Over the 12 chapters of the series Gene has to deal with contact with the lost empire of Queen Tika (called Murania) and her Thunder Riders. Why an underground civilization has cavalry I don't know, but they would ride up to the surface wearing breathing masks given the different air pressures between the two worlds.
These strange horsemen are the inspiration for Frankie & Betsy Baxter (played by Frankie Darro and Betsy King Ross) base the Radio Ranch's fan club off the legend of the Thunder Riders.
The Radio Ranch is used by Gene for his radio broadcasts. He has a strange contract where if he misses even a single broadcast his show will be cancelled and he will lose the Ranch. Not a problem because Gene is a stand up guy who lives up to his responsibilities....
....that is until Professor Beetson (played by Frank Glendon) shows up looking for radium. He had discovered deposits of it on the Radio Ranch land and now wants to get control of the Ranch. Given Autry's strange contract the Beetson begins scheming to get the radio show cancelled.
Adding a third faction to this conflict Queen Tika has become worried about surface dwellers from getting too close to her tyrannical realm. She makes moves to deal with Autry.
As Gene gets caught up in Queen Tika's plans he discovers there is a rebel faction in Murania that want to overthrow the Queen. With all these factions the action is frequent and has a bit of variation to it.
The series has lots of fun stuff; robots that look like they are wearing cowboy hats, some trick riding, ray guns, some nice views of the city of Murania, and much more. Of course Gene Autry also manages to get in a song or two.
If you get a chance to see the Phantom Empire it would be time well spent. It takes science fiction and mixes it with some good-old western action creating something that has never been seen before.
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