COLT OF THE MILITARY INTELLIGENCE

Colt is an officer with the U.S. Military Intelligence.

Normally I would have mentioned the individual's first name but that piece of data is missing about him. It is certainly not the only information we lack concerning this intrepid guardian of security. In fact, his last name is one of the few things we do know.

First, from his depiction we know that he is a sturdy, solidly built man with a strong rugged face. Sturdy chin and piercing eyes and a demeanor that warns against messing with him. I would put his age around 30 years old.

Second, he appears to be a career man for the activities we can follow him in take place before the start of open hostilities and it took a while to get advancement in the peacetime military. Speaking of rank, when we first meet him, he holds the rank of Captain. He did so well in that mission that his commanding general tells him at its conclusion that he deserves a promotion. The next adventure has him with the rank of Major.

Third, his area of expertise in the military seems rather wide. In the first story he is deeply involved in the development of and security for a new artillery weapon. In the second one, he is the man to call when three dozen planes are stolen and he quickly dons a flight suit and leaps into the cockpit of another plane to chase them, engaging in a dogfight along the way.

Fourth and final note, if he had not been in the military, it is likely he would have gone into the private eye business due to the tenacity he shows in hunting the bad guys and the patter he spews when involved in fistfights with them, not to mention the fact that he gets hit over the head and knocked out a lot as was common in that profession.

In a way, it does not seem fair to grade Colt, Captain or Major, because there are only two stories about him thus so little to go on. In another way, though, it is good that there are only two tales because using the two we have, if there had been more, the grade might have been lower.

The first adventure had an artillery gun able to fire twenty shots in a minute and yet when we see this impressive weapon, it is a standard 'load from the back' device. No magazine. That would be some super fast action to open the breech, eject the old shell, load in a new one, close and fire all in 3 seconds.

The second case has a gang hired by fifth columnist to steal 36 trainer fighters in one swoop. That would mean the gang had 36 men trained as pilots. Three dozen pilots?

The stories are over the top silly. The artwork is not bad and the pacing is good with the writer/artist putting a lot into the stories in 6 pages but it is really hard to overcome the poor plot.

It is no wonder that there were, mercifully, only two missions to follow.