Tiger 27th July 1974

 It's been sunny all week, yet the weekend finally rolls around and it rains solidly for two days. Such is life. Still, I can't complain too much. I can take an hour to read my comics, guilt-free, and not have to worry about those outside chores that whisper my name. The sun always shines in Tiger comic, and that's where I intend to be for the next hour while the weather can do whatever it wants outside my window.  

Tiger

27th July 1974

Roy Of The Rovers 

The football game between Sao Palos and Camplona may be the key storyline in Roy Of The Rovers, but it is the girlfriends that catch my eye on the cover. Penny looks stunning in full colour as she revives Roy after his exhausting escape with a bucket of ice-cold water. 

Revived, Blackie and Roy quickly change into their football gear and take to the field, desperate to pull back the one-goal deficit. From here on in it is truly Roy Of The Rovers stuff as they bang in two quick goals, before the rest of the youthful team comes to the party and the opposition is annihilated. 

Blackie and Roy miss the final whistle, they have fallen asleep, but they awake later in the evening as the village party continues on long into the night. We finish with Roy and Blackie dancing the night away and looking forward to their return to Melchester. 

This has been a lot of fun, but I too look forward to their return to Melchester. I have enjoyed Roy's Spanish holiday, the story took plenty of twists and turns, and not all of them on the football field. In particular, I also enjoyed seeing their girlfriends take a stronger lead in the storyline, and Penny was very strong throughout. A lovely Spanish holiday, next week we will be back to Melchester and the endless grind of first-division football. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "You can keep the champagne...we only want the iced water!" 

Johnny Cougar and Splash Gorton 

Johnny is down for the count, and he is off to a bad start this week as he fails to get to his feet in time, leaving Staff Sergeant Martin with a surprise victory. 

It's a surprise for all, and Staff Sergeant Martin apologises to Johhny, offering to fight him again in another match, once they have finished with their tag-team match. 

Meanwhile, the K.O. Kid has arrived in Dortmund, seeking revenge on Johnny for his previous loss. He looks like he may get his revenge sooner than expected as on the last page we see Johnny and Splash about to be run down by a driverless truck. 

I expected more from this story. We left Johnny last week down for the count, and the outcome of that was dealt with in the first panels of this story. The rest of the story showed the K.O. Kid arriving in town before we again got action in the final two panels. It felt like a lot of padding between the key events in a story that was already struggling to hold my attention. I have always enjoyed a good Johnny Cougar story, unfortunately, this doesn't feel like one. 

Rating: 5/10

Best line: "Here comes Cougar and that beatnik idiot. They can both be part of my revenge!"

Martin's Marvellous Mini

They're off in the London to Sydney race, and already I have a good feeling about this story. My positive mood is made even better on the first page with a humourous aspect arising from the story early on. 

Calton Cars are Martin and Tiny's primary rivals in the race, and one of their cars suffers an accident on the way to the start line, leaving only their reserve car, and their reserve drivers. These reserve drivers bring a grin to my face, they look a lot like Laurel and Hardy and are obviously incompetent from the start. 

With names like Peter Perch and Gary Grimble, we know we are in for a good time, and although they are asked to sabotage Martin and Tiny, they make it quite clear in the chat between the two of them that sabotage is something they are not very good at. 

They get their first chance to scupper Martin and Tiny soon after the channel crossing to France. In rainy conditions, they get ahead of our two pals, and pushing a hay cart into the centre of the road they intend to slow them down. 

Martin is too fast though, and swerving around the cart they continue to race into the night, only to find themselves racing headlong towards a large lorry on a narrow twisty road in the mountains. 

An excellent story, I could have easily read another dozen pages in the same vein. The humour was great, the characters warm and believable, and the final images of George in the mountains were heart-stopping. This race to Sydney promised a lot, and already it is delivering in the very first issue, and we're still only in France. A long way to go, but I have nothing but good things to say about this story so far. 

Rating: 9/10

Best line: "Hey Pete...what did old man Carlton mean by sabotage? That's sort of cheating! I'm no good at that stuff!" 

The Tigers

With Chunky Clark and Ron Burton both at the crease anything could happen in this issue of the Tigers. 

There is another wrinkle in the plot, with Ron's crony doing his best to distract Chunky by shining a mirror on his face. Despite this, Chunky still manages to come out on top, riding his luck throughout. This drives Ron to further heights trying to outdo Chunky, but all that he succeeds in doing is to push them both to score quick runs which eventually leads to Digby's eleven winning. 

We are promised more cricket next week from Chunky Clark, and that may not be a bad thing given how much I enjoyed this story. There was slapstick, but it remained lowkey, and the real action of Ron Burton trying to outplay Chunky was the highlight. There was plenty of cricket action, Burton's gang remained ineffectual, and at the end of the day, both Chunky and Ron came out on top. I can't imagine where we might go next with this cricket story, but I have enjoyed it thus far, and we have moved beyond the silliness of some of the earlier The Tiger's stories.   

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "Anything Clark can do, I can do better!" 

Football Family Robinson

A dynamic start to this strip with two speedboats colliding while a capsized Ma and Viv look on. 

From this opening image, the story moves quickly on, and a lot happens in this issue. Viv and Ma are rescued, as are all the other bodies in the water, by a luxury boat. This luxury boat is owned by an investor who is looking at investing in one of the resorts, the very reason they are trying to outdo each other. The investor decides that whoever wins the football game will win his investment - perhaps a future idea that Lord Sugar might look at for The Apprentice?

Ma and Viv check on the team that Titch is assembling. They have five new players, but they all want to play striker. Ma once again comes with some firm decisions, dishing out the positions based on their body size.  

