weeks turns into a monster again, and attacks Stagg; who is forced to bribe his way out with the cash hidden in his mattress. Oddly, that wasn't Weeks, but Metamorpho, who cheats his powers a little to look like Weeks's monster form; and straight-up robs Stagg! Metamorpho gives the money to Weeks, and Stagg manages to take credit for it anyway.

I thought one of the few mis-steps of the current Flash TV show was introducing and killing off Simon Stagg the same episode, since I was hoping to see a Metamorpho...and because he's so awful, Stagg generates a lot of plots!