This week's Tiger has plenty of great panels and some very fine art to admire, even if the storytelling within is a little uneven. Although I haven't rated the issue highly, the artwork is consistently outstanding, and there is any number of panels I could have chosen as a favourite. Of course, the colour panels always catch my eye more, and it's just a shame there aren't more colour pages, although if there were I probably wouldn't have been able to afford the comic at the time!
Tiger
1st June 1974
Skid Solo
Skid Solo has been very busy since we last saw him race, and the caption of the first panel quickly fills in the back story - he has gone to the United States to appear on a TV show, and before returning home took a drive in the Californian hills, where he found trouble.
Suddenly the image of Skid climbing out of a convertible and facing rough-looking characters carrying guns all makes sense. In a dramatic first page, they send his car over the edge of a cliff before taking Skid hostage.
The front page of a newspaper gives us further information, Skid is being held hostage, and his captors are demanding the release of a bank robber in exchange. We don't have long to digest this information, Skid makes a break for it a couple of panels later, running into the woods, and then doubling back to steel the hostage-taker's car.
The villains are hard on his heels, but Skid outsmarts them as he comes to a petrol station, and pours a large quantity of petrol onto the road below. Setting it ablaze, he sends the kidnappers off the road where they are apprehended by the local police.
We wrap up the story with Skid back home and receiving a letter from America. The letter contains a bill for the petrol he used, all seven hundred and eighty-five gallons of it.
A great way to end this story, that is exactly the thought that crossed my mind when I saw Skid pouring the petrol on the road - how much is all this going to cost? I was thinking of it in modern terms, given the spiralling cost of fuel in the last year, and I did wonder if this was considered outrageous back in 1974. Some quick research gave me the following. A gallon of petrol in 1974 was $0.53 USD, meaning Skid's cunning plan cost a total of $416.05 USD in 1974. That's about $2524 in today's money. Not too bad to catch some kidnappers.
I was surprised at the way we jumped into this story after last week's Grand Prix, but once I put that behind me, I enjoyed it immensely. The opening page dropped us right into the action, and it didn't let up until the final panel. A fun diversion, I read it with a smile, but secretly I can't wait to get back onto the track with Skid behind the wheel.
Rating: 7.5/10
Best line: "Maybe it's a reward for capturing those crooks!"
Roy Of The Rovers
Roy Race was being taken for a wild ride when we last saw him on these pages. With his Spanish driver skidding down the hill, it looks like this week's story will continue in the same vein, but the driver quickly comes to a halt and by the bottom of the page, we are into a football story.
Arriving at San Palos, Roy is furious to find a football game in progress, the very thing he was hoping to avoid. Watching on with Balckie, it is apparent that some of the players are very good, but Roy is in no mood to appreciate their abilities, and in a blind rage takes to the field himself to prove that none of these players are good enough to be at a professional level.
It backfires, and Roy is surrounded by players who see him as just the man to help them win the tournament and get this into the league.
The story ends here for now, and no doubt the full extent of what Roy has walked into will become apparent next week. Seeing Roy in full flight against these village players was the highlight of this week, and next week is bound to be more of the same, despite Roy's best intentions. This story is slightly more interesting than the previous months of Roy Of The Rovers, and it looks like plenty will be on the line as Roy plays for the village team. Quite how it will unfold, we will have to wait, but this is a typical story of Roy being abroad and ending up in a local team.
Rating: 6/10
Best line: "There! Now perhaps you'll stop charging around, and get down to learning how to play the game! But don't ask me to teach you...because I'm on holiday!"
We are in the middle of the mini-race as this week's edition begins. Martin is fighting hard against the Carlton team, but they are driving as a team and blocking him from passing at every point of the track.
However, he does have some luck, and another competitor crash leaves oil on the track, The Carlton team and Martin all hit the oil at the same time, and as they fight to control their vehicles, Amrtin takes advantage and the lead.
There is little more to tell of the race, it's as good as won, and soon enough we have the panel of Martin raising the trophy high.
The tail end of the story sees Martin and Tiny arriving at a camping ground near the sea. They unpack and find a sign from the Devere Motor Club advertising a grand treasure hunt. The boys are keen to enter, but arriving at the clubhouse they find it is quite posh, and they aren't welcomed by the local members. In fact, they are thrown out for being scruffs.
A story of two parts, the conclusion of the mini-race was satisfying with the race action minimal, yet fun. The second half of the story was far more interesting for me. I always enjoy the slice-of-life panels as Martin and Tiny seek accommodation, and although this new treasure hunt story is given only two panels I can see that already it has potential. Martin and Tiny often brush up against class barriers, and this looks par for the course with the Devere Motor Club. Next week will be when I find out if this new story branch is worthwhile, but for now, I have enjoyed all I have read here.
Rating: 7.5/10
Best line: "We've got a bit of cash in hand! We could go camping...that's the cheapest way to have a holiday..."
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The Tigers
We're still mucking around on old penny-farthings as Chunky Clarke and his team prepare for their bike race. Ron Burton is determined to get an advantage and he lays a trap for Chunky. Chunky walks right into it, and chasing a pound note, he suddenly finds himself in a net and hoisted into the trees.
