The Rocketeer - Jet-Pack Adventures from IDW Publishing offers up prose stories starring Cliff Secord, The Rocketeer and his supporting cast, especially the delectable Betty. There are ten stories written by ten different authors. The collection features spot illustrations by Jay Bone, the same gent who produced the wraparound cover art. One thing about Bone's art, is that it's so different from Rocketeer creator Dave Stevens that it doesn't even rate that much of a comparison. It's a lighter more cartoonish approach, almost as if it were done for animation. Bone is the same artist who illustrated the comic mini-series "Haunted Hollywood".
"The Red, White & Grey" by Yvonne Navarro (set in 1939) has Cliff and Betty on vacation at Avalon Island just off the coast of California where they meet famed western author Zane Grey. The rich Grey takes them in at his mansion in exchange for some flying lessons from Cliff. Very quickly though Cliff becomes suspicious of some of Grey's other guests and finds that the Nazi menace is even closer than he suspected. He finds himself up against another flying man dubbed "The Black Phantom".
"Nazis in Paradise" by Don Webb (set in early 1940) has Cliff lead an expedition into the mountains of Tibet where they promptly crash and discover a warm paradise hidden away from the eyes of normal men. This "Shangri-La" is also inhabited by wayward Nazis looking for the power to rule the world in the service of the Hitler regime. Our hero has a difficult time keeping his eye on the ball as the very nature of this hidden land plays havoc with the memory and the girls are nice to look at as well.
"Farewell, My Rocketeer" by Gregory Frost (set in 1940) has echoes of vintage crime dramas like The Maltese Falcon. The Nazis and other assorted criminals are looking for ancient Aztec treasure in the mountains around the Grand Canyon. Cliff just happens to fly into trouble gets snare into helping the villains. No Betty in this one, but there is a cute girl and a legit femme fatale for Cliff to contend with. Lots of brutish Nazis as well. This one has a dash of Raiders of the Lost Ark in it as well. We are also treated to a small appearance by a saintly gent with the initials S.T.
"Atoll of Terror" by Simon Kurt Unsworth (set in 1941) is a lurid story set in the Caribbean. Cliff and Betty are there since Betty has been contracted by a British photographer to dally in the sun. Cliff is not happy and soon discovers an island community which is both economically depressed and frightened for their lives. Creatures come from both the sea and the air and steal away unsuspecting natives and they prove quite tough for even the Rocketeer to confront. This one evokes the classic horror of The Island of Dr. Moreau.
"Sky Pirates of Rangoon" by Cody Goodfellow (set in late 1941) sees Cliff joining up in a matter of speaking with the Flying Tigers as they battle the Japanese in the air over China. He thought it would be a simple job of transport, but pirates led by a gorgeous "Dragon Lady" soon change that. Cliff gets some help and advice from a source very close to the might Kong himself. I'll say no more, but if you like air battles this one is the pick of the litter so far. We also meet Lee Chenault briefly as well.
"Rockets to Hell" by Nancy Holder (set in early 1941) is an odd one. It begins with a strange tale of suicide on a mysterious bridge and the idea of some kind of psychic influence. Cliff and Betty get involved when they try to save a young couple but then the story shifts gears and incorporates the infamous "Battle of Lost Angeles" when strange flying objects resulted in substantial retaliation from ground forces. Frankly I thought I'd fallen out of one story and into another one. A highlight is the presence of Johnny Weissmuller.
"Codename: Ecstasy" by Nacy A. Collins (set in 1942) allows Cliff and the gang to hook up with the gorgeous film actress Hedy LeMarr. For those who might not know, LeMarr was an inventor of significant note and as such was of much interest to the forces on both sides during WWII. One of her inventions (a precursor of the cellphone no less) is the maguffin in this story which pits the Rocketeer against American Nazis and also features a stealth Hollywood squad of anti-Nazi commandos who will be more than a little bit familiar to the reader I suspect.
"Flying Death" by Robert Hood (set in late 1943) offers up a science fiction bonanza with references to the Philadelphia Experiment, alien spacecraft at Tunguska, alternate universes, and death rays. Cliff finds himself confronted by his doppleganger from another dimension, one in which the Nazis won the war. Major Secord of the other world is the leader of the "Flying Death" a legion of commandos armed with lasers and jet packs. Betty becomes a pawn in a battle between the two Cliffs, and the entire safety of the world is at stake if the Rocketeer loses.
"The Mask of the Pharaoh" by Nicholas Kaufmann (set in 1943) is as the title suggests a lurid tale of moviemaking in "Poverty Row" area of Hollywood. Betty lands a lead in a horror flick, but all too quickly a grisly murder creates havoc and Cliff finds himself working with a hard-boiled police detective who likes mustard yellow named Argyle. They discover a world of intrigue, deception, and possibly even the supernatural. Hollywood was adept at making horror flicks and this tale pays homage to that and the often duplicitous way it was done by men of questionable character.
"The Rivet Gang" by Lisa Morton (set in 1945) is the final story in the collection and the only post-WWII story. Cliff and Betty find themselves facing off against a gang of women known as "The Rivet Gang". The name comes from the weapon they use in the commission of their high-profile heist, a rivet gun designed to disable and maim. They prove to be quite a cantankerous crew and at one point Cliff ends up in the La Brea Tar Pits after a battle gone wrong. Like many of these stories, this one too remarks on social conditions at the time and speaks about how women were summarily discarded from the workplace when the men critical to the war returned home.
There are some rousing adventures here. I'd love to see some of them adapted to comic book form at some point, but it's been many years since this collection dropped, so I guess this will have to do. I will note that several of the stories do have leave dangling threads and not all the baddies are brought to heel. There is definitely the suggestion that more was to come from this. Still and all it's an entertaining package for any Rocketeer fan. Highly recommended.
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