Tiger 15th December 1973

I can't believe how quickly Sunday afternoon has rolled around again, I feel like I've only just put down last week's issue, and here I am once again, comic in hand, a cup of tea, and an hour worth of peace and quiet ahead of me. There was plenty happening in last week's issue, let's pick up the action and see where we are.  

Tiger
15th December 1973

Skid Solo

Skid Solo kicks off this week, but it's Sandy's school friend that captures my attention with a superb brown coat and some yellow trousers. The colour front page truly does wonders for setting the scene. This week is a typical Skid story where he's asked to test drive a vehicle of some description. In this case, it is Sandy's school-chum, Ian McBain, and his experimental race car. What unfolds contains very little in surprise, but is classic Skid Solo and well told in every aspect. After an unconvincing test drive, the secret of the car is revealed, a wind intake that when turned up generates an extra  30 miles an hour in speed. With this knowledge in hand, Skid takes another drive, returning to Sandy and friend on foot, having crashed the car. The panel of the car crash hits my funny bone in just the right spot, Skid has crashed into a sign that says "Go by rail." This panel and the front page are the best part of the story for me, and the rest of the story basks in the glow of these panels. The crux of the story is revealed when Skid tells Sandy that although McBain built a faster car, he didn't build better brakes.  The story may seem slight, but it was enjoyable enough and didn't need any extra drama to get me from beginning to end. Skid is such a nice fellow, it's impossible not to like any story he is in.  

Rating: 5.5/10

Best line:  "Bit of paint scraped off it, but no great harm done! We'll need a pick-up truck to tow it back to the pits!" 

Roy Of The Rovers

Poor old Roy was having nightmares about his opponent, Len Farmer, when last saw him in the last issue, and we carry right on with this storyline with this issue. I am reminded that we are firmly in the 1970s as Roy takes his troubles to his manager, who pretends to ring a psychiatrist which has Roy leaving saying no thanks he'll handle it himself. The coach and manager may laugh about it, but we have come a long way since then when it comes to mental health, and one certainly would see a big club nowadays taking players' mental welfare far more seriously. The story turns to on-field action, and Roy is played out of position to try and counter Len farmer, a move that seemingly backfires as Len is all over Roy early on, and we see Roy fall into the trap of trying to take him on himself, leaving the rest of the team vulnerable. I found this issue uneven, both in pacing and story, and paired with the fact that it hasn't aged particularly well I found Roy this week to be disappointing. Still, the great thing with these comics is there's always next week,  so hopefully, that will be more to my tastes.  

 Rating: 5/10

Best Line: "Hee! Hee! Ha! Ha! Haaa! I've heard everything now! The great Roy Race...having nightmares about centre-backs!"

Martin's Marvellous Mini

Martin's Marvellous Mini is a story of two halves this week. First, we have them scrambling for money to enter the round Britain rally, and then the second half the beginning of the rally itself. There is some humour as they get their entrance fee together, the panel where they sell some possessions is amusing, especially seeing them with golf clubs, a transistor radio, and a fishing rod. Luckily the good people of Buxton come to their aid, donating the entrance fee with a door-to-door collection. This sets us up for the rally itself, which although is only beginning has the potential for plenty of scrapes and japes. The boys are delayed from the start by the inevitable traffic jam and then accumulate penalty points throughout the first day, before finding themselves in a flood. All par for the course for Martin, Tiny, and George, but just the sort of content that keeps me coming back week after week. This week's issue will fade from memory soon enough, but I enjoyed every minute I was reading it, and as always Martin's Marvellous Mini remains a firm favorite. 

 Rating: 6.5/10

Best line: "Thirty-five penalty points...on the first day! It's the rain that's holding us up now!"

The Tigers

Tigers were disturbing the peace in the library when we last saw them, and in this episode, things come to a head with bookshelves, books, and the Tigers all ending up on the floor. Thank goodness Chunky is so lucky because he ends up with the very book they need in his hands. I understand that Chunky's luck is the central premise of this story, but sometimes I just shake my head and sigh. We are in familiar territory with the Tigers taking a train them biking cross country while Burton does his best to keep up. Of course there's a rampaging bull because this just wouldn't be The Tigers if there wasn't a bull chasing boys on bikes at some stage. The most evocative panel is the final one when they find the aptly named Gravestone Manor,  and if next week can live up to only a fraction of its potential I shall be very happy indeed. Reading this strip I didn't like it, but putting my thoughts down on paper I find I enjoyed it far more than I thought. There's a lesson there somewhere, but I don't know what it is.  

 Rating: 6/10

Best line: "I've made the bull do us a favour, fellers. There's Gravestone manor. We've found it!"

Johnny Cougar with Splash Gorton

Johnny takes a back seat for this issue as Splash heads underwater for the treasure ship. With the villains out of the way on shore, there is plenty of focus on Splash doing his job, and after a page of setup and Splash getting into his costume, we are finally underwater and at the site of the sunken ship. the panels depicting Splash working on the ship aren't the most gripping, it is only in the final half page where the story gets interesting with the appearance of an octopus. With its tentacles wrapped firmly around Splash's head, there is finally some welcome drama. I keep thinking I have seen Splash and an Octopus before, but perhaps I am merely remembering this particular story. It is a striking visual, and I forget all that has come before and will take this image with me as we go forward into the next issue. 

Rating: 5/10

Best Line:  "Fear not, little ice-bird...Splash heap good in water, he not take any chances!"

 A Horse Called Ugly

I thought that last week was the end of Joe and Ugly's South America adventure, but it seems not. This is a strange issue, and the story takes some unusual twists in the two pages it runs. The most striking thing is there is no horse action at all, we only see Ugly once, and that is when he is loaded into a train. But before we get to that, we need to rewind to why Joe is still in South America. While the rest of the team is preparing to return to Britain, Joe auctions off a cup he won in Britain, earning himself two hundred dollars, enough for him and Ugly to further their adventures in South America. Bidding farewell to Angela, they board a plane across the continent, and then a mountain train we're Jow charms the locals in his usual way. It's not all a smooth ride though, and the train comes to a sudden halt. Fearing for Ugly, Joe disembarks whereupon out of the smoke a mysterious figure throws a blanket over him. I find that even though this is an unusual issue, I still like it. I like that it has a different feel from what has come previously, and even if the setup was awkward, I do like seeing their trip into the mountains. We don't know where they are going, or who the figure is, or why any of this is happening, but with all these questions, next week's issue will be unmissable.  

 Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "Senor, eeet is magnifico! Lizard leg in baked clay!" 

Football Family Robinson 

The Rodney Bull storyline took a giant leap forward last week, and suddenly here we are wrapping it up. With Rodney released from the hospital and facing a gang of Maxwell's thugs, it seems only the Robinson family can save the day. But things aren't quite as they seem, and I am happy with the direction the story takes as it is revealed that Detective-sergeant Gill has his own plain clothes men hidden in the ambulance. This leads to a shambles as police reinforcements arrive, rounding up not only the crooks but also the interfering Robinson. However, all is well that ends well, and the mess is soon sorted out, with the right men being taken in, the Rodney Bull case wrapped up and Alf's name finally cleared. I have greatly enjoyed this story, and although it meandered for some weeks, it carried my attention throughout. One could say the ending was too abrupt, but the story had gone on for a while and it was time to bring it to a close. A knock on the door in the final panel this week brings the next story into view, and one can only hope that it's just as good as the Rodney Bull story. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "No? Causing a breach of the peace. Causing an affray. Assaulting a constable. Interfering with the police in the execution of their duty- I've got enough to keep you on bread and water for years"

Tallon Of the Track

Jo's plan to lure the villains into the open comes into effect this week in Tallon Of The Track.  Not as dramatic as last week, but there is a sense of danger as Jo sets up her tightrope across the ravine. Although it may seem dangerous, Jo is taking no chances with team members scattered all over the site with walkie-talkies at the ready for any attempt. With her motorcycle skills to the fore, my favourite images are as she begins her ride across the ravine. However, the real danger comes from an approaching helicopter and with that threat approaching, we wrap up another issue. With only two pages to work with the story moves quickly, with one page of setup and one page of action. It's too quick for my liking, I would love to see three or four pages, but that's just not how these things work. Another great issue from a top team and plenty more in store next week. 

Best line:  "yeah...the stunt to end all stunts! That ravine is three-quarters of a mile across! I reckon you'll get about twenty yards!"

Rating: 7/10

Issue final ratings:

Overall: 6/10

Best Story: Football Family Robinson 

Best Line:  "Ya hear that, Elmer? Gee, he thinks I'm a duchess. I just can't wait to tell the folks back in lil' ol' Texas"

Best Panel: