Search - Dead End Kids: Sea Raiders (Volume 2- chapters 7-12) on DVD

11 Cliff-Hangers with the Dead End Kids.

James McDonald | Southern California | 05/03/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Billy Halop was part of the Dead End Kids films series (1937-1943) beginning with DEAD END (1937). After seven films, Billy Halop, Bernard Punsly, Huntz Hall, Gabriel Dell went on to do LITTLE TOUGH GUY (1938) which began a new film series of The Dead End Kids with Little Tough Guys (1938-1943). There were also three Universal Pictures serials that they made. JUNIOR G-MEN (1940), SEA RAIDERS (1941), JUNIOR G-MEN OF THE AIR (1942). Each chapter (episode) was shown in the theater. Every week a new one would be shown. Each episode only ran 17-21 minutes. 11 suspensful cliff-hangers, 12 chapters. For three months. Now Alpha Video offers a nice print which has all the chapters together on a two-volume set. Volume One contains Chapters 1-6, Volume Two contains Chapters 7-12. The story: Tom Adams (John McGuire) owns a very special boat. Looks like a yacht, but it can bomb other enemy ships. He is called the Phantom Sea Raider. The mystery boat is called "Coral Strand". They send two bombs that can latch-on to the bottom of a ship. At 6:00pm, the ship will explode while the Sea raider is far away unseen. The Dead End Kids (Billy Halop, Bernard Punsly, Huntz Hall, Gabriel Dell with Hally Chester) are up to there usual hi-jinxs. They end up out in the ocean where they see a boat explode. saved by the coast guard, they ultimatly get involved in this Sea Raider mystery. Note: The other Dead End Kids, Leo Gorcey and Bobby Jordan, went on to become The East Side Kids (1940-1945) which Gabriel Dell and Huntz Hall joined later. Then in 1946, they became The Bowery Boys (1946-1958). If you would like to see Billy Halop's gang be more mature, JUNIOR G-MEN OF THE AIR (1942) is better.

That is Mary Wickes (credited here as Mary Field) who plays "Agie".

Total Running Time: 3 hours, 48 minutes."