The Green Archer - 1940 - 6/10
Fairly early Columbia serial. Younger brother is convicted of crime and sent to the slammer.
Meanwhile, the older brother, the cunning, sly one, inherits large manor home from where he spins his web of crime.
The huge estate has subterranean tunnels, trap doors, secret rooms, intercom, giant killer dogs (Great Danes), a car elevator (with full time elevator operator), even an underground garage!
The villainous brother masterminds a platoon of thugs and robbers. Local police are hapless.
Squared off against evil doers is the masked ghost of the house - the Green Archer!
And an insurance agent named Spike!
Much of this serial is ridiculous and awful in a delightful way.
The crime lord is a preening fool. He struts, gloats, brags about his big ole brain, then wails like Baby Huey when he loses a round. Fortunately, his feeble brained flunkies more often than not bail him out.
Female characters squeak when startled and stand still during fistfights, watching or wringing their hands. One memorable scene, she keeps straightening her hair while Spike gets his ass kicked. Guess the day was windy.
The Green Archer communicates by shooting arrows with notes into stuffed furniture. I started wondering if he did re-upholstery work during his day job.
Quality of chapter cliffhangers? This serial has more cheats than a trailer park.
Caution - Children in 1940 were less shielded than those of today, as this serial is filled with killings.