The Talking Devil / The Ten Ton Snakes

Doc Savage (Bantam) #113, 114

by Kenneth Robeson (House Name), Lester Dent

The Talking Devil
Doc Savage is the target of a new, malevolent foe-the spirit of the King of Evil, who utters murderous commands through an ancient Chinese Devil Doll. Is Doc cursed? Or has a maniacal criminal genius discovered the ultimate key to Doc's destruction? To survive, The Man Of Bronze plunges into a terrifying struggle that can end only one way-death!

The Ten Ton Snakes
A war hero running for his life and a mysteriously heavy cargo of exotic snake skins send Doc and his crew racing into the steaming jungles of Brazil. There, The Man Of Bronze unearths a bizarre secret buried for centuries-and battles a sinister force that marks him for instant execution!

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction

183 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 1, 1982

About the author

Kenneth Robeson was the house name used by Street and Smith Publications as the author of their popular character Doc Savage and later The Avenger. Though most Doc Savage stories were written by the author Lester Dent, there were many others who contributed to the series, including:

William G. Bogart
Evelyn Coulson
Harold A. Davis
Lawrence Donovan
Alan Hathway
W. Ryerson Johnson

Lester Dent is usually considered to be the creator of Doc Savage. In the 1990s Philip José Farmer wrote a new Doc Savage adventure, but it was published under his own name and not by Robeson. Will Murray has since taken up the pseudonym and continued writing Doc Savage books as Robeson.

All 24 of the original stories featuring The Avenger were written by Paul Ernst, using the Robeson house name. In order to encourage sales Kenneth Robeson was credited on the cover of The Avenger magazine as "the creator of Doc Savage" even though Lester Dent had nothing to do with The Avenger series. In the 1970s, when the series was extended with 12 additional novels, Ron Goulart was hired to become Robeson.

Reviews

[Little Timmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Of all the pulp era heroes few stand out above the crowd, Doc Savage is one of these. With his 5 aides and cousin he adventures across the world. Fighting weird menaces, master criminals and evil scientists Doc and the Fab 5 never let you down for a great read. These stories have all you need; fast paced action, weird mystery, and some humor as the aides spat with each other. My highest recommendation.

[Roger · Rating 3 out of 5]

It has been several decades since I read a Doc Savage novel. I'm not talking about the fun pastiches Will Murray has been writing, but rather an original to the first series novel, published in the thirties or forties. I ended up reading two of them, so we will publish a review of each.

The Talking Devil-I actually enjoyed The Talking Devil quite a bit, because if featured a very wily and original way to attack and defeat the Man of Bronze. I was delighted that I did not figure out who the Big Bad was too, though I admit I should have seen it coming. More than anything else though, what made this book interesting was "hearing" Doc's own opinion on his Crime College, and just how much importance he places on it. I have always had a problem reconciling the idea that Doc knows American law (he is a presumably better lawyer than his aide Ham Brooks,and Brooks is allegedly one of greatest attorneys ever produced by Harvard) with Doc's willingness to totally disregard almost every article of American jurisprudence by performing brain surgery on criminals to "cure" them of their criminal tendencies-whether they want the operation or not. Here Doc states the justifications for his actions. Still immoral as far as I am concerned.

The Ten Ton Snakes-Ack!. Not so good adventure. Doc is at turns angry and introspective-both traits not in character with the Doc Savage I know and love. And there is simply no way Doc would discuss his early childhood, or lack of it, with anyone not in his inner circle of confidants. The best part about this novel is the mystery of why a crate of snakeskins weighs so much, and then suddenly weighs so much less. You will love the answer though I doubt you will love much about this book besides that.

[Dennis · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Ten Ton Snakes takes place in New York City and in Brazil. It seems like the writing of the Doc Savage novels have taken a darker, edgier feel to them. In the past few installments, swearing has entered the contentual framework of the books. Words such as “Damn” and “Hell” have appeared. Not liberally so, enough to give heightened realism to the tales. Also a bit more graphic description of killing. This is 1943 books for adolescent boys. I’m just noting but not criticizing the works.

Monk and Renny help Doc Savage try to figure the mystery behind the weighty snakes. Ham is away in Europe trying to assist with the Hitler problem. Long Tom and Johnny are not mentioned. One point of contention in the book. At one point a mysterious substance (from a meteor?) is studied by Renny. Renny the engineer. Could he have experience with something like this? Maybe so. He has done work with building dams and tunnels. Maybe bring in Johnny, the geologist, into the story. I’m just saying. Another thing, Doc at one point gets angry and almost yells at Monk and another character who are arguing. Doc also verbally tells of his upbringing to a couple of characters in the book. Later he reflects on his upbringing and laments that he missed out on a normal upbringing and missed out on opportunities that he may missed due to his scientific education and training. It is for these reasons that this book stands out for me.


The Ten Ton Snakes was authored by Lester Dent and was published May, 1945.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first Doc Savage story appeared in 1933 and the series ran in pulp and later digest format into 1949. Bantam reprinted the entire series in paperback with wonderful, iconic covers starting in the 1960's. Doc was arguably the first great modern superhero with a rich background, continuity, and mythos. The characterizations were far richer than was common for the pulps; his five associates and their sometimes-auxiliary, Doc's cousin Pat, and the pets Chemistry and Habeas Corpus, all had very distinctive characteristics and their byplay was frequently more entertaining that the current adventure-of-the-month. The settings were also fascinating: Doc's Fortress of Solitude, the Hidalgo Trading Company (which served as a front for his armada of vehicles), and especially the mysterious 86th floor headquarters all became familiar haunts to the reader, and the far-flung adventures took the intrepid band to exotic and richly-described locations all over the world. The adventures were always fast-paced and exciting, from the early apocalyptic world-saving extravaganzas of the early days to the latter scientific-detective style shorter works of the post-World War Two years. There were always a few points that it was difficult to believe along the way, but there were always more ups than downs, and there was never, ever a dull moment. The Doc Savage books have always been my favorite entertainments... I was always, as Johnny would say, superamalgamated!

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Talking Devil: The plot isn't the best, but the story is a personal one for Doc, being discredited and attacked. He's on the run from the law (it happens from time to time), but the unique twist here is his medical prowess are put into question, as well as his ethical superiority for his upstate "college." This is often a topic in modern stories/comics of his, but one of the rare ones from long ago.

The Ten Ton Snakes: The plot for this one is also weak, BUT, this story brings human flaws into Doc's character - something very rarely seen. He has fears and self doubt. There is a unique tension in the story rare for a Doc Savage adventure.

Both stories are well worth your time reading.

[Ronald]

read The Talking Devil some time in 1985