Colonel James Braddock

Colonel James Thomas Braddock is a fictional character and the protagonist in the Missing In Action series of films. He is portrayed by actor and six time world karate champion Chuck Norris. Braddock is stated to be “Colonel in the armies’ Special Forces, prisoner of war for 8 months, and missing in action for 7 years.”

James Thomas Braddock
First appearance	Missing In Action
Last appearance	Braddock: Missing In Action III
Portrayed by	Chuck Norris
In-universe information
Gender	Male
Title	Colonel
Occupation	Soldier
Spouse	Lin Tang Cang (deceased)
Children	Van Tang Can
Nationality	American

Biography Missing In Action 2 The Beginning

In 1972 Colonel James Braddock and his team were captured and held in a POW camp ran by the sadistic Colonel Yin after they’re chopper was shot down during a rescue mission. Colonel Yin forces the POWs to grow opium for a French drug runner named Francois. Colonel Yin tells the POWs that they will be released if Colonel Braddock confesses to his war crimes against Vietnam, which Braddock does not do. In an attempt to change Braddock’s mind Yin tells Braddock that his wife is planning to remarry and that he had been declared dead, but even after hearing this Braddock refuses to confess. Braddock is then forced by Yin to fight his former friend turned traitor Captain David Nester. Despite the fact the Braddock’s feet had been shackled he manages to win the fight. Yin continued to torture Braddock trying to convince him to sign the confession, but Braddock never did. Braddock did eventually sign the confession so that his friend Master Sergeant Ernest Franklin, who had malaria, could get the medicine he needed to live. Yin injects Franklin with they are told to be antibiotics. They later find out that Franklin was actually injected with a lethal dose of opium. Yin then burns Franklin alive, in front of Braddock. Braddock is able to escape after faking his death and killing the guard. Braddock is able to quietly sneak out of the POW camp without being seen. Braddock goes to the hut where the Vietnamese kept their weapons and, after quietly killing the guards, steals all the weapons that he can. After Braddock is well equipped he returns to the camp and frees his friend Lieutenant Anthony Mazilli and they flee into the jungle, with Yin’s men right behind them. After Braddock helps Mazilli escape, he kills all but one of the men that Yin sent in after him. Braddock is eventually reunited with his friend who had escaped earlier, Corporal Lawrence Opelka. Braddock and Opelka return to the POW camp to free the other captured soldiers and find that Mazilli had been captured again. Nester helps free Mazilli by killing the guards before he is killed himself. Braddock and the rest of the captured soldiers are able to kill the Vietnamese soldiers and escape. Yin is the only Vietnamese that managed to live and thinks that he has escaped death, until he is confronted by Braddock. Braddock and Yin engage in battle, which ends with Braddock pushing Yin’s chest bone into his heart, killing him. Before Braddock leaves the camp he blows up the building Yin was in.

Missing In Action

It has been a year since Colonel James Braddock’s escape from the POW camp in Vietnam, but he still has nightmares about his time in Vietnam. Braddock is asked by an American delegation team to go to Vietnam to see if there are any MIAs there. When he arrives the General in charge makes some disparaging remarks to Braddock and they accuse him of crimes against them. Braddock later goes to the General, quietly taking out his guards, and demands to know where the MIAs are. The General tells him and attempts to kill Braddock, only to be killed by Braddock. However, the General’s guards are alerted to Braddock’s presence, but Braddock is able to escape. Braddock is commanded to leave Vietnam the next day. Braddock goes to Thailand to meet Jack Tucker, an old army buddy turned black market kingpin, and try to get the MIAs out. On his way to meet Tucker Braddock is attacked by a Vietnamese hit man, but manages to kill the assassin. Braddock buys weapons, a raft, a chopper, and a chopper pilot. While staying in a hotel Braddock is attacked by another assassin, but the assassin is killed by Braddock. Braddock finds out that a man who tortured him when he was a prisoner in Vietnam is the one trying to kill him. When Braddock and Tucker prepare travel to Vietnam, more assassins try to kill them, but they are defeated by Braddock. After disposing of the assassins Braddock and Tucker set out to rescue the MIAs. While on the boat Braddock is attacked by the man who tortured him in Vietnam and manages to kill him. Braddock moves stealthily through the jungles of Vietnam and eventually reaches the POW camp where the MIAs are being held. Braddock quietly sets up C-4 bombs throughout the camp. After the bombs go off Braddock eliminates all of the Vietnamese soldiers in the camp. Braddock frees some prisoners and they tell Braddock that the MIAs are being transported to another camp. Braddock frees the MIAs after taking out the Vietnamese soldiers that were transporting them. Braddock, Tucker, and the MIAs make their way to the river, but are attacked by Vietnamese troops. After eliminating many Vietnamese soldiers Braddock and the MIAs escape, but Tucker is killed. Braddock takes the MIAs to the Vietnamese council, proving that there are still MIAs in Vietnam.

Braddock: Missing In Action III

Colonel James Braddock had believed his Asian wife Lin Tan Cang to be dead since the war, but he hears from a missionary, Reverend Polanski, that Lin is not only alive, but has a 12-year-old son named Van Tang Cang, who is Braddock’s son. At first, Braddock does not believe it, but when coldblooded CIA boss Littlejohn tells Braddock to disregard that information, that’s when Braddock knows it’s true. Braddock heads back to Vietnam through Parachute deployment and with the help of an Australian C-47 pilot. After parachute descent, Braddock outruns Vietnamese Navy Patrol Boats with a Jet-Powered speed boat. Reverend Polanski leads Braddock to Lin and Van. Attempting to flee the country, Braddock, Lin, and Van are captured by the soldiers of General Quoc. Quoc kills Lin on the spot, and has his soldiers take Braddock and Van to a compound to be tortured later. Later, Braddock overpowers his guards, frees Van, and heads for the mission that is run by Polanski. Quoc anticipates the move and takes all the mission children into captivity, along with Van and Polanski, and Braddock sets out to free them all from Quoc by going to his weapons cache that he had hidden a few days prior. He equips himself with a modified Heckler & Koch G3 battle rifle with an underslung 6-shot rotary grenade launcher and attachments including a spring-loaded bayonet. He raids the camp killing the guards and loading up one of the trucks with all the children including his son, Van and the Reverend. Soon after escaping they are followed and attacked by a Vietnamese-captured American UH-1 Huey. When they escape Braddock takes the children on foot and finds a Vietnamese airstrip. Braddock silently takes out the guards and hijacks a C-47 Dakota plane. The plane is then assaulted by Vietnamese guards causing fuel to leak out of the plane, eventually crashing just outside the Cambodian-Thailand border. Braddock then raids the border station where American and Thailand troops are watching on the other side cheering Braddock on. When Braddock kills all the opposing troops more poor in. As Braddock continues to battle the opposing troops he is injured by a grenade. When General Quoc then flies in on a Vietnamese Mil-24 Hind gunship thinking he has Braddock all to himself, two American helicopters on the side of the Thai border confront Quoc’s gunship. Taunting each other to cross, Braddock and his son Van fire at Quoc’s ship hitting the pilot and the gunship crashes, killing Quoc. Then all the American troops pour over the border and bridge and help the wounded Braddock and the children.

Skills

Colonel James Braddock is a highly skilled soldier. Braddock’s reputation precedes him, especially in Vietnam. This is seen in Missing In Action when the General in charge states, “Colonel Braddock, I’ve heard much about you.” This is also seen in Braddock: Missing In Action III when General Quoc states, “When I received the report that a strange looking boat had outrun my gunboats and heading towards Ho Chi Minh City I took the privilege of assuming it was you, Colonel Braddock.”

Colonel James Braddock is an excellent hand-to-hand combatant. Braddock is extremely skilled in martial arts, mainly Karate. Although Braddock’s fighting skill can be seen in all three Missing In Action films, his fighting skill is best seen in Missing In Action 2 The Beginning. In Missing In Action 2 The Beginning Braddock is seen defeating and killing the martial artist Colonel Yin almost effortlessly. Braddock is also seen defeating military trained fighter Captain David Nester, despite the fact that his feet were shackled.

Captain James Braddock is a highly skilled marksman. In all three Missing In Action films Braddock’s shooting ability is seen. He is skilled with many guns. Throughout the Missing In Action films Braddock is seen using an M-16, a LAW rocket, a MAC-10, and a Heckler & Koch G3 battle rifle.