At last Chop Chop have money to burn... would be happier with money to spend. 
Blackhawk #55 is an issue of the series Blackhawk (Volume 1) with a cover date of August, 1952.
Synopsis for "Red Ransom"
Chop Chop's cousin Wah Jung has invited the Blackhawks to have dinner at his home in America. However, he has just received word that their Uncle Wah Po has been arrested by the communist Chinese government. Chinese officials have begun arresting citizens with relatives in the West, then demanding that their families pay a ransom, or they will execute their prisoners. The Blackhawks agree to go to China to try to free Uncle Wah. Once there, Chop Chop poses as a Chinese citizen with a wealthy brother who lives in New York City. When he is arrested, the other Blackhawks find where the kidnap victims are being held. They free Uncle Wah, but as they try to leave, they disturb a flock of pigeons with bamboo flutes tied to their tails which the guards use as alarms. The Blackhawks are captured, and Blackhawk is taken to General Klang, a warlord turned soldier who takes great pride in the medals he has won. Klang is convinced the Blackhawks would not risk their lives for one peasant. He tells Blackhawk that he knows they came to attempt to kidnap him so that Klang would tell them the location of the secret weapon the Russian scientist Strogoff is developing for the Chinese.
The Blackhawks and Uncle Wah are placed on a junk and sent up a river to the military's high command. However, it is the Chinese New Year, and he guards become distracted by the fireworks. The Blackhawks escape and hide under a parade dragon. Blackhawk phones General Klang and, posing as Strogoff, tells Klang that Stalin has decided to award him a medal and he should come there that night to receive it. Wah Po volunteers to hide on the General's car. When it reaches its destination Wah Po radios Blackhawk with the location. However, the base is heavily camouflaged, so Wah Po tells Blackhawk to look for a white bird. The Blackhawks fly to the location and see a large white bird-shaped kite flying directly over the base. Blackhawk hesitates to bomb the plant while Wah Po is so close, but Chop Chop explains that his uncle is willing to give up his own life to save others. Blackhawk drops the bomb, destroying the weapon.
Appearing in "Red Ransom"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
- Red Chinese government
- many Red Chinese soldiers
- General Klang
- Strogoff (Behind the scenes)
Other Characters:
- Wah Po
- Wah Jung
Locations:
Items:
- belt radio
Vehicles:
Synopsis for Chop Chop: "Money To Burn"
Chop Chop receives a telegram that a distant relative has died and left everything to him. Chop Chop goes to see the lawyer Wong Fu in Chinatown in America. The lawyer informs him that his relative kept his money in the attic and there is too much to count. Chop Chop checks into the largest suite in the best hotel and throws a large party. As the party is breaking up, the lawyer arrives with the money. Unfortunately, it is old Chinese bank notes, and though there are several large bags, it amounts to less than $100 in US currency. Chop Chop must work in the hotel kitchen to pay the bills.
Appearing in Chop Chop: "Money To Burn"
Featured Characters:
Other Characters:
- Wong Fu
Locations:
- United States of America
- Chinatown
- Chinatown
Synopsis for "The Rocketmen"
The Blackhawks visit President Braga of Kahara. Kahara is a remote, mountainous country with only one airfield which is heavily guarded. This keeps the country protected from tyrants. Suddenly, there is an explosion from the armory. The Blackhawks pursue the saboteurs who put on personal flying machines. The Blackhawks take to their planes, but the Rocketmen are more maneuverable and have ink bombs which obscure the Blackhawks' vision. They set their autopilots to land, but Blackhawk sees an empty flying machine. He leaps to it and follows the Rocketmen to their mountaintop headquarters. He is captured and taken to their leader, a man so obsessed with Leonardo da Vinci, he has taken his name, and dresses in 15th-century garb. The flying machines are based on the first da Vinci's designs, and when Blackhawk meets him, he is painting a portrait of a woman he calls Lisa, who is identical to the Mona Lisa. Later, Lisa breaks Blackhawk out of his cell and returns his belt radio to him. The Blackhawk planes arrive, with nets slung between them, to scoop up the Rocketmen. Leonardo confronts Blackhawk and Lisa. When he had seen her resemblance to the Mona Lisa, he had killed her husband and then thought he had won her over, but she had been waiting to take her revenge. Da Vinci and Blackhawk grab flying machines and begin a pistol battle in the skies. Blackhawk hits Leonardo's fuel tank and he goes down in flames.
Appearing in "The Rocketmen"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
- Leonardo da Vinci (modern namesake) (Single appearance; dies)
- his Rocketmen
Other Characters:
- Leonardo da Vinci (Original) (Mentioned only)
- Lisa
- President Braga
Locations:
- Kahara, remote mountain republic
Items:
- belt radio
Vehicles:
- Da Vinci's one-man rocket-powered helicopter-harness flying devices (one destroyed, most captured)
- Lockheed F-90Bs
Synopsis for "The Horror Bomb"
One day, the Blackhawks receive a message from a secret transmitter somewhere in Rugaria. It reads:
- "Need your help at once. Voda will launch new secret weapon tomorrow. The last time I saw--
Klev"
Blackhawk recognizes the last line as a reference to the song "The Last Time I Saw Paris." It is a clue where to meet, as the capital of Rugaria is called "the Paris of the eastern world." The Blackhawks fly to Rugaria and manage to avoid their defenses long enough for Blackhawk to bail out near the capital, before the rest of the team land and are taken prisoner. Blackhawk finds an apartment building with "The Last Time I Saw Paris" coming from an open window. He enters and finds Klev, a beautiful lady engineer, who has been working at the Voda Armament Plant since before the tyrants came to power. She has learned that they have just built the largest bomb ever and are planning on using it tomorrow on the neighboring land of Yugovia. In the morning, Blackhawk and Klev make their way to the Horror Bomb, which is as large as a blimp. Killing some sentries along the way, they steal the flying bomb and Blackhawk radios his men who promptly escape from the prison they are in, which they very easily do. The team find their F90Bs, and take off, then as they dogfight the Rugarian interceptors, Blackhawk and Klev set the Horror Bomb's controls to destroy the arms plant, then bail out.
Appearing in "The Horror Bomb"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- Klev
Locations:
- Blackhawk Island
- Rugaria, an Iron Curtain country
- Voda Armament Works (Destroyed)
- Yugovia, a neighboring country
Items:
- belt radio
- Horror Bomb
Vehicles:
- Blackhawk Lockheed F-90Bs
Notes
- In the 1st story, Chop Chop's cousin Wah Jung looks like a handsome young man, while Chop Chop still is a big-toothed, jug-eared, pointy-headed, roly-poly caricature. Chop Chop is also the only Chinese character in this story, good or evil, who speaks with the "comical" dialogue.
- Blackhawk carries a cigarette lighter.
- The "rocketmen" in the 3rd story fly with helicopter harnesses, which show no sign of any rocket-type propulsion.
- Blackhawk Lockheed F90Bs are equipped with automatic robot controls, capable of safely landing the planes. They also are capable of taking off, maneuvering in combat, and landing, in pairs, with large nets slung between them.
- The Horror Bomb has not yet detonated at the end of the 3rd Blackhawk story, but Blackhawk and the defecting engineer apparently believe that it will destroy only the Voda Armament Works and not the nearby capital city.
- Also featured in this issue of Blackhawk was:
- "Return to Danger" (text story)
See Also