We have one final plot point as once again Fred appears on the shore, wanting to warn Ma about the other team. It seems that they are about to fly in five professional players to make up their numbers, leaving little chance of a victory for Ma's team. 

A strong issue, the very first panel was all the hook I needed to keep me rapidly turning the pages. Although the thought of the match doesn't enthuse me, I do like the context that surrounds it. It was nice to see the face of the investor, Julius Richafeller, and his name alone was enough to make me grin. The primary driver of the storyline, now he is named and on the page, and the story feels a lot more well-rounded. The stocks continue to rise for Football Family Robinson, let's hope the bubble doesn't burst anytime.

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "If they go on at this rate, Ma, there'll be no-one left to play in the football match!

Tallon Of The Track

Ugh, the fuel-addictive storyline. Fingers crossed it will improve this week. 

The good news - it does improve as most of the action takes place on the track. Although Jo is still concerned about the Hunsford team using fuel additives, for most of the strip they don't and the racing is all about who is fastest on the track. In this case, it is the Ospreys, and they manage to close the gap to just a few points after several hard races. 

The fuel addictive comes to the fore again in the crucial race, and the Hunsford Hawks jump out to a fast start, obviously using the doctored fuel again. On the track, Dave senses what is happening and decides to take matters into his own hands. As they corner, Dave pushes his bike sideways, forcing the Hunsford rider towards the safety fence. The inevitable happens, and Jo can only watch on as Dave seemingly causes a nasty crash on purpose. 

This is more like it, and not just because of the dramatic crash on the final panel. The story moved a lot quicker than previously and stayed tightly focused. Jo was not as hysterical as previously, and seeing Dave getting a bigger part helped to balance out the story. This crash could be the first part of the story winding up, and for all the lows I have had with it, I am finally excited and curious to see what happens next. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "You forget that I'm riding in this one, sweetheart! Just sit back and watch me go!" 

Skid Solo

A typical Skid Solo story this time out as he is given a new car to test drive. This one is extra safe, with every dial, switch and pedal in the car duplicated. Should one fail, there is a backup, and with Sparrow Smith seated beside him this should be a cakewalk for Skid. 

However, before they can put the car through its paces, a wheel needs replacing, so Skid and Sparrow take an hour to lie in the sun and relax.

Before he knows it, Skids is back in the car with Sparrow and they're off. The car runs like a dream, and soon enough they are at two hundred and fifty miles an hour. It is then that Skid's troubles start, with the brake pedal failing. As if that's not bad enough, the accelerator too fails. Skid has no option but to switch off the car, but the ignition key breaks, leaving them still travelling at one hundred and ninety miles an hour, and heading towards a cliff face. 

Skid tries to swerve, but the steering doesn't respond, and all they can do is brace themselves for the crash that will surely follow. It doesn't, as Skid suddenly awakes - it has all been a dream. 

Although a dream, Skid asks Sandy to check over the brakes, steering, and accelerator before they drive and also asks if he could be supplied with a spare car. It is an unusual request, but the team oblige. 

The team wonders what goes through drivers' heads sometimes as Skid drives off, and we are informed in one final line that the drive went without incident and Skid returned unharmed ten minutes later. 

All the action here occurred in Skid's dream, and although it looked impressive, at the end of the day nothing happened in this strip. I did think that it was rather odd for everything to fail so spectacularly in a car, but it all made sense with the reveal. Apart from the strange dream aspect of the story, most of it left me cold. We have seen Skid test drive countless cars over the years, and the final panels didn't give us a twist or different perspective on anything we've seen before. As always, lovely to look at, but for me, it lacked some originality and as much as I wanted to like it, I found it empty.

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "Ignition off...heck, no it's not! The darned key's broken in half!" 

A Horse Called Ugly

Joe and Ugly are riding well, and determined to beat the Italian rider, Ferrani. Things are looking good for Joe, but Ferrani takes matters into his own hands, popping some balloons in the crowd and startling Ugly into making a mistake. This forces Joe and Ferrani into a jump-off, but unknown to Joe much larger problems loom on the horizon as two villains watch on. 

In the final jump-off, Joe and Ugly ride well, and carry off the victory. Job done, they prepare to fly back to Britain, unwittingly carrying a mystery that will make the two villains of the piece millionaires. 

I have no idea what this mystery is that Joe and Ugly have upon them, but this makes the story even better. The first half of the story was straightforward with a typical horse jumping scene we have seen played out before. All the fish hooks of the story are in the final third as Joe and Ugly prepared to return, and the motives of mysterious villains about to be revealed. The showjumping portion was strong, the mystery portion stronger, and overall this is an adventure that is becoming more intriguing by the page. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Larcombe little realises that he is going to help us become millionaires!" 

Issue final ratings:

Overall: 7/10

Best Story: Martin's Marvellous Mini 

Best Line: "Martin! We're over the edge!"

Best Panel:

Roy's Sports Quiz: 

 

Tiger 20th July 1974

I haven't been well this week, and read this week's issue of Tiger through heavy eyelids. Perhaps because of that, I have rated some stories lower than I should have, but I found it hard to rouse the energy, and if a story didn't grab me and carry me away, then it wasn't the story for me this week. I should be back to full health next week, and hopefully more energy, so I look forward to rereading some of these stories then. Until then, here's my take on the latest issue of Tiger. 

Tiger

20th July 1974

Johnny Cougar and Splash Gorton 

Johnny and Splash were looking on in shock at the assault course when we left them last week. This week there is little time to consider what they have seen, and we are dropped into the action as they are already halfway around the course. Johnny is a lot more adept at the course than Splash and finishes in just under record time. 

Assault course out of the way, Staff Sergeant Martin suggests that perhaps now are now ready for a practice bout. Johnny agrees, and they prepare that night at the gym to wrestle. 

Backstage, Splash tells Johnny to go easy on the guy, and Johnny agrees that he doesn't want to see anyone get hurt in this fight. However, things don't go according to plan as Johnny slips while fighting and ends up being knocked out by Staff Sergeant Martin. With the count reaching eight, it looks like the bout might already be over for Johnny Cougar. 

I would have liked to have seen much more of the assault course. It was built up late last week to be a massive challenge, but Johnny conquered it rather easily in the first half page of this week's issue. It looked fun and could have easily been stretched to much more. As for the bout in the second half of the story, it hasn't had much time to do much yet. We have seen a quick grabble, and now Johnny is knocked out on the canvas. I hope next week this story will be given more time to breathe and we will have some time to dwell on some of these plot points rather than rushing through. A nice first page, but the rest of the pages disappointed me. 

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "Nnnnk! That's my first and last assault course! You can keep 'em!" 

Roy Of The Rovers

With Roy and Blackie still trapped in the castle, San Palos must start their crucial game without them. San Palos isn't totally helpless though, Penny is on hand to help guide them tactically. Some San Palos players look doubtful, but Penny remains strong and points out that she has spent most of her life watching professional football. Under her guidance, the team play to keep the ball away from the opposition as much as they can, a tactic that succeeds in the early part of the game.

Meanwhile, Roy and Blackie fashion an escape. Using Blackie's souvenir penknife (that's lucky) they prise out the bars of the window. They still face a five-hundred-foot drop to the canyon below, but Roy skillfully climbs upwards to the top of the castle. With Blackie dutifully following afterwards, they quickly escape the castle before managing to acquire a couple of donkeys to get them back to the game. 

Back at the game, San Palos is down one nil. The opposing manager, Senior Benetiz, is grinning from ear to ear. His joy is shortlived, however, as suddenly the two donkeys bearing Roy and Blackie appear. Both Roy and Blackie are exhausted, but they have made it. If they can make a difference or not, we'll have to wait until next week to find out. 

OK, so some aspects of this week's story were a little unbelievable. That didn't detract from my enjoyment of it, although I did raise my eyebrows a couple of times. The thrill of the escape was stronger than my disbelief of Roy scaling the castle wall, and I did give a silent cheer when he reached the top. I also gave a cheer when Penny took control of the team early on. I thought perhaps she was going to play, but I was equally happy to see her run the team tactically. This story didn't reach the same level of joy as previous weeks, but there were a lot of positives across its two pages and overall I was satisfied with what I read. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "It's lucky...there's plenty of hand-holds in this...crumbling stonework..."

Martin's Marvellous Mini

The race to decide who wins the Treasure Hunt, and the cars are approaching the final bend. It's down to the wire in Martin's Marvellous Mini. Throwing caution to the wind, Martin somehow finds a way through on the inside, and with that, the race is won. 

With this part of the story over, their next adventure appears on the horizon in the form of a Fred Carlton, of Carlton Cars, making a speech just outside of London. He is entering Carlton Cars in the London to Sydney rally, and making boastful claims that no other cars will come close to them. 

This is called into question by a journalist who shows Fred Carlton the report of Martin and Tiny winning the treasure hunt. Carlton tells him that it's rubbish and that his team is much better. He then ups the stakes by boldly claiming that he will give Martin and Tiny five thousand pounds if they beat his cars. 

The journalist returns to Martin and Tiny with this news, although at first, they aren't interested as they have no money to compete. However, The Daily News offers to pay their expenses and they quickly change their minds. 

While Martin and Tiny get decked out in new race gear, Fred Carlton takes measures to make sure they won't win, arranging for two thugs to make sure they are taken out of the rally as soon as possible. 

I was pleased to see the back of the treasure hunt storyline, and doubly pleased by the appearance of this London to Sydney race. There is potential for all sorts of shenanigans in all manner of places in the coming months and played right this story could get us through to the end of the year. The Carlton team are always worthy foes, and there is an extra element of danger in the thugs that have been hired to deal with Martin and Tiny. Nothing has happened yet, but all the key elements have been put in place and the future looks very good indeed for this story. 

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "You'll pay? Well, that's different!"

A Horse Called Ugly

Tiger is getting international with Roy Of The Rovers in Spain, Johnny Cougar in Germany, Tiny and Martin heading to Sydney, and A Horse Called Ugly taking up residence in Italy. Joe and Ugly seem quite comfortable in Italy already, with a grinning Joe waterskiing across the first half page. 

Angela does warn him not to do anything foolish, but Joe just can't help himself and his waterskiing ends in a big splash and a very wet Joe. Of course, the boat is piloted by two handsome Italian men, who also happen to be competing against Joe and Ugly - we'll be seeing plenty more of them in the coming pages. 

The following day at the show jumping and we find things are difficult for the riders. Despite their confidence, the Italians fail to have a clear round, and Angela too finds herself having a hazardous round. 

Joe and Ugly manage to charm the crowd when it is their turn to ride, and they ride well to be the only ones to have a clear round. However, storm clouds are on the horizon as some shady characters are watching from the crowd, and planning to involve Joe and Angela in their crime. 

What that crime is, we'll have to wait until next week, but already I am curious. It's hard to imagine with the information we have so far what will come next. The new characters in this story are making a strong impression, the Italian riders did indeed look handsome, as Angela rightfully pointed out, and the villains in the crowd raised a lot of questions. Like the previous story, there's a lot of set-up going on here, but also enough hooks that I am already invested in what happens next. With some exquisite horse artwork to boot, this is a strong issue that promises much for the future. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Magnificant! The British boy and his spotted horse are charming!" 

