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Doc Savage (Bantam) #58
The Munitions Master
Screaming trunks of soldiers seared by white-hot fire ... a small, twisted man carrying long loaves of bread ... a thin liquid with a peculiar sickening smell ... Branded the worst traitor in history, THE MAN OF BRONZE fights through the flames of revolution to uncover the master of a world of The Living dead!
135 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1938
About the author
Kenneth Robeson
920 books135 followersKenneth Robeson was the house name used by Street and Smith Publications as the author of their popular character Doc Savage and later The Avenger. Though most Doc Savage stories were written by the author Lester Dent, there were many others who contributed to the series, including:
William G. Bogart
Evelyn Coulson
Harold A. Davis
Lawrence Donovan
Alan Hathway
W. Ryerson Johnson
Lester Dent is usually considered to be the creator of Doc Savage. In the 1990s Philip José Farmer wrote a new Doc Savage adventure, but it was published under his own name and not by Robeson. Will Murray has since taken up the pseudonym and continued writing Doc Savage books as Robeson.
All 24 of the original stories featuring The Avenger were written by Paul Ernst, using the Robeson house name. In order to encourage sales Kenneth Robeson was credited on the cover of The Avenger magazine as "the creator of Doc Savage" even though Lester Dent had nothing to do with The Avenger series. In the 1970s, when the series was extended with 12 additional novels, Ron Goulart was hired to become Robeson.
William G. Bogart
Evelyn Coulson
Harold A. Davis
Lawrence Donovan
Alan Hathway
W. Ryerson Johnson
Lester Dent is usually considered to be the creator of Doc Savage. In the 1990s Philip José Farmer wrote a new Doc Savage adventure, but it was published under his own name and not by Robeson. Will Murray has since taken up the pseudonym and continued writing Doc Savage books as Robeson.
All 24 of the original stories featuring The Avenger were written by Paul Ernst, using the Robeson house name. In order to encourage sales Kenneth Robeson was credited on the cover of The Avenger magazine as "the creator of Doc Savage" even though Lester Dent had nothing to do with The Avenger series. In the 1970s, when the series was extended with 12 additional novels, Ron Goulart was hired to become Robeson.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 10, 2024
The Munitions Master is a "Doc Savage" novel by Kenneth Robeson. Kenneth Robeson was the house name Street and Smith Publications used as the author of their popular Doc Savage novels. Though most Doc Savage stories were written by the author Lester Dent, there were many others who contributed to the series, including: William G. Bogart, Evelyn Coulson, Harold A. Davis, Lawrence Donovan, Alan Hathway, and W. Ryerson Johnson.
I love reading these old pulp novels from time to time. I read about 80%+ of the Doc Savage novels when I was a teenager but that was a very long time ago. I have been trying to find them again in the Bantam editions I read in my youth. I have found several of them in used bookstores and have bought several from online aftermarket bookstores.
In this one, Doc Savage and his men are in the thick of it again. The action is classic Doc Savage, filled with good old-fashioned adventure and gadgets that always seem to be there when the hero needs them. You can relax and escape for a little while. A good read in the Doc Savage series.
I love reading these old pulp novels from time to time. I read about 80%+ of the Doc Savage novels when I was a teenager but that was a very long time ago. I have been trying to find them again in the Bantam editions I read in my youth. I have found several of them in used bookstores and have bought several from online aftermarket bookstores.
In this one, Doc Savage and his men are in the thick of it again. The action is classic Doc Savage, filled with good old-fashioned adventure and gadgets that always seem to be there when the hero needs them. You can relax and escape for a little while. A good read in the Doc Savage series.
June 17, 2020
Not bad, the companions are well written, Doc is suitably impressive and well written, there were some good ideas, and I appreciate them trying something different, but having Doc fight a Bond villain didn't quite work for me.
The big bads were more annoying then intriguing and the idea of Doc being so obviously out maneuvered felt off.
The big bads were more annoying then intriguing and the idea of Doc being so obviously out maneuvered felt off.
October 31, 2018
I love a good Doc Savage tale but this one fell short. Maybe because it wasn’t written by Dent, I guess another writer filled in for him and wrote this one, and it showed. A little slow most of the way through. Villains were a little cheesy, couldn’t get into the story. C- .
March 9, 2017
I was surprised to find this was written by one of the other authors besides Dent. Surprised because I really enjoyed this little yarn and I usually don't enjoy the other tales as much as Dent's. Yes, it's cheesy and the first half is better than the second half, but part of the fun of this book is that Doc is framed and considered by the world governments as a terrorist. For once, instead of being aided by the authorities, he is being hunted by them. It's such a nice twist on the normal narrative that it made this book stand out.
