diff --git a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/lib/async-template.js b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/lib/async-template.js
index d0530ea40..519b1c426 100644
--- a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/lib/async-template.js
+++ b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/lib/async-template.js
@@ -68,6 +68,8 @@ class AsyncTemplate {
       const pos = template.indexOf(tokenOpenTag, pt);
       if (pos >= pt) {
         const str = template.substring(pt, pos).trim();
+        // if there are text between a close tag and an open tag, then consider
+        // that as plain HTML string
         if (str) tokens.push({ str });
 
         const ex = template.indexOf(tokenCloseTag, pos);
@@ -81,7 +83,8 @@ class AsyncTemplate {
           .trim()
           .split("\n")
           .map(x => x.trim())
-          .filter(x => x)
+          // remove empty and comment lines that start with "//"
+          .filter(x => x && !x.startsWith("//"))
           .join(" ");
 
         const token = remain.split(" ", 1)[0];
diff --git a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/lib/token.js b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/lib/token.js
index 891bf3f76..06ba797f0 100644
--- a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/lib/token.js
+++ b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/lib/token.js
@@ -15,6 +15,9 @@ class Token {
     this.custom = undefined;
     this.wantsNext = undefined;
     this.props = props || {};
+    if (this.props._call) {
+      this._modCall = [].concat(this.props._call);
+    }
   }
 
   // if token is a module, then load it
@@ -29,7 +32,18 @@ class Token {
       viewTokenModules[this.id] = tokenMod;
     }
 
-    this.custom = tokenMod(options || {}); // call setup function to get an instance
+    if (this._modCall) {
+      // call setup function to get an instance
+      const params = [options || {}, this].concat(this._modCall[1] || []);
+      assert(
+        tokenMod[this._modCall[0]],
+        `electrode-react-webapp: _call of token ${this.id} - '${this._modCall[0]}' not found`
+      );
+      this.custom = tokenMod[this._modCall[0]].apply(undefined, params);
+    } else {
+      this.custom = tokenMod(options || {}, this);
+    }
+
     assert(
       this.custom && this.custom.process,
       `custom token ${this.id} module doesn't have process method`
diff --git a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/data/template3.html b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/data/template3.html
index def3b7cb6..41e93a033 100644
--- a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/data/template3.html
+++ b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/data/template3.html
@@ -30,3 +30,7 @@
     "test": [1,2,3]
   }
 }-->
+<!--%{
+  #./test/fixtures/custom-call
+  _call="setup"
+}-->
diff --git a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/fixtures/custom-call.js b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/fixtures/custom-call.js
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..3016cd4b8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/fixtures/custom-call.js
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+"use strict";
+
+function setup() {
+  return {
+    name: "custom-call",
+    process: function() {
+      return `_call`;
+    }
+  };
+}
+
+module.exports = {
+  setup
+};
diff --git a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/spec/parse-template.spec.js b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/spec/parse-template.spec.js
index 2dd66b2d9..e1f4098ee 100644
--- a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/spec/parse-template.spec.js
+++ b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/spec/parse-template.spec.js
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 const AsyncTemplate = require("../../lib/async-template");
 const Path = require("path");
 const expect = require("chai").expect;
+const _ = require("lodash");
 
 describe("AsyncTemplate._parseTemplate", function() {
   it("should parse template into tokens", () => {
@@ -211,8 +212,23 @@ describe("AsyncTemplate._parseTemplate", function() {
           test: [1, 2, 3]
         },
         wantsNext: undefined
+      },
+      {
+        _modCall: ["setup"],
+        custom: {
+          name: "custom-call"
+        },
+        id: "#./test/fixtures/custom-call",
+        isModule: true,
+        pos: 364,
+        props: {
+          _call: "setup"
+        },
+        wantsNext: false
       }
     ];
+    expect(typeof _.last(asyncTemplate.tokens).custom.process).to.equal("function");
+    delete _.last(asyncTemplate.tokens).custom.process;
     expect(asyncTemplate.tokens).to.deep.equal(expected);
   });
 
diff --git a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/spec/token.spec.js b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/spec/token.spec.js
index 0627ca8bd..68e460875 100644
--- a/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/spec/token.spec.js
+++ b/packages/electrode-react-webapp/test/spec/token.spec.js
@@ -14,6 +14,14 @@ describe("token", function() {
     expect(tk.custom).to.equal(undefined);
   });
 
+  it("should invoke _call of a module", () => {
+    const tk = new Token("#./test/fixtures/custom-call", 0, { _call: "setup" });
+    expect(tk.id).to.equal("#./test/fixtures/custom-call");
+    expect(tk.isModule).to.equal(true);
+    tk.load();
+    expect(tk.process()).to.equal("_call");
+  });
+
   it("should create token as custom", () => {
     const tk = new Token("#./test/fixtures/custom-count");
     expect(tk.id).to.equal("#./test/fixtures/custom-count");