Apologies, dear reader, but I wasn't able to finish this one yet. I got through the first five or six chapters when something about the book started to bother me.
If you take a look at the cover, you'll notice some slight white discoloration, which coincides with the chalky texture of the surface, when normally it is smooth and glossy. It had no distinguishible or poor odor, but my eyes started to sting, not only while I read it, but also when it sat on my nightstand. It was the classic Sesame Street game of "Which One Doesn't Belong with the Other?" as I could identify even in the eBay listing something different about this copy. The rest of the lot was so stellar (and even this book looked nice) that I figured it would be fine...and I really needed it to finish my Neal Adams covers!
And this is another great cover for sure! Let's zoom in:
Circled is little N'kima, Tarzan's monkey sidekick, jumping away. So we're frozen in time during a dynamic and action-packed sequence (no idea if this shows up in the novel or not). And the hyenas are so menacing. The threat is real, you can feel them creeping, and that one in the foreground is about to pounce. Then Tarzan's massive strength is displayed, where he's about to rip the scratching animal apart with his bare hands (like Samson did with the lion). Neal draws the best physique of Tarzan. He's not supposed to be a bodybuilder, but a Greek Apollo - perfectly symmetrical with balanced musculature. And the beautiful rose colored background (just like Jim's birthday card!), setting off the trees in silhouette. I love it!
Now, the interesting thing I discovered was that, although this is a Fourth Printing, it's the first edition sporting an Adams cover. And it was published in November 1975 - 50 years ago (give or take a day)! That timeframe makes sense given Neal's drop off from most regular comics in the mid-70s (or at least at the Big Two). The first six (#1-#6) came out in April 1975, and the next six (#13-#18) came out in November. Kinda makes this whole Tarzan effort more momentous, celebrating its Golden anniversary!! (I had no clue.) [These editions also have a slightly rounded spine, not perfectly squared off.]
I do have some initial thoughts about the story that I can share. It mentions Fate and the weaving of "threads" to bring various individuals together, which is cool. It has an interesting premise where a disciple* of the Apostle Paul makes his way to Africa following Paul's martyrdom with a slave girl, where they settle in an ancient volcano valley. Unfortunately, the closed-off society becomes inbred (sporting deformities except for the rare Jezebel genetic beauty), and worst of all, they're deranged religious fanatics that have perverted the Gospel.
*I have issues with someone even calling themself a disciple of Paul, because Paul pointed people to Christ, not himself. So there is a flaw in ERB's worldbuilding for sure.
Anyway, a jetset British lady adventurer crashes her plane and parachutes into the community, where they think she may be a messenger from Jehovah. (The men also commune with Jehovah while they're experiencing epileptic seizures.) The only other cute girl around, actually named Jezebel, pretends to be the messenger's spokesperson, even though she can't understand the British girl either. She's doing this because she's constantly abused by her hideous "betters".
And Tarzan is getting involved due to some other individual who tells him that a white man is causing havoc in the area. Tarzan abides much, but he really takes on the responsibility of getting rid of or confronting people of his own background who are screwing up the jungle. Anyway, these threads were going to be woven together in some such way, and I was excited to read it until I couldn't stand it any longer**. And this was a direct sequel to #14, because Stalin was sending someone to deal with Tarzan after the failure of Zveri.
**This is the type of book I understand needs to be quarantined, not just any book that happens to reside in a house with a **** issue downstairs with no symptoms!
As such, I sealed the little bugger away in one of my 2-ply comic bags (see Jim, I managed to tie it back to comics - that used to be a requirement back in the day). I like the 2-ply more than the 3-ply because the colors come through better.
I started searching for a new copy online, but I didn't want to pay $10 or $15 for one right now. So I just started #18 instead. More on that another time...
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