The villain, Carloff Traniv, is also a worthy foe for Doc. He's an inventor with not just one, but many diabolical devices designed to kill and maim. He manages to best Doc early in the book by freezing Doc in one of his traps. Doc never knows what to expect as he tangles with his new nemesis.
Despite the occasional bad writing and silly events, this was a really enjoyable Doc adventure. A nice change of pace from the regular routine for Doc and his crew.
The villain, Carloff Traniv, is also a worthy foe for Doc. He's an inventor with not just one, but many diabolical devices designed to kill and maim. He manages to best Doc early in the book by freezing Doc in one of his traps. Doc never knows what to expect as he tangles with his new nemesis.
Despite the occasional bad writing and silly events, this was a really enjoyable Doc adventure. A nice change of pace from the regular routine for Doc and his crew.
October 30, 2015
Pinch-hitting "Kenneth Robeson" Harold Davis delivers chaotic wildness notable even for him in this consistently nutso Doc Savage adventure from August 1938. Davis is always wobbly in his handling of the main characters, but usually his penchant for keeping the unlikely stories plummeting along on the rails saves them from total suckitude. Not this time, however. In "The Munitions Master" Davis goes big-screen all the time in a tale that has a baddie bent on world domination but determined to hang the blame on Doc Savage.
The evil Carloff Traniv has armies of dead-faced soldiers doing his bidding, all individual will drained from them by a brain operation until they're basically zombies. They're part of this distinctly howl-inducing (for readers) mess that includes a weapon that neatly slices folks in half, cauterizing their wounds, along with, of course, radio-controlled flying machine guns. Traniv sows rebellion and world war, and that world astoundingly forgets all the good Doc Savage has done and universally and in a flash falls for Traniv's rather flimsy plan to pin it all on Doc.
All leading to a few memorable lines. "'If Doc Savage would only recover his sanity,' the president said wearily." "And now, damn you, Doc Savage, you are dead! I say so, Carloff Traniv, world emperor!" "Put them in the belts of death!"
After a mass slashing of soldiers' torsos to open things in Paris, most of the dubious action takes place at Traniv's Africa hideaway. Davis' Doc Savage is prepared for every eventuality, usually explained by something like "the bronze man had realized instantly the trap he was in" when there's no possible way he could have. So of course Doc happens to have handy a gas that makes things look upside down, and is able to reverse the living dead to normal folk through a quick brain operation, and performs exceedingly dubious quick-disguises. Sheesh!! All of it is ridiculous and frankly an insult to the characters primary Doc Savage writer Lester Dent had built up for the previous six years.
Davis also again shows off his wacky obsession with Ham's pet ape Chemistry, who once more is impossibly intelligent and even is the first Doc "associate" to appear in the tale.
First-time Doc readers should be warned off starting with this mess at all costs. I can't imagine what they would think of this ludicrous misrepresentation of the great Doc Savage.
The evil Carloff Traniv has armies of dead-faced soldiers doing his bidding, all individual will drained from them by a brain operation until they're basically zombies. They're part of this distinctly howl-inducing (for readers) mess that includes a weapon that neatly slices folks in half, cauterizing their wounds, along with, of course, radio-controlled flying machine guns. Traniv sows rebellion and world war, and that world astoundingly forgets all the good Doc Savage has done and universally and in a flash falls for Traniv's rather flimsy plan to pin it all on Doc.
All leading to a few memorable lines. "'If Doc Savage would only recover his sanity,' the president said wearily." "And now, damn you, Doc Savage, you are dead! I say so, Carloff Traniv, world emperor!" "Put them in the belts of death!"
After a mass slashing of soldiers' torsos to open things in Paris, most of the dubious action takes place at Traniv's Africa hideaway. Davis' Doc Savage is prepared for every eventuality, usually explained by something like "the bronze man had realized instantly the trap he was in" when there's no possible way he could have. So of course Doc happens to have handy a gas that makes things look upside down, and is able to reverse the living dead to normal folk through a quick brain operation, and performs exceedingly dubious quick-disguises. Sheesh!! All of it is ridiculous and frankly an insult to the characters primary Doc Savage writer Lester Dent had built up for the previous six years.
Davis also again shows off his wacky obsession with Ham's pet ape Chemistry, who once more is impossibly intelligent and even is the first Doc "associate" to appear in the tale.
