Tiger 17th November 1973

There were several cliffhangers in last week's issue that I am looking forward to seeing the resolution of this week. Johnny Cougar, Martin's Marvellous Mini, and Tallon of the Track all vie for my attention, but first, there is the small matter of Roy Of The Rovers and their game against Wakeford.  

Tiger
17th November 1973

Roy Of The Rovers

Wakeford got off to a fast start last week in Roy of the Rovers. This week Roy tempers that by slowing play down and passing the ball, thus tiring Wakeford to Rovers level. It takes some time, but eventually, this pays off as Roy scores the equalizer in the final minutes. The end is a cliche, as is much of the match, and this week's episode feels like a placeholder until the broader storyline picks up again. There is hope that the larger story of the road by-pass will be resolved next week as Roy looks to get things settled before the replay.  I felt this week's Roy Of the Rovers was a little weak, and for me, the best part of the story was the first color panel of Charlie pulling off a great save. Luckily there is plenty more to look forward to in the coming pages.

 Rating: 4/10

Best Line: "Oh, no..it's there!  Where the heck did Race come from...?"

Johnny Cougar with Splash Gorton

Johnny's match with the imposing Tovaritch comes to its conclusion this week, and after several weeks of intense action, I have to say that this week is a letdown. After several rounds of back and forth, the story this week begins with Johnny taking control as they each grab each other in submission holds. The high point this week comes immediately after as they both take to the robes looking to body-check their opponent. This results in CJohnny catching Tovaritch with a boot which swings the rest of the match his way as he goes on the offense. In a dramatic final move, Johnny uses his body to throw Tovaritch over his head and into the ring post for a knock-out win. It sounds good as I see it here, put in the comic it never comes to life as much as I hoped it would. However, the writers do sow some seeds for future storylines as Tovaritch promises to train another champion worthy of taking on the almighty Johnny Cougar. I was invested in this story throughout, but the ending leaves me cold, and I can't quite pinpoint why. As always though, things move pretty fast and another adventure awaits us next week with a new start.   

Rating: 6/10

Best Line:  "Super show, Daddy-O... Now that big boaster knows who's the top man around here!"

Martin's Marvellous Mini

Martins's Marvellous Mini is a story of two parts this week, as the first page deals with the resolution of last weeks cliff hanger, and the second page sets up what's going to happen next. We last left Tiny on an out-of-control bedstead rolling downhill, while martin did his best to catch him. With some skillful driving, some good timing, and a shot of luck, Martin manages to catch Tiny on the roof of George. However, they are still being pursued, and manage to shake the thugs and hide in the car. It is this that brings us to the second half of the adventure, as they find themselves caught up in a race, a stock car race on ice! I wasn't taken by the first half of this week's story, but I'm loving the second half set up and I can't wait to see how our pals will go in the stock car race. As always, this strip gets an extra boost as it is in color, but it deserves it as it consistently delivers action and adventure. How can one little car get into so many madcap adventures, I just don't know.     

 Rating: 7/10

Best line: "On ice! We can't afford to slip up in this race!"

Tallon Of the Track

Things looked grim for Jo Tallon as she burst from the burning building last week, only to find herself hurtling at a concrete wall. Some amazing riding in the first few panels this time around, see her avoid disaster as she jumps her bike sideways, letting the tyres take the impact, before she crashes to earth, shaken but not hurt. Meanwhile, her bike isn't so lucky and is a mangled mess. The veer alert Jo spots the two men who started the fire and rushes their vehicle, hurling her crash helmet through the windshield, before they make a desperate getaway.  From here the story becomes a detective story as Jo finds a vital clue in the form of a folder of matches with the name of a Turkish bathhouse. I think we can see where the story will go from here, but with a strong character like Jo Tallon anything could happen, and my thoughts are rapidly moving towards the next issue already. This is a solid installment, with both action and intrigue, and things are well-balanced as we move forward. We have moved away from the action on the track, but the story is still engaging throughout.  

Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "L-look! She managed to get out of that inferno alive!"