Football Family Robinson 

The family are still putting together their respective teams for the football match between the two resorts where they are staying. A lot of tourists have come out of the woodwork to play for Viv's team, but a trial proves that most of them are not much good. However, there is a couple of useful players who Titch invites to join the team. 

Viv and Ma decide that some rest and relaxation on the beach is in order, and the two of them make themselves comfortable in the sun. Soon enough Ma spies through her binoculars Fred floating towards their beach on a raft. She and Viv take a pedal boat out to see what he wants and it's not good news. 

Fred tells them that the other resort intends to beat them at all costs and they don't stand a chance because.... well, we never find out because Fred is cut short by a boat fast approaching with the resort owner. From the other direction comes the other resort owner, also on a speedboat. Both threaten to ram each other, but it is the family that ends up in the water as the wake from the speedboats washes over them. 

The first part of the story didn't do much for me, but things improved considerably in the second half once Ma and Viv took to the beach. The storylines expanded, and it finally felt like something was happening. Viv had some fantastic facial expressions, and they were deployed at just the right moments within the story. I'm still not convinced I need to see this much-promised football match, although I am enjoying the surrounding drama. Still an improvement from when they were in the jungle and this week certainly ended on a high. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Enemy? That's my wife and daughter!" 

Skid Solo

The British Grand Prix and we are at Brands Hatch this week. Skid is still eighteen points behind on the championship table, but his practice laps are fast and he secures pole position. 

Their bad luck is still dogging them though, and Skid finishes his practice lap pushing his car into the pits. It has a cracked sump, and it is up to Sandy to try and find one and replace it overnight. Poor Sandy, it's not the first time we have seen him faced with such a task. 

The following day and Skid's car is ready to go, just in time to take his place at the front of the grid. He's fast, but not fast enough as Corbonne gets off to a flier. Already with a ten-yard lead, Corbonne comes unstuck at the very first corner, driving off the track and crashing hard into the hoardings. 

With Corbonne out of the race, Skid has no serious opposition and the rest of the race is a procession with Skid winning easily. With Corbonne's overall lead cut in half, Sparrow thinks their luck has changed at last, while Skid thinks there's still a chance to win the championship. 

Not quite the Grand Prix action I have come to expect from Skid Solo. The win came easily to him, although he did have a lot of luck, and for me that sucked a lot of the fun out of the story. I did appreciate seeing Sandy pulling another all-nighter, I really feel sorry for him sometimes, and he was the only character that had a strong part aside from Skid. Carbonne was merely a cameo, non of the other racers made an appearance and even Sparrow was low-key. A nice story, but it failed to grip me in any way, and I walked away with barely a second thought of it. 

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "If it's not ready now, Sandy...forget it. We'll be too late!" 

Tallon Of The Track

Jo has been hit in the face by an oil-soaked rag, and she's far from happy about it. Jo confronts the Hunsford Hawks mechanic that threw it, but he claims it was an accident and apologises. 

There is no time to take things further, as Jo rushes to the race referee to complain that the Hawls are using a fuel addictive. The referee takes this matter seriously and calls on an expert to test the fuel in both teams' tanks. 

The results come back negative, much to Jo's chagrin, but there is still a race meeting and little time to dwell on the outcome. Dave promises he will get the team back into the race, and he makes good on his promise, riding hard and pulling out a victory for the Ospreys. 

Dave is cheered by the crowds, and Jo waves him over with her thoughts on why the results came back negative. She is convinced that the rag-throwing incident gave them time to cover up and doctor the fuel in the tanks. This is where we leave the strip, we will have to continue this next week. 

Not a lot of joy in this story at the moment. The last few weeks have been disappointing, and this is more of the same. The best part of the story was the three panels where Dave was racing, the rest of it was endless talk of the fuel addictive and watching the fuel being tested. I love looking at this story each week, but the storyline isn't working for me at the moment, and the artwork alone isn't enough for me. The sooner this storyline finishes the better, and we can move onto something faster moving and fun. 

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "Relax, I'm riding this one with Tom Lawler! Forget about the fuel additives and watch us go!" 

The Tigers

Finally, Chunky has taken to the crease as The Tigers continue to play as part of the Digby cricket team.

What follows is classic Chunky action. He hasn't a clue as to what's happening, and it's only through his blind luck that he manages to score runs. Smithy tries to keep him away from the strike, but Chunky runs him out. Ron Burton joins him in the middle, but Chunky's luck holds as he manages to hit a four, much to the dismay of Burton and his chums. We finish this week's strip with an angry Burton vowing to get Chunky out quick before he can do it again. 

Not much plot to this week's story, but there never is in The Tigers. Instead, it's all about the action, and we had plenty of that this week, even if I didn't appreciate it. Sure, Chunky was scoring runs and looking good, but it was the ball hitting the bat rather than the bat hitting the ball, and he had very little say in the matter. I didn't like the fact that he didn't have any agency, and the humour wasn't enough to paper over it. I smiled, several times, but I couldn't quite get to a laugh, and that is a weakness for a humourous story. For all that though, I found it to be not too bad, and by the time I finished, I wasn't filled with negative feelings. Still could be better, but it did its job this week.

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "Hmm! That was careless of Smithy! He's got himself run out. I'll speak sharply to him later on"  

Issue final ratings:

Overall: 6/10

Best Story: A Horse Called Ugly

Best Line: "More than you think, young man! I haven't been watching the best team in the world for most of my life, without learning something...so, let's get weaving!"

