Captain America

This serial isn't exactly what fans of the Captain America comic book character might expect. Here's the "bad" news: The hero in this serial isn't the same Captain America as in the comic books. This hero is called Captain America and wears a costume close to the one in the comics, but that's where the similarities end. This guy isn't Steve Rogers. He doesn't have a special shield and instead he just uses a gun!

Now here's the good news: This isn't bad! There's plenty of fun stuff in this one for serial fans. Some have commented on Dick Purcell's "pudgy" physique, but he still makes a fine 1940's serial hero whose quick on the trigger. I wouldn't mess with the guy. Purcell's Captain America is far more lethal than his comic book counterpart and he has no problem pulling a gun and sending his enemies to their graves. Purcell's Captain is one deadly superhero. His Captain America kills four different guys in just the first 15 minutes of the serial! The Captain's gal pal Gail Richards (who is very cute) also packs a pistol and knows how to use it!

The silly: There are always silly elements of comic book movies and my favorite bit of silliness in this serial is "the vibrator". The bad guys really want to get their hands on a brilliant scientist's "vibrator". At one point the scientists actually asks the chief villain "What do you know about my vibrator?"!LOL!

The verdict: Captain America is an extremely entertaining serial with plenty of enjoyable moments. This Captain America is a different guy from the comic version, but he's more of a straight shooting vigilante and I liked Purcell's Captain's style. This is fun stuff! It's a blast of entertaining escapism and I enjoyed every second of it. Captain America isn't the best serial you'll ever see, but that's part of it's charm. I give Captain America an A+ for being topnotch fun.