First-time Doc readers should be warned off starting with this mess at all costs. I can't imagine what they would think of this ludicrous misrepresentation of the great Doc Savage.
October 15, 2016
The first Doc Savage story appeared in 1933 and the series ran in pulp and later digest format into 1949. Bantam reprinted the entire series in paperback with wonderful, iconic covers starting in the 1960's. Doc was arguably the first great modern superhero with a rich background, continuity, and mythos. The characterizations were far richer than was common for the pulps; his five associates and their sometimes-auxiliary, Doc's cousin Pat, and the pets Chemistry and Habeas Corpus, all had very distinctive characteristics and their byplay was frequently more entertaining that the current adventure-of-the-month. The settings were also fascinating: Doc's Fortress of Solitude, the Hidalgo Trading Company (which served as a front for his armada of vehicles), and especially the mysterious 86th floor headquarters all became familiar haunts to the reader, and the far-flung adventures took the intrepid band to exotic and richly-described locations all over the world. The adventures were always fast-paced and exciting, from the early apocalyptic world-saving extravaganzas of the early days to the latter scientific-detective style shorter works of the post-World War Two years. There were always a few points that it was difficult to believe along the way, but there were always more ups than downs, and there was never, ever a dull moment. The Doc Savage books have always been my favorite entertainments... I was always, as Johnny would say, superamalgamated!
July 23, 2023
This was one of the better told Doc Savage adventures. It was most involving, intriguing and well paced. It was a simple plot, one man wants to become Emperor of the World. However, it isn’t so simple. This ruthless man has fifth columnists already in place around the world. Horrible occurrences happen with spectaculars d gristly deaths of soldiers on parade. These innocent deaths are laid at the feet of Doc Savage. The Who world is angered at Doc and his aides and call for their deaths.
Renny and Johnny are off in the arctic doing research and so miss this minor affair south of the northern polar ice cap. Doc, Monk and Ham are there at the start of the story. Seems to be a theme of the most recent books. There is, of course, a pretty girl involved in this adventure. Hardly a surprise there. All in all, this was a fun read.
Monk gets punked by Ham and Ling Tom at the conclusion of the story regarding the said pretty girl. All ends well for Monk, however.
Doc is with Monk and Ham with Long Tom coming in to the story later but, uniquely, he is involved with a side trek in to the adventure before he eventually joins up with Doc and crew.
Published August 1938 by Harold A Davis and Lester Dent.
Renny and Johnny are off in the arctic doing research and so miss this minor affair south of the northern polar ice cap. Doc, Monk and Ham are there at the start of the story. Seems to be a theme of the most recent books. There is, of course, a pretty girl involved in this adventure. Hardly a surprise there. All in all, this was a fun read.
Monk gets punked by Ham and Ling Tom at the conclusion of the story regarding the said pretty girl. All ends well for Monk, however.
Doc is with Monk and Ham with Long Tom coming in to the story later but, uniquely, he is involved with a side trek in to the adventure before he eventually joins up with Doc and crew.
Published August 1938 by Harold A Davis and Lester Dent.
April 1, 2023
Carloff Traniv plans to set the world to war, so he can take over the world. The genius has made many new weapons of death and destruction, and so people will not realize till too late, he plans on blaming it all on Doc Savage and his men. An ungrateful world quickly falls for his lies and Doc Savage is sought by people who want to kill him. Worse, Doc is operated on to turn him into a mindless zombi and Ham. Monk and Long Tom are gunned down by a firing squad as they face the legions of murderous killers in Traniv's own lair. With the whole world on the edge of war, of course the good guys win, but you'll have to read this book to find out how.
January 22, 2016
A weapons designer plots world domination, while using various tricks to make it look like Doc Savage is the real evil mastermind. This is entertaining for the sheer spectacular array of super-weapons—the freezing trap on the cover, guided missiles, the invisible flame death that kicks off the trouble and remote-controlled killer drones (my god, what kind of fiend would ... oh. wait), not to mention his mind-controlled zombie soldiers. Over the top but very enjoyably so.
February 26, 2016
Of all the pulp era heroes few stand out above the crowd, Doc Savage is one of these. With his 5 aides and cousin he adventures across the world. Fighting weird menaces, master criminals and evil scientists Doc and the Fab 5 never let you down for a great read. These stories have all you need; fast paced action, weird mystery, and some humor as the aides spat with each other. My highest recommendation.
May 24, 2016
read some time in 1988
December 11, 2016
The munitions master is ok it's not the best Doc Savage I've read but it was still enjoyable.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews