volume14 1944-1945

série: Tarzan Sunday Pages
dessinateur / scénariste: Hogarth Burne
éditeur: Flying Buttress EO 1996
genre: Aventure
classement: biblio1
date: 1996
format: cartonné avec jaquette
état: TBE
valeur: 30 €
critère: **
remarques: fourteenth volume edited by NBM/Flying Buttress
(NBM being America's first publisher of graphic novels since 1976,
located at New York with imprints such as Flying Buttress Classics
Library, Amerotica, Eurotica and ComicsLit) under the supervision
of Bill Blackbeard out of a sery of 18 volumes,
all being accurate reproduction of the Sunday Pages
in their full colour and in full size, each volume has about 52 pages,

n.b. the sources of these Sunday pages are mainly
from the Los Angeles Times and from the Milwaukee Journal
edited by UFS (United Features Syndicate)



volume 14 1944-1945 with dust jacket from
12.9.1944 (705) to 2.9.1945 (756)
= 52 pages drawn by Burne Hogarth based
on the novel of Edgar Rice Burroughs

Tarzan encounters with shock many of his forest friends
imprisoned in cages and then quickly becomes one
of the trapped specimens himself but
as it turns out, it is all for a great circus
of the golden-domed city of Bakhir, and worse,
the circus is a contrivance to deflect the population's attention
from the evil oil-thirsty plans of the ruler
and two arrogant axis-like foreigners;
the volume includes following episodes (number of pages):
- Tarzan against the Nazis, part two: 27
- Tarzan against Goru-Bongara Monster: 17
- Tarzan against Orizu Khan, part one: 8

no introduction

a) Tarzan against the Nazis, part two (and against
the tyrant Emin-Nagra and the hunter Korojak), p. 705-731 (27)

on the search of the mysterious thundersticks, Tarzan discovers
an encampment where his forest friends are closed in cages,
the hunter Korojak explains to Tarzan that this has been ordered
by his master Emin-Nagra but before further explanation is given,
Tarzan has to return to Bulak's tribe to save
the white ape from the rite of death,
Tarzan escapes with Bulak but dashing both from a broken branch,
they are captured by Emin-Nagra's hunters and taken
to the golden-domed city of Bakhir where two foreigners:
the German Krieger and the Japanese Bushido want to seize
the oil fields of the Bakhir country
>> p. 711 the horde of hardened tough adventurers
accompanying Krieger = the nazi soldiers

at Bakhir, the beasts are made hungry for the circus games
in which Tarzan should be the first victim, but Tarzan is saved
by Tantor his faithful elephant: subdued by Tarzan's courage,
the Bakhir people rebel against their tyrant Emin-Nagra,
but the nazi soldiers fire at the crowd

however Tarzan and his beasts, using the mighty force of Tantor
come to the rescue, they manage to break out of the city
and take refuge in the jungle where Tarzan will train
the survivors of the Bakhir's massacre to guerilla warfare
>> p. 714-716 the circus games
>> p. 717/718 the charge of the mighty Tantor

one day, Tarzan alone makes a raid into the city
and eliminating a guard he disguises himself with his clothes
and by that way he manages to enter the palace of the tyrant,
he is however soon discovered by Korojak but saved
by Bulak the white ape which has followed Tarzan's trail
>> p. 719/720 one of the very few occasions when Tarzan is dressed
>> p. 721 some nice designs of the white ape's faces

meanwhile the whole nazi force is attacking Tarzan's warriors,
but Tarzan has prepared a trap for the nazis by conveying oil
into a river of fire towards the nazi armed forces blocked in a narrow pass,
thus by ruse, men and animals succeed in routing the evil forces
>> p. 719, 721 and 726 Tarzan's and Bulak's narrowing eyes
are a bad omen for their enemies
>> p. 725/726 pollution is not yet a great problem at that time
but it is of course war time
>> p. 728 Tarzan the big tumbler (turning over while flying)
>> p. 729 Achtung said the nazi

repelled, the nazi forces take refuge in the arsenal,
but with a last onslaught, Tarzan sets the arsenal afire
which is destroyed by a mighty explosion
and the villains Emin-Nagra, Korojak and Krieger
meet also their death fate (but what about Bushido?)

b) Tarzan against the monster of Goru Bongara, p.732-748 (17)
Tarzan on his way to his beloved jungle discovers a chaotic jungle
with skeletal remains and he is trapped in a pit from where
he can hear the vibrations o fheavy foot-steps,
he is later on rescued by the fabulous pygmies
of the African jungle led by their king Bokolo;
the pygmies bring Tarzan to their village in order to sacrifice him
to their god together with the young lady Lurulai,
but at this very moment, the monster, a reptile colossus
named Goru Bongara by the pygmies invades the village
>> p. 733 the fabulous pygmies and
>> p. 735 the pygmy village with its grotesque idol

Tarzan taking Lurulai in his arms tries to escape from the monster,
but they are going to be caught, when Bokolo shows them
a narrow passage in the mountain that cannot be entered by the monster
>> p. 738 Goru Bongara, the giant carnivorous reptile
>> p. 741 the now warm and friendly pygmy people

Tarzan, clever as ever, plans to destroy Goru Bongara
by using its own power, for that purpose Tarzan
with the pygmies prepares a formidable trap
against the beast and finally with a big spear,
Tarzan gives the death thrust to Goru Bongara
>> p. 744 the trap set up by Tarzan to eliminate the giant reptile
>> p. 744 from that page on, Tarzan wears again
a leopard-coloured loin-cloth

c) Tarzan with Prince Kurdu the Tartar against Orizu Khan
p. 749-756 = 8 pages
after his victory on the beast, Tarzan meets Kurdu the Tartar
on the way to reconquest his kingdom against Orizu Khan
>> p. 749 the story of Kurdu, son of a great khan
whose throne was usurpated by Kurdu's uncle Orizu Khan
and his wife Sulama, Lurulai being Sulama's sister

because of Lurulai who is considered as a spy by Kurdu,
Tarzan and Kurdu start a fight but Kurdu is no match
for the mighty lord of the jungle, however Tarzan, victorious,
accepts to give command of the party to Kurdu but
before assailing Orizu Khan, Kurdu must take possession
of the sceptre and sword being the symbols of justice
as well as power to his subjects

later on Lurulai is obliged by a spy of Orizu Khan
to lure the rebels into a trap, Kurdu follows the trail of Lurulai
and rescues her in the desert, Lurulai declares her loyality
and love to Kurdu, but Kurdu still does not trust Lurulai whereas
Tarzan is scouting ahead of the rebel forces
>> p. 756 the famous kiss of Lurulai that has been
censored in the French edition Hachette

>> a good volume of Tarzan's adventures,
particularly with regard to the design, the first story
is rather grotesque but the two others re quite interesting,
espc. the story with Kurdu with a good plot,
and again faces of men and apes are brilliantly drawn by Hogarth

n.b. it is wartime and Hogarth - like other comics designers -
has felt obliged to send his hero Tarzan
(as captain America, Superman and others)
fighting the enemy of the nation, in that case the Nazis
(but not the Japanese!) however these episodes are of course
produced for political and advertising purposes
and the artistic style is not as well expressed as previously done
(also for the narratives)

couvertures:
Copyright 2008 - 2024 G. Rudolf