The Doom Buggy is the 7th episode of Season 1 of the CBS/Filmation television series Shazam!
Plot[]
Billy Batson and Mentor/Shazam! are on their usual travels. Billy is trying his hand at playing the acoustic guitar, to Mentor's annoyance. The Elders call and congratulate Billy on his willingness to learn something new. They inform Billy he will soon meet somebody who has closed his mind to learning.
Meanwhile, Cathy Moore meets her brother Don at his auto repair shop and asks him why he wasn't at school. Don announces he is dropping out of school and becoming a full-time mechanic. Cathy tells him in no uncertain terms he is mistaken. Don then gets into a motor buggy which he built completely from scratch and speeds off.
Don speeds in front of Billy and Mentor's motorhome and causes Mentor to run off the road. Don stops and apologizes. He discovers that the motorhome's water pump housing is cracked and offers to fix the motorhome at no charge.
While back at Don's shop, Cathy informs Billy and Mentor of Don's plans. They notice a nice painting on Don's mechanic's creeper and try to convince him of his intelligence and need for school, but Don refuses to listen. Don informs them their new water pump is available only at a parts store 50 miles away. Don and Billy leave on the motor buggy, but Don leaves in the direction of a shortcut through Perdition Flats rather than the main highway. Cathy is worried because Perdition Flats is not safe, having several rocks and abandoned mines. She and Mentor both board motorcycles to try and find the two boys.
Along the way, Billy further tries to get Don to change his mind, telling him that even if he decides to become a mechanic, he will need education further than high school to keep up with latest developments. They discover they are lost, but Billy shows Don how to find east by planting a stick in the ground pointing to the sun and reading the shadow. As they continue, Don hits a deep crevice and the buggy turns over, Billy and Don fall out, roll down a hill, and become unconscious.
Don wakes up, but can't find Billy. He ambles back to the buggy and shoots a flare gun hoping someone will locate them. However, the flare lands into an abandoned mine shaft and sparks a fire from underneath.
Billy wakes up and notices the fire. He becomes Captain Marvel and finds Don. The buggy has lost its fuel, but Captain Marvel helps a injured Don into the buggy and pushes him to safety as Mentor and Cathy arrive. Marvel and Mentor agree the fire must be quenched because of the potential to cause explosions underneath. They wonder how to get water, but Cathy remembers from her school's geology class about the water table. Marvel then flies near the fire and uses his body to burrow a hole in the ground which ejects water that puts out the fire. He then plugs the hole he made with a nearby boulder.
Marvel then changes back to Billy and meets Don, Cathy, and Mentor. Cathy announces that Don has reconsidered and that he needs school after all. They believe they are still lost, but notice that Captain Marvel has sky-written the word "EXIT" with an arrow showing them to the main road.
Cast[]
Starring[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Michael Gray | Billy Batson |
| Les Tremayne | Mentor |
| Jackson Bostwick | Captain Marvel |
Guest Starring[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|
Co-Starring[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|