For the last few years, Will Murray has been writing new Spider novels under the Wild Adventures of The Spider line from Altus Press through the Adventures in Bronze website. At present, he has done four novels, and I recently was sent the fourth novel: The Hangman From Hell.
I haven’t gotten the prior ones, but plan to do so and review them here. The prior three novels are The Doom Legion (2018), Fury in Steel (2021), and Scourge of the Scorpion (2022). Like those previous novels, this one also features another Popular Publications character: Operator #5, who had also appeared in The Doom Legion.
So for those not familiar with these characters, here is a quick run-down, though you can also read my prior postings on them.
The Spider was one of Popular Publications’ most popular pulp heroes, running for 118 stories. Really millionaire Richard Wentworth, he disguises himself as The Spider to fight a wide array of weird-menace threats, being branded an outlaw for his methods as he usually leaves his foes dead with a spider sign stamped on their foreheads. He is joined by Ram Singh, his Sikh manservant; his long-time fiancé, Nita Van Sloan, who often gets into the action; and his chauffeur, Jackson. Police Commissioner Stanley Kirkpatrick suspects he is The Spider, but does recognize his help.
Operator #5, America’s Secret Service Ace, only lasted 48 stories. He worked to protect America from a variety of threats, both internal and foreign. He may be most well known for the 13-part series with America being invaded and largely conquered by the Purple Empire out of Europe, before defeating them. Really Jimmy Christopher, he is known for his rapier hidden in his belt, a scar (here, a birthmark) that looks like an eagle on the back of one of his hands, and the skull-shaped watch fob that contains a powerful poison. Here he is aided by his twin sister Nan, his father, a retired operator, and his boss Z-7.
Team-ups in the pulps were pretty rare, while many modern fans, after all the comic-book team-ups, want the same with pulp heroes. But while I like them, they have to be done properly and respect the differences in many of these characters. Ones between characters from the same publisher make more sense than cross-company team-ups. In this one, it’s not so much as a team-up, as a Spider story that also features Operator #5 at times. And considering the differences in these two characters and their goals, is the best way to handle this.
Our story starts off with Richard Wentworth awaiting the arrival of one of his agents from Europe with an urgent message. But when he doesn’t get off the boat, Wentworth soon finds him dead, hung in a bizarre fashion. And then finds Ram Singh strangled and near death in the trunk of his car.
Looking further, Wentworth discovers that an agent of the Purple Shirts, a fascist group tied to the Purple Legion, is on a mission to America that includes killing off Jimmy Christopher, Operator #5. And maybe it’s the first in a larger attack on America.
Wentworth, both as himself and The Spider, is on the case, coming up against this agent, known as The Hangman, several times. He is able to get in contact with Operator #5, who only reluctantly works with him, as Operator #5 sees The Spider more as an outlaw than an ally. The Spider is aided mainly by Jackson until Ram Singh is back on his feet. Nita Van Sloan makes a small appearance but doesn’t otherwise get involved here.
We also learn more about these Purple Shirts and the Purple Legion and their connection with Chancellor Maximillian, who hopes to re-establish the Purple Empire in Central Europe. Thus, this story is a prequel of sorts to the Purple Invasion series, as we finally learn the origin of the Purple Empire from that series.
The Spider and Operator #5 will work, both separately and occasionally together, to try to uncover who is behind the Purple Legion, to stop the Hangman, and more importantly to uncover the deadly plot they have planned for America. And even if they succeed, many will parish before it’s all done. And if they do succeed, will this derail the plans to invade America?
If you get the hardback edition, you will also get a bonus story of The Red Finger. This character ran in the back of Operator #5 for over a dozen stories by Arthur Leo Zagat. The Red Finger was a mysterious counter-spy who stopped various enemies of America. Steeger Books put out a collection of his stories, and recently put out a new edition that includes a final, previously unpublished, one.
After reading this, I wonder what we might get next with The Spider? I know that Will Murray is working on other works, and we will be getting a new non-fiction work on The Shadow and another collection of Sherlock Holmes stories.
With this one providing a kind-of prequel to the Purple War series, I wonder what might that storyline look like had the Purple Empire faced not just Operator #5, but many of the other Popular heroes such as The Spider, G-8, The Red Finger, and others. Time will tell what comes next.