Best Panel:

Roys Sports Quiz: 

Tiger 13th July 1974

 The last issue had a couple of stinkers. As much as I love this comic and the story within, sometimes I feel disappointed. This week is an improvement, and I rate several of the stories highly. There is still a couple that isn't pulling their weight, but even they are improving, making this week a more enjoyable experience. A little unbalanced, sure, but we're seeing things turn around. 

Tiger

13th July 1974

Skid Solo

With a fancy-looking hotrod on the front cover, my expectations are sky high for the Skid Solo story within. The story shapes up to be something we have seen before, a new car design and a test track. The difference, in this case, is the car is designed and built by a teenager, and it is a concerned father who introduces the car and the boy to Skid. 

Worried about the harm that he may do to himself, the father asks Skid to ride with the boy as they take a test run around the track. With Skid in the passenger seat, I wonder how this will go, and from the outset, it is apparent that the car is fast, very fast.

Skid encourages the teenager to go faster, exhorting him to put his foot down and push the car to the max. He dutifully obeys, although the ride gets a little hairy from here on as the car leaves the track several times, as well as takes a spin through some hay bales.

Skid takes the wheel, and things become even faster, with Skid keeping the car on the track and the speedo pushed to the limit. It has the desired effect, and the teenager is scared straight by the end of the ride, promising his father that in future he will only design cars and has no further interest in racing them. 

Ok, so the story didn't quite live up to that first image of the hotrod, but it came close enough to leave me satisfied. I was quietly pleased that this wasn't Skid simply test-driving another unique car like we have seen so many times before, and the story offered a little more. Not a lot more, but enough that it carried its own weight. The scene with Skid in the passenger seat exhorting the driver to go faster was fun, as were the final pages when he was behind the wheel.  Fun, and not too taking, this is a gentle entrance into this week's comic.

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "Nothing wrong, is there? You look a bit pale. Have you eaten something that's disagreed with you?"

Roy Of The Rovers

Not much football in Roy Of The Rovers, but it's a cracking story and I savour every moment of it. 

Roy and Blackie are enjoying the carnival, especially the people wearing large funny heads. This proves key in the story, as Roy and Blackie find themselves suddenly having two of these heads placed over their own heads, disguising who they are and more importantly landing them right in a pivotal moment of the carnival. 

Wearing the heads of the bulls, they are the ones chosen to be chased by the fighting bulls when they are released. Taking to their heels they do their best to outrun the bulls and are eventually hauled to safety by some helping hands on a bridge. 

This is not the end of their troubles though, and after having some refreshing lemonade they become drowsy and dizzy and are escorted to a wagon where they are promised a lift home. 

It is not the ride they expect, and they awake as prisoners high in a clifftop castle, while many miles away their team prepares to kick off without them in the crucial match. 

More like this please. This was a great story from beginning to end. The artwork was eye-catching, especially the carnival goers with the large heads and Roy and Blackie when they are similarly attired. The story was unexpected and new, and I devoured every page. No football, yet I thoroughly enjoyed it and read it twice. Easily the best story this week.

Rating: 9/10

Best line: "Blackie, I've just remembered what 'Maletilla' means! It's someone who volunteers to get chased by fighting-bulls at carnivals!"

Matin's Marvellous Mini

With four cars racing to be champion of the treasure hunt, it's all on the line for Tiny and Martin. However, with their nemesis Percy still out on the track, anything could happen, and so it proves on the first page as he rolls a barrel of oil onto the track.

Martin and Tiny take evasive action, and in doing so hit the shed where Percy is hiding with a glancing blow. It's enough to send them back onto the track, but it destroys the shed, leaving Percy unharmed in the wreckage. 

Although unharmed, Percy's race is run as the officials promise to hand him over to the police. With that said, all eyes turn to the track where the race is wide open and it is still anyone's race. 

Percy has been put in his place, and we are back to racing on the track, normal service has resumed in Martin's Marvellous Mini. I liked the story well enough, but it wasn't quite as gripping as previous issues. Percy was dealt with easily, and although the oil drum he rolled out was a potential hazard it never really came to much. With the story plateauing, all that was left to admire was the fine artwork, always a joy to my eye. With that in mind, I rate the story higher than I should, but it looks so jolly good I just can't help myself. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "There doesn't seem much harm done...except to that shed!" 

The Tigers 

Chunky Clark did the business in the field, now it's time to see how he goes with his batting. We have to wait for most of the story before he gets out to the middle. There are a few high jinxes off-field between Burton and Chunky, before having a page showing the game and putting Chunky's place into context. It is only then that he takes to the middle, bat in hand. 

A couple of incidents between Chunky and Ron early on was the only thing of note to occur in this story. Like cricket itself, there was a lot of waiting around as the game gradually evolved. It was pleasant to look at, but it barely raised my pulse, and I found it finishing just as it was promising to get good. Low and slow, fingers are crossed for some batting action next week.

Rating: 5/10

Best line: "I'll just brush up on my batting strokes...now how can I do a square cut with a round ball...?"

Football Family Robinson

With the family fighting among themselves to decide which of the two exhibition matches to accept, it is down to Ma to bring peace to the situation. She does this the best way possible, with her frypan put into action against several hard skulls. As the chaos quietens, Ma explains a plan to satisfy everyone. Half the team will go and play for Pacific Paradise and half will play for Coral Wonderland. As for the game itself, they can play the two teams against each other, with the numbers made up of tourists at the respective resorts.

