is promptly arrested by military police...under Rinaldo's false accusation that Joe himself is fencing the arms. Jackson realizes that Joe has been set up, but his protests are wasted on Rinaldo. The Black Star Master infiltrates the base that night and slaughters the on-duty MPs. He then tries to kill Joe, but is thwarted by the sudden arrival of MP reinforcements...none of whom see the Black Star Master fleeing the scene. One of the dead MPs is found with a throwing star lodged in his head, further implicating Joe. Only Jackson, Charlie, and Patricia believe that Joe is innocent of the charges he now faces. They tell Hickock everything they know about the hijacking and murders, but he scoffs at their story. After briskly dismissing them, Colonel Hickock meets Rinaldo privately...revealing that the colonel himself is Ortega's accomplice. Even as Hickock orders Rinaldo to finish off Joe, the Black Star Master kidnaps Patricia...since her father is becoming a less-than-reliable partner. Rinaldo attempts to run Joe off the road, only to be killed himself. Joe returns to Ortega's mansion, where he is reunited with Shinyuki. It is revealed that Shinyuki, a former Japanese holdout soldier, adopted Joe at birth after the boy's parents died. He trained Joe in the ways of ninjitsu until a bomb blast separated the two; each has believed the other to be dead for years. Now Shinyuki completes Joe's training, and they launch a surprise attack on the Black Star training-camp. Shinyuki sacrifices his life to help Joe defeat the Black Star Master; meanwhile, Hickock leads his own assault on Ortega's villa to rescue his daughter...and to wipe out "loose ends" connecting him with Ortega's weapon-trafficking. Ortega flees by helicopter, with Patricia as his hostage, after gunning down her father. Joe, however, boards Ortega's chopper; he and Patricia jump to safety just before Jackson shoots down the helicopter, killing Ortega. Cast Michael Dudikoff as Private Joe Armstrong Steve James as Corporal Curtis Jackson Judie Aronson as Patricia Hickock Guich Koock as Colonel William T. Hickock John Fujioka as Shinyuki Don Stewart as Victor Ortega John LaMotta as MSG Rinaldo (as John La Motta) Tadashi Yamashita as Black Star Ninja Phil Brock as Private Charley Madison Richard Norton as MP Production Casting Originally the studio wanted Chuck Norris to star. Some sources stated he didn’t want to have to cover up his face. Michael Dudikoff was cast, but