003 03/34 Meteor Menace

Posted by on Mar 31, 1994 in 1934, aviati, Bantam 001-012, baumhofer, nanovic, novel, pulp | 13 comments

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Doc Savage and his fabulous crew journey to Tibet in pursuit of their most dangerous adversary, the evil genius Mo-Gwei. Battling against overwhelming odds, they try to stop him from conquering the world with a diabolical machine known as the Blue Meteor, a screaming blue visitor from space that turns men into raving animals!


  • Andrew Salmon

    I enjoyes this doc! Great action and an interesting “menace”I ike Doc in thewilderness almost asmuch as the city adventutres

  • Barry Ellis

    Another one of the stories that has grown on me over the years. Especially like the butt-whuppings administered to Monk & Renny and the butt-whupping Doc administers to the polar bear!

  • Barry Ellis

    Oops! Did it again! The previous review was supposed to be for ‘The Polar Treasure’. Actually, I put ‘Meteor Menace’ in the bottom third of Doc tales. Just never has done much for me (EXCEPT for the hilarious “Doc Engaged” gimmick!).

  • Scott Kimball

    I have to say, that after reading Meteor Menace, I think I have found my new #1 Doc book. At the very least, it is tied for first place. This one has it all. Not one, but two exotic locations…Argentina, then Tibet; non-stop action; great characters and villians; a fascinating mystery that stayed a mystery right up till the end. Meteor Menace has all the raw energy and action of earlier classics like The Polar Treasure and The Lost Oasis, but Dent’s writing has really matured in this one, so as far as I am concerned, this one is actually way better than the books before it. I also like the way the “Menace” really is a convincing threat that even Doc is powerless against throughout most of the book. There is also another key element here to a great Doc book…humor. At one point Ham, Monk, Renny, Long Tom, and Johnny can’t stifle their laughter when Doc gets embarrassed by an attractive woman…they just bust up laughing as Doc just sits there straight-faced in front of them for several minutes until they are done.

  • Scott Kimball

    As far as I am concerned, Meteor Menace is one of the best Doc stories. It has all the raw energy of earlier books like The Polar Treasure and The Lost Oasis, but Dent’s writing has really evolved to the point where I think this book is way better than the earlier “classics.” This book is just busting at the seams with everything…action, colorful settings and characters, Doc and the whole gang are together, the “menace” is actually both threatening and amusing, and there is some great humor. At one point, when Doc gets embarassed by a beautiful woman, the rest of the gang just can’t hold it in and they all bust-up laughing for several minutes as Doc just sits there straight-faced in front of them until they are finished. I have heard a few people mention Meteor Menace as being one of the “classics” but I am suprised that more people aren’t saying it…this is a great one.

  • Scott Kimball

    Sorry about the redundancy here…as some of you have probably noticed… sometimes when you go to post, the screen says “website not responding” so you post again, not knowing that the first post actually went thru… oh, well.

  • Juli

    Dear Mr.Kimball:

    A little correction: The Meteor Menace adeventure began in Chile, not in Argentina.

  • http://www.paulcook-sci-fi.com Paul Cook

    I can see why Bantam chose this as one of the first Doc Savage stories to release. It’s easily one of the best and it also shows Doc in a wonderful light regarding his relationship to women. He’s even kissed in this one! Yikes! Great menace, great fight scenes. Fine Doc Savage adventure–one for anyone’s Top Ten.

  • http://www.paulcook-sci-fi.com Paul Cook

    You can tell Dent was truly inspired in writing Meteor Menace. This book ranks right up with the top Doc Savage tales of all time. It’s got a mysterious invention (or phenomenon), a bunch of evil villains and Doc Savage’s only known kiss. (But I’ve often wondered what Bama would have done with this book for a cover. Hmm–)

  • Lee Dorrance

    Another of my favorites, Meteor Menace has all the trappings of a great Doc adventure. I always get a chuckle when I picture Doc’s embarassment at being asked how many times he was kissed and responding “We don’t discuss that”. A great read!

  • Mark Carpenter

    When you read a Dent book as good as “Meteor Menace,” and then think about the fact that this guy had to deliver a new story just like it every month, you start to realize just how talented he really was. “Meteor” has the plot, characters and action of a novel three times its length. It’s written so well, it transcends pulp. Consider the scene where the Blue Meteor approaches the Chilean Senorita. The creeping terror that Dent generates in just a few paragraphs would do Stephen King proud. In fact, the whole idea of the Blue Meteor is worthy of H.G. Wells, Asimov or Ray Bradbury.

    Spectacular! One of the top two books in the entire series. A must-read for all Doc fans.

  • Heather

    I really enjoyed this book. I think the best part was them waking up a month after the mystery came to there attention only to find that 1 they are in Tibet, 2 they have no memory of traveling there, and best of all that Doc is engaged to be married. I like the part were he looks at the fabulous five and asks for one of them to “haul off and sock me this must be a dream and I am quit thuraly ready to be awakened”. I also like the fact that Doc is actually powerless against this enemy through most of the book. All in all a AMAZING book. Definatly in my top ten.

  • Michael Bloom

    This is truly one of the top 5 Docs. I loved it as a 15-year-old in the 60′s, and dig it even more as a 53-year-old in the new century.