His friends are oblivious to his predicament, and there is some angst at the start line as he fails to appear.
However, Chunky's luck is always at play, and the last half page sees him break free of his net, ending up in an old pram and racing out of control downhill.
I think we all know how this is going to end. That's not to say that it won't be fun along the way, but it is inevitable that Chunky will arrive at the start line just in time. I did appreciate that the writers have taken this route for the story,m it would have been easy to leap straight to the bike action, but instead, we have another issue with Chunky fighting just to even begin the race. The slapstick level is just right, and once again I enjoy this episode much more than I should. A guilty pleasure is now just becoming a pleasure.
Rating: 7/10
Best line: "Whatever's happening, I won't worry- 'cos I'm naturally skilful. I must get to the race!"
A Horse Called Ugly
Joe and Ugly are at their very best as their race against Lord Humphrey continues. They are taking the obstacles in their stride, and there is even a spectacular moment as they jump a gully rather than ride up it. It costs them penalty points but saves them several minutes.
Lord Humphrey is equally skilled on his horse Zorro, but he also has a secret plan with Clive Mannerning simmering in that background to ensure he wins. This plan is put into effect as Clive radios to Mubgro to begin their nefarious scheme. '
We don't see what the scheme is, but as Joe rides into the dark forest he says Lord Humphrey riding not far from him, Thinking he has strayed from his course, Joe immediately plans to turn back.
This strip looked great on every page, I have often said, and I stand by it, that A Horse Called Ugy is at its very best when we see the horses up close and in action. This week it delivered just that several times, and the image of Joe and Ugly jumping the gully is one of the best. I find the story isn't to my taste, but I can't deny the visual feast in which I am indulging, and I can't wait to pick up next week's issue to see what comes next.
Rating: 8/10
Best line: "Come on, let's show 'em what a real horse can do!"
Football Family Robinson
Stranded on an island, last week something in the forest scared Bluey the kangaroo. We don't find out what that was this week, but there is a lot of talk about it.
Bluey returns with the ball that was lost in the forest, but he is scared and something has shaken him up. The game continues, but once again the ball disappears into the forest, and this time it is Titch that runs after it. It vanishes before his eyes, and although the rest of the family joins him, no one can find the ball.
Feeling alarmed, the family ask Digger if he has got the radio working yet. He hasn't, but before we can properly digest this information, Titch calls out, the thing from the jungle has struck again.
I can understand why we aren't shown the thing in the jungle, and I see how the writer is trying to build suspense. The problem is that it just doesn't look very suspenseful on the page, and I hardly feel engaged with what is happening. I don't really care what has happened to their ball, or what it is that is hiding in the jungle. Perhaps once that is revealed I'll be back on board, but all I can do until then is enjoy those moments when my girl Viv appears on the page.
Rating: 5/10
Best line: "He ain't goin'! There's something in there he's scared of!"
Johnny Cougar and Splash Gorton
Fat, and out of shape, Johnny Cougar just can't get a handle on his opponent, The Gent. He struggles throughout the bout and The Gent dominates on every panel. However, his mind is still sharp and using his extra weight he manages to bear hug The Gent, eventually falling on top of him and winning the match.
It's all very anti-climatic, and the story never took off this week. Three-quarters of the story was The Gent hitting Johnny with offence, then we see Johnny outsmarting him before the final half page is Spalsh Gorton recapping much of what we have already seen. There is a strong lesson that the characters emphasise in these last panels, the value of hard training, but that's all reward for my disappointment in the rest of the story, Normally I'm all about the in-ring action, but this week it left me cold, and I'm just as disappointed in myself as I am with the story.
Rating: 4/10
Best line: "Wh-what happened? Did the roof fall in on me?
Tallon Of The Track
Jo was on the verge of resigning at the end of last week's strip, but that is quickly resolved in the first panels of the story. With little choice in the matter, she is forced to go along with the TV film documentary. We also have a fantastic panel of her forcefully telling the director to stop calling her sweetness, striking a strong blow for women's lib everywhere.
After this outburst, the rest of the strip is a steady cruise. Jo demonstrates some cornering while the cameras roll before the second page takes us to the next race meeting.
This next meeting is the crux of what's to come. As the riders prepare, it is brought to Jo's attention that the director has fixed a small camera to the front of one of the bikes, Once again enraged, the strip ends with an exasperated Jo exclaiming that this has gone too far.
This story was modest in its ambition. It didn't progress the story greatly, but it did gently build on the previous week. There was motorcycle action, but it wasn't part of the dramatic story, and the real story was Jo's outburst at the beginning and then at the end. If we could get a little more in between, the story would have really motored, but it was fine as it is, just gently building for the coming weeks.
Rating: 7/10
Best Line: "Stop calling me Sweetness! The name's Jo!"
Issue final ratings:
Overall: 6.5/10
Best Story: A Horse Called Ugly
Best Line: "Oh, marvellous! I'm hired as a speedway trainer and end up as some sort of second rate film star!"
Best Panel:
Roy's Sports Quiz:
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