It's a sound plan, and soon the family is split and whisked off to the resorts. Both are a far cry from the forest conditions the family had been staying in, and there is a whiff of luxury in the air. This luxury doesn't come for free, and the owners of the resort are hoping to leverage their football guests as a promotional tool for their resorts. 

Ma and Viv have their photos taken, ready to be shown around the world as a boost for the resort, but before they can be properly interviewed, the camera crew are off to the other resort to interview the other half of the family. As Viv muses, the family has let itself in for more than it bargained. 

Taking the match seriously, the family begin training. However, this training is interrupted by Viv. The family ask her if anyone has signed up yet, to which she replies "Just wait until you see what's happened" What that might be, I will have to wait a week to find out in the next issue. 

Finally, we are back in civilization and the Robinsons are back on a football pitch. I haven't enjoyed this strip for a couple of months now, but this one showed improvement. You may think that is because my girl Viv made a strong appearance, but it's more than that. The family dynamic is in full play, and having them separated into two resorts makes it much easier to follow the individual characters. I am intrigued by Viv's news in the final panel, and on the back of that alone I have high hopes for the coming weeks. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "You've got to be joking! Just wait until you see what's happened!" 

A Horse Called Ugly

So it's all come down to this, a single race across a two-mile course. 

The race is simple enough, Joe and Lord Humprey are neck and neck, but once out of sight of the crowd, Lord Humphrey is up to his old tricks. As they take a jump, he strikes Ugly with his riding crop. It is the first time that Ugly has felt the sting of the whip, and he doesn't like it one bit.

With his blood boiling, UgIy races like never before, overtaking Lord Humphrey before the mile is up and then extending his lead comfortably over the second mile.

The race is easily won, and all that remains is for Joe to receive his prizes, five hundred pounds from Clive Mannering and a week living in Lord Humphrey's castle from Lord Humphrey himself. Neither man is very happy about it, but begrudging concedes. 

The story wraps up with Joe dancing a jig outside the Scottish castle after his month-long stay, while Angela brings news that they have been invited to ride for Britain in Italy. A whole new adventure awaits us. 

This was the short sharp finish that I had hoped for over the longer story. There were some nefarious going ons, but they didn't derail Joe and Ugly too much from winning the race. Although it lacked drama, the story did all it had to and I walked away from it with a satisfied smile. Not every story has to be life or death, and overall this week's issue of A Horse Called Ugly put me in mind of the very best Martin's Marvellous Mini stories which have an immense feel-good factor. How Italy will play out, who knows, but it is a nice location and no doubt the artist will have plenty to sink his teeth into. 

Rating: 8/10

Best line: "There are no rules in this race, Larcombe!"

Johnny Cougar and Splash Gorton

Their time in Australia is over, and Johnny and Splash fly out to Germany where their next adventure awaits them. 

That next adventure will involve Johnny fighting as a tag team, and he is driven to a nearby military base to meet his new partner. His new partner is a British soldier, Staff Sergeant Martin, a physical training instructor. With that sort of background, it's no surprise that he wants Johnny to take on the assault course. We don't get to see this assault course, it's only introduced in the final panel, but we do get to see the look on Johnny's face, and from his expression, he may well be in for a tough time. 

A stepping stone issue here for Johnny Cougar, Nothing happened in the story, but it laid out all the groundwork for his next adventure. We saw him fly to Germany and travel to the army base, and it was in only the final six panels, he met his partner and saw the assault course. Not a lot for me to hang my hat on there. I like the premise, it is up to the story now to reel me in on the back of such promise. No flash to speak of, but a steady introduction.

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "Left-right-left-right! Get in step, waddle-baby! This cat would have made a real swinging soldier"  

Tallon Of The Track

I wasn't a great fan of Tallon Of The Track last week, and although this week is a little better, it's still far from its previous heights. 

We last saw Jo Tallon standing up and pointing out that she had worked out what was making the Hunsford Hawks so fast. She lets us know in the first panels of this issue what it is she has seen - a secret addictive being added to their fuel, strictly against the rules. 

Jo encourages her boys to ride as fast as they can at the next race meeting. They do so, and after three heats they have a slender lead and no sign of the previous speed from the Hawks. 

That changes in the fourth heat as the Hawks riders take off like they're jet-propelled. Jo is infuriated and immediately goes off to seek out the race official, only to be hit in the face by an oily rag thrown by persons unknown. 

The second page of this story was a lot stronger than the first page. The first page saw the story again treading water as Jo and her team watched the footage of the Hawks and this felt much the same as what we saw last week. Seeing some action on the track over the page helped to kickstart the story and we finally felt like we were moving again. As for being hit in the face with an oily rag, it is hardly the deadliest situation Jo has been in, but it does lend an air of intrigue to the story, and that alone is enough to convince me to give it another chance next week. Far from vintage Tallon Of The Track, but a gradual improvement.

Rating: 6/10

Best line: "Glooaagh!" 

Issue final ratings:

Overall: 7/10

Best Story: Roy Of The Rovers

Best Line: "Stop it! Stop the car! Stop it!"

Best Panel:

Roy's Sports Quiz:

Tiger 6th July 1974

 Although I loved Johnny Cougar last week, the rest of the comic didn't live up to this strip. It felt flat throughout and some of the usual strong stories fell a little flat. A quick peruse through this weeks issue and I can see already that things look much better. Johnny Cougar's fight against Mighty Man is winding down, but plenty of other strong stories are rising to take their place. 

Tiger

6th July 1974

Roy Of The Rovers

Football on the beach in Spain, how lovely. And so we begin this issue with Roy training the Sao Palo village team on the beach in preparation for their final match of the tournament. They need to beat Camplona to win the tournament, a tough task given that Camplona has the best facilities and a wealthy benefactor, Senor Benitez. 

