more men, and wins), as well as ridiculous-looking machines. For this reason, action fans often dismissed The Spider Returns as an inferior serial; but others consider it one of Horne's best, and a worthy sequel. While The Spider does take on half-a-dozen henchmen at a time, he doesn't always come off the clear winner. Horne keeps the action fairly straight until the last chapter, when he inserts some obvious humor (two henchmen, exhausted from their fist-fight, haphazardly swing at each other and then collapse). The action-filled screenplay employs a typical serial formula of fist-fights, gun battles, explosions, and car chases, not forgetting secret weapons, death traps, and hairbreadth escapes as The Gargoyle tries to steal some top secret plans. The Spider serials are unique in that The Spider is also sought by the police with the same vigor that he is sought by criminals. The one real difference between this and the first serial is the police know Wentworth goes undercover at times in disguise as petty criminal Blinky McQuade; they work with him following the leads he uncovers as McQuade. Dave O'Brien, who had performed The Spider's acrobatic stunts in The Spider's Web, is now a full-fledged second lead playing the role of Wentworth's assistant. This appearance led to a starring role in Columbia's later serial, Captain Midnight. Only three of the main participants in The Spider's Web (Warren Hull, Kenne Duncan, and Dave O'Brien) are on hand for this sequel. Chapter titles The Stolen Plans The Fatal Time-Bomb The Secret Meeting The Smoke Dream The Gargoyle's Trail The X-Ray Eye The Radio Boomerang The Mysterious Message The Cup of Doom The X-Ray Belt Lips Sealed by Murder A Money Bomb Almost a Confession Suspicious Telegrams The Payoff Source: Distribution Although the serial was not released in the UK, a feature version of about 80 minutes running time did appear there in 1943. See also List of film serials by year List of film serials by studio References External links The Spider Returns at Movie Serial Experience 1941 films 1940s superhero films American black-and-white films Columbia Pictures film serials 1940s English-language films American sequel films American superhero films Films directed by James W. Horne Films based on American novels Films based on thriller novels 1941 adventure films 1941 crime films American adventure films Films with screenplays by Harry L. Fraser Films with screenplays by George H. Plympton 1940s American