John Hamilton, who plays Flash's father Professor Gordon, is best known to 1950s TV fans as editor Perry White of Adventures of Superman.
Chapter Titles:
- 1. The Purple Death
- 2. Freezing Torture
- 3. Walking Bombs
- 4. The Destroying Ray
- 5. The Palace of Peril
- 6. Flaming Death
- 7. Land of the Dead
- 8. The Fiery Abyss
- 9. The Pool of Peril
- 10. The Death Mist
- 11. Stark Treachery
- 12. Doom of the Dictator
In the final chapter before his demise, Ming is looking to escape. In the endings of most serial episodes the hero is is the one trying to escape (then thought to be killed - until the next week). This might suggest another sequel or fourth Flash Gordon serial. However, after 7 December 1941 and the attack on Pearl Harbor, just 3 years after Orson Welles' infamous 'War of the Worlds' radio broadcast simulating an attack from from outer space, the production of "space travel" films were put on hold.
King Features Syndicate released the 3 Flash Gordon serials as well as "Buck Rogers," Red Barry", "Ace Drummond" and other comic strip cliffhangers to US TV in 1951. Because the television show Flash Gordon , starring Steve Holland as Flash, was in syndication in late 1953, the three Universal Pictures' Flash Gordon theatrical serials were retitled for TV broadcast. Flash Gordon became "Space Soldiers", Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars became "Space Soldiers' Trip to Mars", and Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe became "Space Soldiers Conquer the Universe". To this day both the 3 original "Flash Gordon" serial titles and the 3 "Space Soldiers" titles are used.
This serial was based on a Flash Gordon comic strip continuity involving Prince Barin and his Tree People, of "Frigia".