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.

1977: A Madman Turns 40: Day 81

   On this date in Madman history, India's first female Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi would resign from office after both her and her son lost soundly in elections. She would leave office 2 days later. 
   
    This wouldn't be the last the world would hear of Indira Gandhi. She would win re-elections in 1980 and would stay in office until October 31st of 1984 when two of her bodyguards assassinated her in defiance to her military actions against an insurgency lead by a militant Sikh religious leader. 
   

Theatrical release poster for Gandhi, 1982.

    As a child, the film Gandhi starring Ben Kingsley was a massive hit. It stole the Academy Award for Best Picture for the Empire Strikes Back. WELLLLLLLLLL......

    Upon doing a little research for today's article, turns out I was wrong about that. Sir Richard Attenborough's Gandhi was released in 1982. Empire was in 1980. So, all this time I've been mad that Gandhi won Best Picture over my favorite film of all time- I actually should have been mad at Ordinary People, one of my wife's favorite films. 

Prime Minister Nehru, Indira's father
and unintentional fashion icon.

    I guess this is a good time to speak of another confusion that has to do with the film Gandhi. As I had mentioned a few days back, my parents watched the Nightly World News every night and I was strongly encouraged to do the same. So, I would always pick up bits and pieces about world events. When Indira Gandhi was murdered in 1984, because of popularity of the Gandhi motion picture, I always thought that she was Gandhi's daughter or daughter-in-law. It turns out she was neither. They both had the same last name and I was 6- give me a break folks!

Young Indira with Mahatma Gandhi, 1924.

    Yes- Indira knew the beloved advocate for independence from England. But her father was Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minster of India. And NO- her last name was not some sort of tribute to Gandhi. Indiri Nehru meet a man who would be her future husband with last name of Gandhi but he was no relation to the political legend.

News of Indira Ganghi's death is front page news,
The Washingto Post, 10/31/84.

     So that's my very confused look at my favorite year for today. I learned a lot about misconceptions I had as a child. I just hope that I don't get confused and think all this stuff wrong again years later.

     Until tomorrow...

Fairest, Volume 3: Return of the Maharajah

Fairest continues to explore the realms of foreign fables with a trip to the Fables of India and the Indus Valley. Here, a young girl named Nalayani must defend her village from rampaging hordes of were-demons, as all of the men were conscripted by the Adversary during the Fabletown Wars. Her best hope is to search out a new Maharajah that has just claimed the realm but when she finds him, all isn’t as it seems as one of Fables most endearing characters has returned from the dead,

  Bill Willingham’s Fables has dealt slightly with Indian Fables as some characters from the Jungle Book have been major players in the series long past. Thankfully, the writers behind this volume decided to explore never before revealed India fables. As with the Japanese fables in the previous volume, there were a lot of characters that I’ve never heard of before in this story. But that was okay, because the storytelling and art was fantastic. Full of action, adventure, romance, and surprises, Return of the Maharajah is probably going to have a major impact on the main Fables series, if it hasn’t already (and I just haven’t read it yet.)

I look forward to what this returning character will do to the dynamic on both the Farm and in the restoring Fabletown. I’m also hoping that this character’s return might mean a resurrection for a few other characters that I fell in love with and mercilessly got the axe.

Worth Consuming

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.