Roy and Blackie get up close and personal with Senor Benitez as he offers them a free lunch. If there's one thing I know in life, it's that there is no such thing as a free lunch, and so it proves here as Senor Benitez's lunch comes with a fish hook, a threat and a bribe to Roy to stay out of the tournament. 

Roy is not one to be bullied, and with the aid of Blackie he throws Senor Benitez into the pool. They may have won the battle, but Senor Benitez storms out with thoughts of the wider war raging in his head. These dark thoughts manifest themselves in the final two panels of the strip as a parade passes the two young footballers later that night. Two of the parade members are not what they seem, and there is talk of kidnap in the air. 

The story started softly but ramped up by the end. The training session did little to excite me, but it did lay out the context for what came next. I must say, I was a little surprised to see this is the key game and that they have played three matches already. I feel like we have missed something along the line, or the story glossed over some of the games. Senor Benitz is a worthy villain, and I appreciated the early encounter between him and Roy which resulted in a dunking in the pool. The only part that took me out of the story was his name. I couldn't help but think of Rafael Benitz every time I read his name. Try to imagine Rafael Benitex being thrown in the pool by opposition players! Overall a good start to the comic, and I hope next week's fireworks live up to the expectations set here. 

Rating: 7/10

Best Line: "Of course it didn't, you fools! Do you think I am in the habit of swimming with my clothes on!"

Johnny Cougar and Splash Gorton

Johnny Cougar has been the best story for the last two weeks as his fight against Mighty Man has outshined everything else in the comic.

Sadly, this week isn't as good as last time out, and the fight and overall story of the tournament ends today. Johnny battles with Mighty Man for the first two pages, not in the face-to-face intense style we saw before, but rather with Johnny using his speed to avoid Mighty Man. It is this quickness that finally defeats the Mighty Man as Johnny avoids one of his attacks and Mighty Man finds himself crashing into a ring post. 

Taking advantage, Johnny claims the final pinfall, allowing him to lift the oversize cup and consider what the next adventure might hold. The final tagline tells us that Johnny's next adventure will be in Germany, so it seems our time in Australia has come to an end. 

A letdown, but by no means a poor story. The result was right for what was being told and Johnny beat his opponent the only way possible. A part of me wanted one more week, but if I'm honest with myself, that would be too much for this one bout. Johnny's time in Australia has been enjoyable, but we did lose sight of the location in the last few issues, and these final bouts could have been fought anywhere. Still, we had a good run, and although the story didn't finish on a total high, it was still highly readable and fun. 

Rating: 8/10

Best Line: "The Cougar moves faster than the charging Buffalo!" 

Martin's Marvellous Mini

With their rival, Percy, lining up to shoot out their tires, things looked dire for Tiny and Martin when we left them. 

Fortunately, he misses, and Tiny and Martin take evasive action. Percy doesn't miss with the punch he delivers to Algy though, as Algy again reminds him it's only a treasure hunt, while Tiny and Martin waste no time finding out who shot at them and instead speed off to the next clue. 

The boys solve the final clue of the treasure hunt with ease, down by the seaside, and make for the finish line where they find they are one of four teams to solve all the clues. To break this deadlock, the race will be decided by ten laps around the runway.

We are lined up at the start as the story fades, Algy appearing at the window of their car as they're about to start to tell them that Percy is out there on the track, determined to stop them at any cost. 

A mixed bag this week between high-stakes drama, and low-level frivolity on the beach. I liked all of it, Percy with the rifle was thrilling, but I was equally enamoured by the appearance of two donkeys on the beach, and an ice cream van - a timely reminder of summer as the nights get longer here. Next week should be the climax of the story and all the building blocks are in place for a good issue. Martin's Marvellous Mini has delivered before, and I have every faith that it will deliver again next week with a fitting end to this story. 

Rating: 8/10

Best Line: "I - I want to talk to you chaps! About Percy...my friend, well, he was my friend...but he's not anymore!" 

Skid Solo

Race day, and it is the French Grand Prix. Skid puts in the fastest practice lap, but soon enough he is eclipsed by the French driver, Corbonne, who tops him and takes the pole position on race day. 

The race itself becomes a battle between these two, with Corbonne in the lead and Skid pushing him hard all the way. Back in third, Sparrow and Juan Landio are also fighting hard, but not as hard as Al Ledstock who is pushing his car to the limit. 

Ledstock makes his way past Sparrow and Landio and manages to catch Solo and Corbonne. He briefly takes the lead, but he has pushed his car too hard and is forced to retire due to mechanical failure. 

Solo and Corbonne are left still scrapping for the lead, and after sitting second for most of the race, Solo finally makes it past Corbonne as the French driver makes an error. It is short-lived as Solo soon finds his car is losing power. Corbonne goes by him, and so too Sparrow Smith. 

Skid hangs on to third, barely making it to the finish line. He tells Sandy that he ran out of fuel, but a quick inspection by Sandy reveals a broken fuel line. While they look forlornly at the vehicle, Corbonne takes the trophy, and the points, giving him an eighteen-point lead on the table. 

This was a hard-fought race, and it took its toll on both man and machine. Just what I have come to expect from Grand Prix racing, and I found this story gripping throughout. The race had a close finish, mechanical failure, ups and downs, and best of all no major accidents. Exciting reading for motor racing fans and comic fans alike, this is the Skid Solo I hope to see every week. Pure race action, I loved every minute of it, and this is my favourite story this week. 

Rating: 9/10

Best Line: "Why don't you guys build a car that can take it? What's the use of me being the greatest driver you've ever seen...if the car falls to pieces!"

The Tigers

There isn't much to tell with Chunky Clark and his Tigers this week, Chunky is still playing wicketkeeper, and for the first half page of the strip he is just as bad as last week. Things take a turn once Ron Burton's crony, Tuff, hits him with a slingshot. Hitting Chunky in the back, it catches Chunky by surprise and he jumps, just in the right direction to catch a ball. 

In the next panel he stumbles and manages to get a runout. Things are looking up and it gets even better once he is hit in the face with a cricket ball. Now seeing double, he suddenly finds he's catching everything, much to the chagrin of Ron Burton who can only look on in dismay.

Not as funny as normal, nor as thrilling, this felt like an odd entry. However, I liked what I was reading, although the story only slightly progressed from where we were last week. I'm not sure how the blow to the head has helped Chunky, but he is playing like a completely different player in the latter half of the book, and this is stirring up Ron Burton no end. One can sense that this will lead to Buron doing something drastic in the next issue, and hopefully the story will continue to unfold from there. A good issue, still not a favourite, but steady enough. 

Rating: 7/10

Best line: "D'you think that wicket-keeper has got his right glasses on?"  

Football Family Robinson 

A noise approaches through the forest towards the Robinson camp, and no one knows if it is friend or foe. Relief then when Bluey the Kangaroo appears. But that's not all, he also arrives with Titch and some of the lost family members. 

At this point the story expands considerably, for not only has some of the family returned, but they returned with news that the forest isn't uninhabited, and there is a super tourist centre just a few miles away. And that's not all, they have also been offered a contract to play exhibition football for this Pacific Paradise, and all they need to do is find the rest of the family. 

Problem solved as in the very next panel the other missing family members appear, with their own super tourist centre connection, this time Coral  Wonderland who has also offered a contract to play football. 

All their troubles seemingly behind them, the rest of the comic descends into bickering among the family about which offer to take. Things become physical and fighting begins, before in the final act of the story, Fred is knocked unconscious against a tree. 

"And we have been offered a contract to play some exhibition football!" - and with this line the story jumped the shark. Sure, this lost in the jungle lark hasn't been my favourite storyline, but then to get offered not one, but two contracts to play football, from out of nowhere, well, that was just too much for me. Both lost family members just happened to find different tourist centres and be offered a contract, No sir, I'm not buying it. Let me look for a positive. We did see Viv. But she was being manhandled, and I'm definitely not happy about that. I guess the one pleasing aspect of this whole episode is next week we can move on to something new and hopefully put this whole sad episode behind us.

Rating: 3/10

Best line: "Fred, exert your authority. Do something!" 

Tallon Of The Track 

I thought Jo had figured out why the Hunsford Hawks were so fast as she looked at her watch last week, but apparently not as we are back to square one this week. Watching them race we get a recap from Jo who once again tells us that there is no way they can travel at that speed and break the records.

She requests TV director Richard Caxton to film the Hawks, including in the pits with their reserves and mechanics. He follows orders, and quickly develops his film for a viewing session the next day. 

The viewing sessions are more of the same, with a lot of talk of how unbelievably fast they are, before Jo leaps to her feet. Pointing at the screen she exclaims she knows how they are doing it, and it's right there on the screen. 

We are treading water with this story, and after six months of exciting and compelling storylines from Tallon Of The Track, it feels like this one has run out of steam. I confess I don't really care how this team is riding so fast, and it could have been resolved this week after Jo's discovery last week. The fact that we got two pages out of filming a race and watching is all too much for me and on the back of the previously disappointing Football Family Robinson, the comic is feeling particularly weak at this point. One thing the story did highlight was how far technology has come. While they filmed the Hawks with a bulky camera and developed the film, now we would just point our phone and watch it back immediately. Now that would have sped up this week's issue considerably.

Rating: 5/10

Best line:  "Maybe the Hawks are just brilliant riders!"

A Horse Called Ugly

Things come to a head in this week's strip as Joe catches up to Cliver Mannering, Lord Humphrey, and the horse float with Ugly. Things kick off immediately, with Mannering lunging at Joe with a wrench. Joe is too fast for him, and it is Humphrey that takes the blow.

With Humphrey out, Joe and Mannering scuffle, Joe triumphing as he pushes Mannering's head into the dirt.   

While Mannering and Humphrey bicker about whose fault it is, Joe frees Ugly. Just in a nick of time too, as Mannering makes a break for it. Ugly doesn't wait for instruction, and easily runs down Mannering, bailing him up near the fence and leaving him begging for mercy. 

This part of the story wrapped up, the race organisers cancel the race result, and Mannering and Humphrey are banned from all future race events. 

There is one unresolved issue though, which horse is faster, and Joe insists on a one-mile dash to decide once and for all which horse is better.

Just when I thought this story was wrapped up, we get this one final coda. Overall I was happy to see how it all unfolded, and a highlight was seeing Mannering and Humphrey get everything they deserved. I was surprised to see Joe scrapping but cheered on every blow he dealt to Clive Mannering. Ugly wasn't entirely forgotten, and he was given his moment to shine as he ran down Mannering, in one final humiliation. I'm not sure how much mileage we will get out of this one final race, fingers crossed it won't be dragged on for weeks. This was a good story, but I'm just about ready to wipe the slate clean and begin a new story.

Rating: 7/10

Best line:  "You want trouble... you've got it!" 

Issue final ratings:

Overall: 6.5/10

Best Story: Skid Solo

Best Line: "Gosh, look at all that money. He's trying to bribe us, Roy! "

Best Panel:

Roy's Sports Quiz: