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Tales of the Red Panda
Tales of the Red Panda: The Android Assassins
Winner of the 2011 Pulp Ark Award for Best Novel (Gregg Taylor) and Best Cover Art (Thomas Perkins)! A city beset by the darkness and desperation of the Depression balances upon a knife edge, ready to plunge into chaos and despair. The forces of darkness have been held thus far at bay by a pair of red gauntleted fists, but on how many fronts can Toronto's masked champion fight at one time? An unseen manipulator is pulling the city's surviving businesses to the brink of collapse for his own fiendish purposes just as an old foe returns to unleash his bitter fury upon innocent lives. Who will survive the power of... The Android Assassins?
152 pages, Paperback
First published August 6, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
September 14, 2014
If you are a fan of Decoder Ring Theatre's "Red Panda Adventures" audio drama, this is a wonderful expansion of that fantastic world. If you've never heard of the Red Panda, this is a fun, pulp-inspired tale os super heroics the likes of which are rarely seen these days.
Inspired by the likes of the Shadow, the Spider, the Green Hornet and other Golden Age Mystery Men, the Red Panda and his sidekick the Flying Squirrel have to defend 1930s Toronto against Captain Clockwork's evil machines.
Part super hero story, part mystery, all fun. An excellent throwback to the days of the pulps, when anything you could imagine was possible (static shoes, electric knuckles, retractable gliding membranes) and fun, exciting stories were the priority. Highly recommended.
Inspired by the likes of the Shadow, the Spider, the Green Hornet and other Golden Age Mystery Men, the Red Panda and his sidekick the Flying Squirrel have to defend 1930s Toronto against Captain Clockwork's evil machines.
Part super hero story, part mystery, all fun. An excellent throwback to the days of the pulps, when anything you could imagine was possible (static shoes, electric knuckles, retractable gliding membranes) and fun, exciting stories were the priority. Highly recommended.
December 7, 2023
Gregg Taylor is the best superhero fiction writer I've encountered in my exploration of the genre. As a comic and superhero fan for the last thirty years I've yet to encounter anyone who so perfectly writes and characterizes their heroes the way he does.
You'll get more out of this book if you listen to his Red Panda audio drama series, but even as a standalone this book is a 10 out of 10.
You'll get more out of this book if you listen to his Red Panda audio drama series, but even as a standalone this book is a 10 out of 10.
August 13, 2025
The latest released of the Red Panda novels from Gregg Taylor and Decoder Ring Theatre is another enjoyable story of the adventures of the Red Panda. Enjoyable as ever, but I felt this one strays a little from the more usual fare in that the death toll among innocent bystanders is a lot higher than usual.
August 30, 2014
Another great Red Panda Adventure with all the right ingredients. Gregg Taylor perfectly blends the nostalgic tropes of the classic pulps and movie serials with a modern super heroic storytelling sensibility. The flirtations banter of Red Panda and the Flying Squirrel has a playful innocence that is the emotional core of the entire series.
This novel also brought to the fore Captain Clockwork, a Red Panda villain most often only mentioned than seen/heard. As with the last two novels, this story had the room to further develop the roster of agents in the Red Pandas network against crime. Just like the romantic plot of the Red Panda Adventures the agents are just as much a draw as the plot and the action.
If you are a lover of the Red Panda then this is another fun outing for the character and the world started in podcast land and growing to books and comics.
This novel also brought to the fore Captain Clockwork, a Red Panda villain most often only mentioned than seen/heard. As with the last two novels, this story had the room to further develop the roster of agents in the Red Pandas network against crime. Just like the romantic plot of the Red Panda Adventures the agents are just as much a draw as the plot and the action.
If you are a lover of the Red Panda then this is another fun outing for the character and the world started in podcast land and growing to books and comics.
December 29, 2010
I'm noticing an alliterative theme in the menaces in the Tales of the Red Panda series - the Crime Cabal, the Mind Master, and now the Android Assassins. It's a nice touch, and just one of the ways that Taylor hearkens back to the radio serials that Red Panda is based on.
In a sense this is more of the same Red Panda adventures, but given how much I enjoy those adventures, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I've gotten used to the third-person narration, which was never poorly done but just wasn't what I was used to in the first book. Taylor is setting the novels back in the earlier days of the Panda and Squirrel relationship, which is understandable, but I'm a big fan of the "modern" relationship that it takes away from my enjoyment a little bit.
In a sense this is more of the same Red Panda adventures, but given how much I enjoy those adventures, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I've gotten used to the third-person narration, which was never poorly done but just wasn't what I was used to in the first book. Taylor is setting the novels back in the earlier days of the Panda and Squirrel relationship, which is understandable, but I'm a big fan of the "modern" relationship that it takes away from my enjoyment a little bit.
December 13, 2010
it's good old fashioned thirties and forties style pulp magazine type fiction - with a few twists. Even those familiar with the characters from Gregg's popular Decoder Ring Theatre podcast (and if you haven't heard them, why not?)will enjoy some of the new twists in this imaginative tale of Depression era Toronto beset by saboteurs and megalomaniac supervillians - and of how the Terrific Twosome of The Red Panda and the Flying Squirrel strive to put down the menace to their fair city. Some characters hinted at in the stories are fleshed out into three dimensions, and the mystery is so good that you'll literally only tell by the end who is guilty!
June 19, 2013
Ok... confession time, I'm a big fan of the Decoder Ring Radio podcasts starring this duo of Toronto-based superheroes. While I would never call these books great literature, they are a ton of fun, easy quick reads, and I look forward to the next book in the series (hopefully there will be a next book).
To other fans of the podcasts, be aware that these stories take place early in the adventures - this particular one involves Captain Clockwork - and while the characters in the book don't know who he is, the readers if they are listeners as well will, and will remember his ultimate fate. Also, it was kind of neat to see the ancestors of "John Doe".
To other fans of the podcasts, be aware that these stories take place early in the adventures - this particular one involves Captain Clockwork - and while the characters in the book don't know who he is, the readers if they are listeners as well will, and will remember his ultimate fate. Also, it was kind of neat to see the ancestors of "John Doe".
November 6, 2012
I have been listening to and enjoying Gregg's podcast for many years. I am more a fan of Black Jack Justice but enjoy RP just fine. I will continue buying Gregg's books and listen to the podcast so long as I have ears to listen and eyes to see.
I live near Canada and have many relatives who stayed in the Great White North rather than moving to the U.S. I suspect that several are super heroes.
I live near Canada and have many relatives who stayed in the Great White North rather than moving to the U.S. I suspect that several are super heroes.
April 7, 2015
Gregg's books seem to be the dessert of books for me. They're enjoyable, and I can't stop reading once I get started. On the other hand, no matter how fun it is, I need to pick up something more substantial next.
Nevertheless, there will be rereads! Yes, indeed.
There are a few typos, but only the lack of a table of contents bothered me.
Nevertheless, there will be rereads! Yes, indeed.
There are a few typos, but only the lack of a table of contents bothered me.
June 12, 2012
Not quite as good as the other two Tales of the Red Panda books, but still very good. The Red Panda and the Flying Squirrel are great throwbacks to the pulp heroes of yesteryear, with a tongue-in-cheek irreverent nod of the cap to those pulps. I love this series and hope Taylor continues it.
November 21, 2012
3rd installment of the Red Panda novels and if you liked the first two, you'll definitely want this one too. Even if you didn't like the first two, get this one anyway. Features some new characters that have now made it into the free online audio show as well. Tank Brody is the man.
September 21, 2013
Gregg Taylor does a great job of crafting a story and weaving great dialogue to bring to life the masked capper hero and heroin of the Red Panda and his side kick Kit. The witty banter between the two makes for a great secondary story as well.
November 28, 2012
If you like pulp at all, you will love all of the Red Panda books.
Plus check out the full cast audio drama www.decoderringtheatre.com
Plus check out the full cast audio drama www.decoderringtheatre.com
July 24, 2015
Enjoyed the read
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews