Tiger 2nd November 1974

I have been happy with the introduction of new football stories to Tiger. Last week I enjoyed them all, and this week I found they overshadowed the older stories in Tiger. I enjoy the balance of sports strips in Tiger, but right now it's football that is doing the heavy lifting. Skid Solo was strong in this issue, but Hot-shot Hamish, Nipper, and Roy of the Rovers were all outstanding. As a football and comic fan, I couldn't be happier right now. As much as I enjoyed A Horse Called Ugly and The Tigers, the current crop of stories has my heart - long may it continue. 

2nd  November 1974

Johnny Cougar

My opinion of the Johnny Cougar and Robin Good storyline improves after seeing it in colour on the front cover of the issue. Resplendent in his green top and scarlet tights, Robin Good looks the part, and a powerful-looking Johnny Cougar throwing him across the ring adds to the drama of the image. 

Within the comic, the wrestling match continues apace. Nothing we haven't seen before and after a page of back and forth Johnny has triumphed.

It is a hollow victory, Robin's men outside the ring are keeping watch and although Johnny wins the bout, he is still forced to follow Robin Good's orders. With Splash still held hostage, Johnny has no choice but to go along with Good's plan and hope there is a chance later for him to make his move. 

Robin Good's plan is simple. There is a road running through the forest and on this road travel many lorries with valuable items. Robin intends on stopping one of these lorries and robbing it of its contents.

This plan is quickly put into effect, and an unsuspecting driver soon finds himself at the end of a sword point as Robin proclaims he is the first victim of the outlaws of the forest.

I liked that this story moved quickly along. The setup in the last couple of weeks wasn't to my taste and it is pleasing to see a fuller story appear that doesn't dwell too much on the silliness.  A good villain, Johnny waiting for his moment, and Splash in peril, the story is delicately placed. There was plenty to enjoy on the page here and we have a great hook to bring us back next week. Several panels here jump out at me as favourites, and I am surprised to find I'm enjoying this much more than I should. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Wake up...Robin Good demands it!"

Billy's Boots

Poor Billy. His big chance to play in front of a scout, and he's forced to wear a normal pair of boots. Without his ancient boots, he is half the player and the first half of the game is cringe-worthy as Billy plays rubbish, including missing a shot at goal just before halftime. 

The scout has seen enough and at halftime he leaves. It's a shame, for at halftime Billy changes his boots. The inevitable happens, and in the second half he plays a blinder. Tackling an opposition player, he dribbles towards goal before setting up his own man to score. He follows this by scoring a goal of his own, before making it a brace with a headed goal in the final minutes. 

Later that day at Groundwood FC the scout is told of Billy's exploits in the second half, scoring two and making the third. The scout is surprised, yet willing to give Billy a second chance with an invite to trial at Wednesday's game. 

The scout is more forgiving than me, and based on Billy's performance in the first half there was no way I would have given him a second chance. Literally a game of two halves, this was entertaining throughout, although I often why Billy's teammates don't question why his play is so hot and cold. When he is good he is very good, but when he is bad he is horrid. With boots in hand, however, the balance is restored for the forthcoming trial game, and I await with interest to see how Billy will manage to misplace or lose them before game day. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Whoever said this kid, Dane, was good...didn't know what he was talking about! Look at that! He missed the ball completely!" 

Roy Of The Rovers 

Melchester Rovers are running riot against Branfield. Roy scores a goal from a free kick which puts them three-nil up, and there is time for another before the referee finally blows his whistle at four-nil. 

This is merely the backdrop to the real story which is the next game in the European Cup Winners Cup. Tony Storme comes out looking in a state of shock and when probed tells the team that they have drawn Carford in the next round, and a showdown against the Carford manager Archie Miller. 

As Roy drives Jimmy Slade home we find out the reason for the tensions between Tony Storme and Archie Miller. It all springs from an event six years ago, when Tony Storme was playing for his club, Walford. With the English selectors in attendance, he needed a good game to secure his first English cap. Archie Miller was in the opposition team, with his position in the English team under threat from Tony Storme. Tony Storme was in possession when Archie Miller hit him with a bad tackle, so bad it ended Tony's career. 

Although Miller claimed it was an accident, many saw it as a deliberate act to save his English place. The bad publicity also had a negative effect on Archie Miller's career, and he retired shortly after and turned to management. That too has been fraught and he hasn't had much league success as Carford is struggling at the bottom of the second division. 

The game is seen as a chance for revenge for both managers, and as they emerge from the tunnel on game day both are stony-faced and can't even look at each other. The game kicks off as some of the onlookers speculate that this could become rough and someone may get sent off.

An excellent, and believable, football story. Adding some backstory for Tony Storme was a good touch and helped round out an already solid character. Likewise with his opposing number Archie Miller. Their introduction last week was a little on the nose and this week helped readdress the balance. The flashback worked well, as did having Roy explain it to Jimmy Slade. A very solid storyline, and one I hope will be kept up for the coming weeks. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "Gosh, Roy! Are you saying that Miller nailed Tony deliberately...to save his England place?" 

Hot-shot Hamish 

The homemade medicine given to restore Hamish after he accidentally knocked himself out is working beyond all expectations. Hamish is steaming about the field against the Spanish team, calling for the ball at every opportunity. 

Hamish is lining up his hot-shot once again when he suddenly collapses. The local who gave him the medicine explains that it works well on his horses, but perhaps it is too strong for humans. It looks as if Hamish will now be asleep until the next day, and he is stretchered off the field and back to his hotel bed. 

The next morning Hamish is still asleep and no one can shake him awake. Leaving him to it, the manager leaves his passport and airline ticket inside the bed along with a message in an envelope. 

Waking up late, Hamish accidentally knocks the envelope unseen into the waste paper bin. In the lobby, he is told the team has left without him, and Mr McWhacker has said that he will find his own way back when he wakes up.

Hamish is confused by this and strides outside on his own wondering what he will do next. Half an hour after leaving, the staff find his envelope with the message, passport and tickets. It's too late, but they think that he will return soon to collect it. However, Hamish is unaware of all of this and is right now hitching a lift on the back to a lorry bound for Madrid. 

A mildly amusing story, softly told, it warmed the cockles of my heart to see Hamish in Spain. The opening page of football action wasn't what I expected, and the meat of the story was the second page when Hamish was abandoned at the hotel. The imagery captured it all perfectly, and the best panel for my money was the one when he first walks out of the hotel on his own. The shaky old lorry taking him to Madrid was also well-drawn and captured the spirit of the whole strip in a single panel. Low on drama, but lovely to look at and read this is just the tonic after a tough day at work. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "Excuse me, mon...but where's ma football team? I cannae find them anywhere!" 

Skid Solo 

Skid Solo is certainly well connected and this week he and his team have an all-expenses paid trip to California to stay at the home of American millionaire J.J. Sapperton.  

Picked up from the airport by a chauffeured driven car they are soon sitting poolside with J.J., Sapperton, while his daughter swims laps. Sapperton offers them a couple of options for the afternoon, they can stay here and swim, go for a trip around the estate, or go diving with his daughter Muriel. 

Skid and Sparrow elect to go for a trip around the estate, while Sandy decides he would like to go diving with Muriel. He is teased about this by Sparrow, but as Sandy points out, it's not a crime to enjoy the company of lovely young ladies. 

Skid and Sparrow have a great time touring the estate in a dune buggy, Sapperton's land stretches all the way to the mountains and there are cattle grazing on a lot of it. Coming over a hill, Skid and Sparrow see a couple of parachutists coming down. One of them is in trouble with the wind blowing him around, and Skid drives quickly in the buggy towards the lake, arriving just as the parachutist snags in a tree and then crashes into the water.

Skid and Sparrow are surprised when it is Sandy that emerges from the lake. The diving that that girl promised wasn't what he expected - it was skydiving, a revelation we end the strip with. 

A sweet little story, there were many things I liked about it. Once again it features a woman, something we are seeing more often in Skid Solo. This makes it feel less like a boys club and positions the strip closer to the real world. I also enjoyed the hint that Sandy was romantically interested in her, something we don't usually see in Tiger asides from Roy and Penny. The rough time Sparrow gave Sandy was believable and would have spoken to any young man reading the strip. I know it's certainly what I would have done at the time. No car racing, but plenty of human interaction, this is another case of the strip rounding out the character of Skid and his friends, and it only adds to the involvement of the reader when the racing season comes back around. 

Rating: 7.5/10

Best line: "Oooh! I never knew you went out with girls, Sandy!"

Nipper

Nipper is about to face the wrath of his manager as he comes off the field at half-time, with his drive for the goal-scoring record foremost on everyone's mind. 

Nipper apologises straight away, pointing out that it's the schoolboy fans who are yelling about the record, not him. In the dressing room, Nipper pulls out the newspaper, showing the team that it's all Brain Crawford's, the reporter, fault for building it up to something it's not. 

Andy Stewart resents being spoken to like that, and it's only intervention from other team members that prevents things from escalating. Stewart agrees that Crawford needs a talking to and Nipper is off the hook for now. 

Back out for the second half, Nipper has a point to prove. He is fired up, but so too are the Sandford players, and for all Nipper's efforts, all he gets is harder and harder tackles. Eventually, he has taken so many knocks that all Andy Stewart can do is pull him off.

Nipper doesn't wait around to speak to the other players. He quickly grabs his clothes and heads out of the stadium with nothing but the thought of sorting out Brian Crawford for once and for all. 

All the football stories this week are strong, and this is another example. Perhaps my bias towards football is showing but they do seem to be half a step ahead of everything else. I am actively engaged with this storyline and I am intrigued to see how it will play out. The on-field action is fine, buts it is the close-up of the faces that sell the story to me, and seeing plenty of Nipper's stormy face and the granite Andy Stewart spoke to me just as much as anything that happened with a football. Next week I expect a showdown, and can't wait to see the expressions of all those involved.

Rating: 7.5/10

Best line: "No thanks, Ron! A few bruises never hurt anyone! Besides, I'm in a hurry..!"

Tallon Of The Track

One heat down, and the scores are level between Ospreys and Marsden. Jo Tallon is already gloomy, with many reserves in the team she is concerned that Marsden will slowly take them apart. 

By the end of twelve heats, this hasn't eventuated and the Ospreys lead by thirty-seven points to thirty-five. With a trip to Australia on the line, Jo can barely watch the final race. It is a close run thing, but Ospreys snatch victory and their trip to Australia is secured. 

Not much happening here, and I didn't feel any compulsion to rapidly turn the page to see what happened next. Even Jo wasn't interested in what was happening on the track. After one heat they were level, and then we jump to the final race and they were still neck and neck. The final race was only three panels, so there was no sense of build-up or anticipation, and I think most people would have known early on what the outcome would be. Once again we have a Tiger story heading off to the mythical Australia, and I can only hope something a little more thrilling happens there.

Rating: 5/10

Best line: "Rubbish! With the promise of a free trip to Aussie our lads are going to ride like dingbats!" 

Martin's Marvellous Mini 

Meanwhile, in Australia, two other Tiger characters are facing their own trials and tribulations as Martin and Tiny start repairing their poor mini George. 

We don't see much of these repairs and are told that a week later the repairs are complete and the pals lay on a bit of a party for their hosts. Cakes are eaten, teas drunk, and the two boys are invited to take part in the rancher's race. It is a rugged cross-country affair in which last year only three vehicles out of thirty finished. 

I expect Martin and Tiny to say no, but they instantly agree to the two-hundred-mile race. The official in charge of the race doesn't think much of their chances but he agrees to sign them up and the next morning at nine o'clock they are on the starting line and ready to start. 

It's a rough start, all the other vehicles are much bigger, and they make their intentions of squashing George clear from the start. Martin decides the best course of action is to get clear of the others, and with a burst of speed, he makes sure he is well clear of the other vehicles. Things are going well with his skills and George's manoeuvrability,  but as they crest a hill they find themselves speeding around a series of large boulders. 

We are still not back to the colourised version of Martin's Marvellous Mini, but the story itself carries plenty of colour. We had stagnated the last couple of weeks, so I am relieved to see us propelled into a dynamic storyline for this issue. A couple of panels of George at his best, and the usual expressions from Martin and Tiny to go with it, were all I ever needed. Throw in some food and tea and we are back to basics for the strip. This could be the start of a great story, next week we will know better, but for now, I am content with what I see on the page. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "We don't fool around, either, boys...we drive kinda rough out here!" 

Issue final ratings:

Overall: 6.5/10

Best Story: Hot Shot Hamish 

Best Line: "Och, there's no need for ye to start grinning and making funny remarks! It's no' a crime for a mon to enjoy the company o' a young lady now and again..."

Best Panel:

Roy's Sports Quiz: