Marvel Classics Comics #23: The Moonstone (2023 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

A staple of the comic book industry went defunct in 1971 when Classics Illustrated ceased publication. Frawley Corporation had purchased the rights to the educational reading tools from Gilberton in 1967. While 1969 was the last year the publisher released new material, Frawley kept issuing reprinted material both at home and abroad before abandoning the comic line for nearly 2 decades.

The void for comics based on works of classic fiction wouldn't be a very lengthy one. In 1973, Pendulum Press began a run of over 70 volumes of black and white adaptations of famous works. Artists and writers such as Otto Binder, Alex Nino, and Gerry Talaoc brought such beloved stories such as The Red Badge of Courage and Gulliver's Travels to life in a line called Pendulum Illustrated Classics. New material was produced under this line through 1980 with Shakespeare's Hamlet as the last original work.  

In 1976, the powers that be at Marvel Comics decided to take advantage of the vacuum brought about from Classics Illustrated's demise. Working with Pendulum Press, Marvel released Marvel Classics Comics, with the first 12 issues of the new series colorized reprints of Pendulum works. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, adapted by Kin Platt and Nestor Redondo and Otto Binder and Alex Niño's The Time Machine were the subjects of the first two issues.  

Each issue was 52 pages long - with no ads! Except for a post on the back cover advertising next month's upcoming releases. Marvel would release 2 new issues every month. The series ended in 1978 with adaptations of Alice in Wonderland and Dickens' A Christmas Carol published as issues #35 and #36.

Issue #23 was an adaptation of The Moonstone. Written by British author Wilkie Collins in 1868, it tells of a cursed gem stone and it's mysterious theft. One part gothic romance, as well as a complex whodunnit, The Moonstone is groundbreaking as it delves into the literal destruction of India's culture by British colonialists.

The story opens with the theft of the Moonstone, a sacred Hindu gem that rests in the forehead of a giant idol. During a skirmish called the 'Siege of Seringapatam', most of the attendants of the temple are killed by British forces. In the attack, a British soldier steals the Moonstone smuggling it back home in England. Thumbing his nose at the curse which follows the Moonstone, along with guardians of the Moonstone who will stop at nothing less than murder to retrieve it, the thief dies of mysterious circumstances; willing the jewel to his estranged niece.

The niece is gifted the heirloom on the night of her birthday. But her ownership of the jewel is short-lived, as the Moonstone is stolen later that night as she sleeps. A detective from a local constabulary is called in and an investigation begins. Fingers are pointed. Relationships are dashed. And the body count piles up as everyone is considered a suspect.

The author of the 'about the author' article on the inside cover of this issue lists Charles Dickens as a direct influence on Wilkie Collins. However true that may be, this story with it's gothic imagery and use of the scientific method to solve the crime, a lot of inspiration needs to be pointed at the works of Edgar Allan Poe. Clearly without works like this, we'd probably have a very different Sherlock Holmes. Who knows. It's quite possible that without the theft of the Moonstone, the world of criminal science might have never evolved to the level of sophistication that it has in today's policing methods.

This issue was adapted by Don McGregor. Art was by Dino Castrillo. Cover by Ernie Chan.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Completing this review completes Task #25 (Set in a Foreign Country) of the 2023 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.