Skagg's Raiders

 

cover art by Reed Crandall

Poor Skagg. With a name like that, he was probably destined to be a bad guy.

We meet him in Quality Comics' Blackhawk #26 (August 1949). He and the beautiful Dorna lead a group of ruthless outlaws. They have a hideout in thick jungle near the borders of three different countries. So they one of the borders, rob some place, then fade back across the border into the jungle to hide out. "Skagg's Raiders" has an credited writer and some excellent artwork by Wally Wood.

When Andre of the Blackhawks flies over, they decide it would be nice to have a plane--one of his men is a pilot. They lure the Frenchman down with a distress signal, where he's quickly captured. They initially plan to simply kill him, but the outlaw pilot realizes he'll need instruction on the advanced controls of a Blackhawk plane. Andre is locked up until he agrees to cooperate. The plane is hidden in the jungle. 

When he doesn't report in, the other Blackhawks start looking for him. They land in the same clearing, but at first find nothing. It's Chop Chop who discovers a footprint and starts trailing the outlaws into the jungle. 

Later on in the story, Chop Chop will act quickly to save Blackhawk's life. There's no getting around Chop Chop's stereotyped appearance and speech pattern--that's definitely a product of its time. But there's also no getting around that he's presented here as intelligent and brave. Go figure.

The Blackhawks silently capture a sentry and quietly approach the outlaw camp. Knowing that Andre is likely to be killed if a gunfight starts, Blackhawk casually walks into the camp and eggs Skagg into a fist fight. This distracts the other outlaws, allowing the Blackhawks to launch a surprise attack.

But Skagg and Dorna arn't done yet. They flee through an escape tunnel and seal off both ends when the Blackhawks pursue them. Then they and the outlaws proceed to have a party, knowing the Blackhawks are hopelessly trapped.

Not surprisingly, the Blackhawks are not hopelessly trapped. With some gunpowder salvaged from a few bullets, they blow open the tunnel door. Then they attack the outlaws once again.

This time, everything works out well for the good guys. Skagg is killed when Chop Chop saves Blackhawk with a well-thrown rock. Dorna tries to run for it and ends up as crocodile chow. Justice is rather brutally served on them both.

This is a fun tale--a straightforward adventure story that flows along quickly and logically, with Wally Wood's beautiful art bringing it all together. Read it yourself HERE. 

Next week, we'll observe an innovative method for fighting pirates.