The Tigers

Chunky's punting adventure picks up as they have their first try in a punt that Chunky borrows. As expected, there are a couple of spills, before the gang runs into Ron Burton as his mates. Ron tries to tip Chunky's punt but instead tips up the wrong punt. After being thrown in the water by some older angry boys, Ron swears revenge in the race a couple of days later. As the race begins, Chunky looks for a fast start but only succeeds in throwing mud into Ron's ear, the story ending as again Ron swears to get revenge. Sometimes I enjoy the humor in The Tigers, and other times I find the story tiresome as a never-ending back and forth between Chunky and Ron. Sadly, this is the mood the story finds me in this week, and as much as I try to focus on it, I find it all too similar to what I've seen before. Maybe it's just me, and the miserable weather, but this one's not for me. A solid story, but I'm scoring it lowly.     

 Rating: 4/10

Best line: "Oh, no! we-we've sunk the wrong punt!"

Football Family Robinson 

Plenty of football action in this week's Football Family Robinson. The drama of Kevin's threatening phone call is temporarily put to one side as the game against Westhall Wanderers continues. After a spectacular goal from Ron puts the family up, Westhall equalizes with a goal that could uncharitably be called a fluke. At half time the plot swings back to Kevin being threatened as he tells Fred Robinson what has transpired. This doesn't bode well for the second half as Fred takes the picture with his mind still lingering on what Kevin has told him. We end this week with the sideline conversation surmising that if Fred carries on daydreaming they could lose the match. The story here treads a fine line between on-field and off-field action, and both overlap, driving the story on. I particularly like the artwork this week, it gives it a proper 1970s feel, and the hairstyles and clothing firmly root it in the time it was written. Maybe a little more Viv would be nice, but it's great as it is, and I have to move on from my love for Viv!   

Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "But one thing's for sure. No one is going to scare me off with threats!" 

Skid Solo

I yearn for Skid Solo to the track as we have another curious between-season story. This week skid is in an unnamed Central European city when he is caught up in a "follow-that-man!' story. Skid almost hits a cyclist, before a plainclothes police officer leaps into Skid's car and tells him to give chase. The police officer looks to shoot the cyclist, but Skid isn't havening it and stops the vehicle. The frustrated police officer arrests him and Skid drives to the Police Headquarters, where they arrive just in time to see the cyclist has been apprehended. That's just merely the beginning of the story, as the cyclist pulls out a hand grenade and demands Skid drive him to the border. After crashing through the border, Skid, the cyclist, and the plainclothed policeman are arrested. It is then revealed that the cyclist is a bank robber and facing a long stretch, leading Skid to conclude that you can't judge by appearances. The conclusion is fine, but it takes a long time to get there. As much as I love the artwork, and I can't stress that enough, I do find myself losing interest in these one-off Skid stories, and I can only think of a future time when we are back into the Grand Prix racing. Solid, but not my cup of tea. 

Rating: 5/10

Best line:  "Frontier ahead! Sure you didn't want to stop and talk it over?"   

A Horse Called Ugly

Julian Carr's horse, Guardsman, missed the triple jump in the final panels of  A Horse Called Ugly last week, but both horse and rider recover to make a strong finish and incur no other penalties. Although Julian blames Joe for the fault, every other horse also fails at the triple jump. On the final page and we have Joe and Ugly taking on the course and lining up the triple jump as this week's issue concludes. After the convoluted previous Skid Solo story, I like this for its simplicity and straightforward plot. There is enough action in the story, with plenty left in the tank for the following issue. I never thought I would be hooked by horse action, yet here I am enjoying this story just as much as any other. A pleasant surprise and a fine way to end this week. 

 Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "Let him go, Joe - I've got no time for a rider who blames his horse for his own mistakes" 

Issue final ratings:

Overall: 6/10

Best Story: Football Family Robinson  

Best Line: Johnny Cougar - "Ouch! The big fella thought Cougar would jump over him..and he dived straight into the Indian's knee! That hurt!"

Best Panel: