Tiger 25th October 1975

There are a couple of weak spots in this week's comic. It starts slow and several stories are inconsistent. However, it ended on a high, and the final three stories restored the balance. Interestingly, these last three stories were all football stories. I think that probably says more about me than the comic. Perhaps I am compensating after seeing my team underperform this week - although if that is the case then the football stories would be my favourites every week. Again, that probably says more about my team than the comic...  

25th October 1975

Skid Solo

Skid is travelling in Mexico when his car breaks down, leaving him, Sandy and Tommy stranded. Lucky, two young men arrive in a couple of sports cars and offer the group a ride. It turns out that these two young men are competing brothers, and Skid and the others find themselves caught up in a race between the two back to San Juan, a race that ends with the cars smashing through a local market before dropping Skid and his friends off.

Skid is concerned about the damage to the market, but the brothers speed off saying that their father will pay for the damage caused. Skid speaks to the locals about this and is told that the boy's father brought them cars three months ago and since then this has been a regular occurrence. 

Skid stays overnight as their car is fixed, and the next day he can see the two brothers again speeding around the desert, this time stirring up a stampede of cattle. This stampede runs amok through the village, and Skid's car suffers heavy panel damage, leaving Skid angry and promising the locals that he will speak with the boy's father.

This isn't a classic Skid Solo story, and despite some action and a new locale, it didn't set the world on fire with drama. Very little here compelled me to turn the page, and I was underwhelmed for the most part. The positives were that the art looked good, and it is a two-part story which is in its favour. Next week it has a chance to redeem itself in my eyes, and I'm always prepared to give a story a chance to breathe. However, I'm not holding out too much hope as this felt flat and it's hard to see how it can improve next week.

Rating: 5/10

Best line: "The steers ran right through San Juan. Bet that shook 'em up!"

Roy Of The Rovers

Duncan McKay is continuing to struggle against Portdean, and when we last left him Portdean had just scored a second goal to take a two-nil lead. 

This leaves him enraged, and the next time he gets the ball he angrily kicks it down the field. Luckily Roy is on hand to make the kick look better than it really is, heading it goalwards, only to be denied by a Portdean player handling it. 

Roy lets Duncan McKay take the resulting penalty, and with only seconds to spare McKay scores the penalty to tie the game. As the team comes off the field, McKay thanks Roy for letting him restore his dignity and apologises for being an arrogant fool. Harmony is restored in the dressing room, although the strip ends on an ominous note as Blackie tells us that the next game is against Eastgate - Roy's bogey team and the only first-division ground he hasn't managed to score on.

It looks like Roy's trouble with Duncan McKay is over in a story that ended in a whimper rather than the bang I expected. I'm not sure quite what I wanted from it, but I do know that the smooth conclusion wasn't it. Duncan McKay was easily brought back into the fold after being given a chance to take the penalty which didn't quite ring true after seeing what type of character he is. He is firey and stubborn, and I think a more realistic proposition would be to have him find his place in the team without watering down his character and forcing him to give way to Roiy so easily. I am pleased to see him in the team now, and with him playing his part we should now get a good run of football stories. It's hard to believe that after twenty-one years Roy has never scored at Eastgate, but there we are, and I have a funny feeling that now Blackie has mentioned it, Roy will find a way to break his unlucky streak. 

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "If the Portdean keeper has a weakness, Duncan will know all about it! We'd be daft to waste his experience!" 

Martin's Marvellous Mini

Martin and Tiny have finally arrived in Hawaii, although their car George has not. Martin and Tiny are shocked to find out that George has ended up in Kuala Lumpur, and although they enjoy the luxurious hotel they have been put up in, both are concerned that their car won't arrive in time for the race. 

They use a borrowed car for a practice drive and manage to fit in a bit of surfing along the way. Upon returning they are greeted with the good news that George has arrived, although in one final twist, we find that George has been dismantled into crates to fit into a cargo plane.

A fairly sedate issue made all the better by David Sque's artwork. The facial expressions of Tiny and Martin are far more interesting than the story itself, and in particular, Tiny's face when he is telling Martin what happened to George is outstanding. So too are the images of the pair surfing, and although it was a simple diversion, it added a lot to the characters and their friendship. Nothing particularly taxing here, just an enjoyable time hanging out with familiar friends until something heavier arrives in the coming weeks. 

Rating: 6.5/10

Best line: "There's a letter, it says..."As you wanted your car on the first plane to leave here...we had to dismantle it and stow it in crates...to fit in the plane's cargo space!

Johnny Cougar

Johnny's fight continues this week against the dirty Hardy Steele. At the end of the last issue, Steele hit Cougar with an unseen punch.

Cougar is down but not out, and at the count of seven he regains his feet. The rest of the round belongs to Cougar as we see him go on the warpath,  and over the next two pages, we see him hitting Steele with heavy body checks and thunderous body slams. Steele is counted out and Johnny wins the first pinfall. 

The next round begins with Steele resorting to plan B. As Cougar strikes him with a forearm, Steele falls to the floor clutching his eye. Removing his hand we can see he is bleeding, and the referee stops the fight, saying that Steele cannot continue. Cougar doesn't believe it, and in the last panel of the strip, he approaches Steele with a towel in hand, telling him that he thinks things are not what they seem. 

We got a lot of wrestling action here, and although the story didn't greatly advance, there was still enough to keep me eagerly turning the pages. I like the character of Steele, and he is giving both Johnny Cougar and the reader plenty to think about as the story progresses. He's not fooling Johnny Cougar and although the first two pages featured heavy body-on-body action, it's the final panel as Cougar approaches Steele that carries all the drama. Not quite top-shelf Johnny Cougar, but not too far off it as we got a story that leaned into what it is at its core - a story of wrestlers wrestling.    

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Get up heap fast, cowardly Jackel...Cougar not finished teaching you heap big lesson!" 

Nipper

Nipper has been sent to live in a lodging house under the watchful eye of landlady Amy Fletcher, who intends to whip him into shape. 

He has some good news when Stumpy manages to arrive, and things don't seem too bad when he discovers the meal put in front of him is quite edible., 

However, the 10pm curfew proves difficult for him, and he must cut short his time with Kerry and her friends in the evening and suffers some ridicule as he slinks away early. 

Come Saturday, some of the team also give him grief about staying in early at the lodging house. Nipper hopes to prove them wrong on the field, but the first time he touches the ball he hears Amy yelling at him from the stands and is shocked to see her there with a megaphone, ready to remind him that he is her responsibility now.

Amy Fletcher promised much last week, and this week she delivered with a strong character that stiffened a story that was getting flabby. As much as Amy is proving to be a foil for Nipper, I feel that the two have more in common than they suspect. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see the two of them forming a strong alliance in the future, as unlikely as that sounds. Or then again, perhaps not, given how unpredictable these stories can be. And that is the beauty of this comic, anything could happen, and the next twist is only a page away. I like where we are at the moment, but I am excited about where we might be going, and whatever happens next I will be here to see it.  

Rating: 6.5/10

Best line: "What happens if you're a minute late, Nipper? Do you turn into a pumpkin?" 

Tornado Jones

For his next stunt, Tornado Jones is about to plunge over Pendale Falls in a sealed barrel. Needless to say, it doesn't go to plan, and the barrel hits a rock, splitting it to pieces and leaving Jones to swim for his life. The promotor and watching cameraman are on hand to save him, although the promotor is unhappy, and tells Jones that he won't be receiving the five hundred pounds he was promised as he never completed the stunt.

Returning to his motor caravan, Jones wonders what he can do next to generate some cash. He has his answer a minute later as a chap with a cane approaches with an offer. He tells Jones that he is Harvey Halliwell and that he is an expert in aerodynamics. Taking Jones to a remote farmhouse, he shows him a fantastical-looking flying machine, one that he will pay Jones well for testing. 

The first stunt performer by Jones here is a stepping stone and merely a device to introduce his need for money. Not a lot else grabbed my eye, and it wasn't until the final panels that I began to get interested in the story. This wild-looking flying machine offers many possibilities for the story and all of them excite me. It's a step up from being shot out from the cannon and should look a lot more interesting on the page than going over the waterfall in a barrel. It's been several weeks now, and it's time for Tornado Jones to start delivering some excitement on the page. I think this new storyline might just be what is needed to ignite the story.  

Rating: 6.5/10

Best line: "Tornado, old boy, you're right back where you started...bruised all over - and dead broke!" 

Billy's Boots

The new Sports Master, Mr. Harris, has dropped the entire first eleven, with the exception of Billy, for the next game. With a bunch of misfits taking their place, Mr Harris is determined to whip them into shape, and what follows is an intense physical fitness session that has Billy questioning his methods.

Billy complains about this to his Gran, but his Gran tells him that she expects Mr. Harris knows what he is doing, and that it will all be OK come Saturday. 

This cosy fireside chat is interrupted by a knock on the door. Some local lads have seen Billy move in and ask if he would like to join for a kickaround. He joins in, telling them a little about his past, although he can't back up any of his claims with a good performance with the ball. However, they still ask if he would like to play for their team, The Merrydowners, after he turns out for the Groundwood team on Saturday morning. 

At the Groundwood game, Billy is instructed by Mr Harris to stay as far forward as possible. This Billy does, although the rest of the team is useless, and soon they are behind. This leaves Billy with a quandary, should he fall back to help out the defence, or should he keep obeying Mr Harris's instructions and stay forward. 

I am enjoying the arrival of Mr Harris, especially since the boys are already referring to him as "Hardnut Harris." Great stuff, and a real slice of schoolyard life. Billy in his Gran is also adding fuel to the fire of their relationship, and with the arrival of the local boys asking Billy to play, another thread is added to the tapestry of Billy's life. Although not partially demanding, all of it is lovable, and we have plenty to keep us occupied until the real drama arrives in the next issue as Billy takes decisive action on the football field. It is not the most exciting of the strips to feature in this week's issue, but it is easily the best and the one I enjoyed most. Billys Boots has had a good run throughout 1975, and as we rapidly approach Christmas it is still giving me plenty to smile about.  

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "I bet you didn't really play for England schoolboys!"

Hot Shot Hamish

Hamish is escorting Alfie McPhee back to his lodgings after Alfie's pal had been arrested for stealing at Princes Park. The local toughs give the pair a rough time, blaming Alfie for Tommy's arrest. They face a barrage of insults and rotten vegetables until eventually Hamish has enough and turns on the toughs, hitting a cabbage with his hot shot to send them on their way (yes, really).

Setting into Hamish's lodgings, Alfie is soon comfortable in the team and contributing on the field. Beating players and scoring goals, he helps Princes Park win their next three games, earning him the front page of the sports papers and the love of the crowd. It does have its downside, it seems to have gone to his head, and as he scores his next goal he celebrates in front of the crowd while the rest of the team looks on, bemused by his ecstatic behaviour. 

What a transformation of Alfie McPhee, and not for the better. He is certainly playing better, although his behaviour suggests he may soon be having further issues with the team. This drama pointed towards future issues, but for me, the best part of the strip was the first page as Hamish escorted Alfie out of his former lodgings. The gang of toughs watching on, and then throwing fruits was great, and it looked just as good on the page as it read. It was fun, we saw an angry Hamish, and it ended with the right man taking a cabbage to the face, courtesy of the hotshot. The rest of the strip paled in comparison to this, as the first page carried both humour and drama in equal measure, A better-balanced issue that followed in this vein would have seen me rate it higher, although even as it is it is still one of the best in the comic. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "The boy's the power-house o' the side!" 

Issue final ratings:

Overall: 6.5/10

Best Story:  Billy's Boots 

Best Line: "Well, I'll tell him...and if does nothing...I'll make those speed-mad idiots wish they'd never seen a car!" 

Best Panel:

Roy's Sports Quiz: