The Golden Fleece

Judy,

Plot

Liz Maxwell lived in the North-West of Canada with her father, a research scientist who was trying to perfect an artificial fur. Pete Broderick and Armand Dupont, two fur trappers, saw a danger to their business, and burned down Dr Maxwell’s laboratory. Liz’s father was blinded in the fire, but he and Liz continued with their work. They produced a fur and Dr Maxwell went to town to discuss production with a large firm there. Broderick and Dupont tried to kidnap Liz, but she escaped.

Notes

Appeared

  • The Golden Fleece – Judy: (?) – #525 (31 January 1970)

Glyn of the Golden Voice

Judy, , ,

Plot

Glyn Quentin and er friend Hazel Brown both sang in the Hawfield Girl’s Choir run by Gyn’s uncle and guardian Paul Quentin. Glyn not the best of singers would much rather being playing tennis, but her uncle forbids her playing until after a big competition (Eisteddfod) is finished. Then he surprises everyone saying Glyn will sing solo, which also doesn’t make the previous soloist Esther happy. On the evening of the competition Glyn sings superbly much to Hazel’s surprise.

Notes

  • Art: Julio Bosch

Appeared

  • Glyn of the Golden Voice – Judy: #507(27 September 1969) – #516 (29 November 1969)

Lynne Against Lareno [1978]

Emma, , ,
  • Lynne Against Lareno –  Emma: #01 (26 February 1978) – #09 (29 April 1978)
  • Art: Norman Lee

Plot

Lynne Frankin arrives in Lareno, a small town located just before the Mexican border, to visit her friend Kate Marlow. Kate moved to Lareno to set up a riding school, but when Lynne asks a taxi driver to take her to Kate’s school, he drives off saying there is no such place. The Sheriff and Mayor are also unwelcoming, and the mayor tells her, Kate died of a fever showing her a fresh grave with the markings still wet. The Sheriff, lets her stay in a cell for the night saying the hotel is full and that he will bring her to bus in the morning. But Lynne doesn’t believe their story and wants to stay and find out what happened to Kate even if the whole town is against her.

First she tries to talk to the town doctor but he is uncooperative and the Sheriff is always close by watching. Then she tries to hire a car so she can drive to the riding school, but is told none available. With no other option she decides to walk to Kate’s school, but a fake sign along the way leads her astray. She would be lost in the desert but luckily she figures out by how the sun is casting shadows, how to get back on to the road. She meets a young man, Mike, who is friendly until he finds out who she is, he drives off. She finds er way to Kate’s school which appears to be abandoned but then Sheriff Tully arrives and arrests her for trespassing. A secret friend gives her the bail money she needs through the cell window and the friend also helps by leaving her food, when no-one will sell her anything.

Lynne spies some residents trying to bury something on the outskirts of town until Sheriff Tully clears them off. They are having some worries but the Sheriff tells them to remember what happened to the last person who raised objections. She wonders if they are talking about Kate. Before she can investigate further she is caught again and this time locked in a hotel room. She sees some newcomers arrive and she is about to get their attention when she is stopped by Mike. She also sees Kate but Mike tells her that Kate is dead and who she saw was the Sheriff’s daughter. Thinking Mike is not going to help her she manages to find a way out from where she is being held. She tracks down the strangers she saw earlier and tells them her story, but they in turn says she knows too much and take her captive!

They take her to the riding school and Lynne gets more pieces of puzzle as they seem to think plane crashed there and are looking for something the Sheriff and Deputy arrive and arrest the men and Lynne. Mayor Novak is getting jumpy, talking about taking his share and leaving. Then Lynne sees the Mayor driving off and Deputy shooting after him. Mike tells Lynne to escape in the confusion. Lynne uses the opportunity to search where she last thought she saw Kate, she finds her asleep (possibly drugged) in a cellar, she is unable to rescue her as she is tracked down again. She comes across Mayor Novak’s car he has already been caught and there are men taking crate of gold ingots back to town, now Lynne knows what the town has been hiding. Lynne sees Mike, he helped er before but she doesn’t know if she can really trust him, she isn’t given a choice when more of the Sheriff’s men come after her and start shooting at her, she as to jump into his jeep to escape. It is the right choice as Mike has been secretly helping her. They make contact with state police and rescue Kate. The whole story comes out, a gang had committed a big robbery and were flying to Mexico when their plane crashed near Kate’s school, killing all the crew. The town decided to share out the gold, but Kate and Mike wouldn’t go along with it, which is why they locked up Kate, as Mike was a local they gave him the benefit of doubt that he wouldn’t turn them in. The strangers that arrived were part of the gang looking for the gold. After the police have finished their investigation, Lynne, Kate and Mike leave Lareno for good as there’s nothing left for them there anymore.

 

Thoughts

This must have been fun for Norman Lee to draw, having small American town in the desert, makes it a different backdrop to the frequent British locations. The isolation and unfamilar area, certainly ups to stakes for Lynne too. With seemingly the whole town against her and nowhere close by to go for help, she is left to fend for herself. She has the option of leaving, but shows her loyalty to her friend by sticking around through the hostilities to find out what happened. Lynne also shows herself as resourceful, like figuring out how to get out of desert or finding loose floorboard to escape through. The mystery is intriguing enough as well, the reader must wonder what the town is hiding and is Kate really dead. Along with that there is a lot of action and excitement, such as Lynne getting stuck in quicksand or getting shot at! When she finally goes to strangers for help it turns out they are worse than the people of Lareno!

There are some questions like why would Kate choose this place to start a riding school, doesn’t seem the most lucrative of places to set up a business and it is a long way from England. Also as Mike was person to raise objections initially it seems odd to let him guard Lynne. Sheriff Tully does seem to be running the show, as we do see others a bit nervous of the scheme, so it is interesting that he is not interested in doing a deal with the gang saying he doesn’t do deals with crooks, but considering what he has done to that point the has already crossed the line into unlawful behaviour, but maybe in is mind he has been able to justify his actions. It’s the only time we see him express any morals so we don’t get to develop that further, for most of the story he is just the main antagonist to deal with. The other towns people are unfriendly to Lynne but seem less confident than Sheriff Tully. Of course with so many people involved and everyone getting jumpy its inevitable that their downfall will come. It is an exciting journey along the way and again showed off the variety of stories the Emma comic started with.

 

Heartache for Hannah [1993]

M&J, , ,
  • Heartache for Hannah –  M&J:  #116 (10 August 1993) – #127 (16 October 1993)
  • Art: Maria Dembilio

Plot

Hannah Littleton gets on great with her young stepmother Jill, and is delighted when she hears she is going to have a baby sibling. But after a difficult labour and the arrival of baby Thomas, things change for Hannah. While she is happy to have her brother, Jill suddenly becomes more distant, telling her to no longer call her mum. At first Jill thinks it because she has her own baby now, but soon she notices Jill doesn’t make any effort with him either. The house is getting messy and Jill doesn’t take care of herself like she used to. Worried that her family may break up, especially after fights between Jill and Dad and comments he makes, Hannah starts trying to cover for Jill.

One such times is before a health visitor arrives for check-up, Hannah comes home on her lunch break to clean the house, and because she is spending her time covering for Jill, this starts to affect other things in Hannah’s life. While her dad is working late a lot, Hannah does the cooking and housework which means she is getting bad marks for her rushed homework and on occasion is late for school. Hannah continues to be dismayed as well at Jill’s attitude towards Thomas like when they are out for a walk and Jill says she doesn’t understand people complimenting Thomas as he’s just another baby. When Hannah attempts to get Jill interested in cooking again by hoping she will join her when she does a big batch cook, her plan seems to work at first and Jill actually perks up and helps, but her mood changes completely when Thomas cries. Every-time Jill seems to get back on track, something happens with Thomas, like when she gets a new dress and he spits up on it, or when she tries to get back to exercise and Tomas keeps her awake all night. Jill says whats point of having nice things or pretending she has time for exercise with a baby around.

While dealing with Jill’s mood swings, and trying to keep things secret Hannah falls out with her best friend because of her unexplained behaviour. At home there are even more arguments when her Dad tells his mother that Jill won’t be going back to work, something Jill never agreed to.  He has old-fashioned ideas that Jill should stay home to look after the baby. Hannah continues to try and make things better and help, but everyone is miserable. Then Jill accidentally leaves Thomas in his pram in the shop while she is carrying the shopping. Once she realises she is panicked and so grateful to get her son back, as she would be devastated if anything bad happened to him. Hannah is relieved to see she does actually love Thomas and after Jill talks to her husband about how she is struggling, they call the health visitor to come talk. While not mentioned by name it’s implied that Jill has been suffering from post-natal depression, and now she can start getting the support she needs. Hannah realises that by covering for Jill, she wasn’t helping as the actual problem wasn’t being addressed. Hannah’s father also apologizes realising how insensitive he was and they actually agree about Jill going back to work when Thomas is a little older, as her career is still important to her. Hannah is happy to see her family back joking together and while it will take time to recover she knows they will be okay.

Thoughts

There’s a lot going on in this story, and while family drama was common in these comics, I haven’t seen this specific topic addressed before. It talks about how difficult Jill’s labour was and while not named it is recognizable that Jill has post natal depression, along with that is the generational gap between her and her husband, and the issues that causes with his ideas of a traditional family. All this of course from the viewpoint of a daughter, who doesn’t understand the best way to help her step-mother is to ask for support else where. The story is well written handles the topics deftly.

Being a mother now my sympathy is with Jill, while I was lucky not to have post-natal depression, it is not always easy to manage being a new mom. Luckily I have a supportive partner, while Hannah’s dad, Michael,was not very understanding  for a lot of the story, like early on commenting that she’s not making an effort with her appearance and such is a bit much, especially when she had such a difficult 12 hour labour. At least Gran seems to be on Jill’s side , pointing out she just had a baby, pity she’s not around more to help out. While he does help out with Thomas which is good (though again it seems doing a nappy change and feed constitutes helping, which Hannah also does), it seems he expects Jill to keep up her appearance and do housework and look after Thomas, with no acknowledgement of what a big lifestyle change has happened. His comments and their fights is also what leads Hannah to try and cover by doing housework, which obviously causes lots of other problems with Hannah’s school and friends.

In the early 90s it was still more common for women to give up their jobs for being stay-at home moms, but in Jill’s case this is not something she wants to do. Even worse Michael doesn’t discuss this properly with Jill and tells his own mother first that Jill won’t return to work. Jill is understandably furious at this, and Michael still won’t negotiate he won’t even consider a creche or a nanny (having him give up his career instead is never even mentioned as an option). He also seems to be expecting her to do as his first wife did, not considering they are different people and that Jill is only 23. Even these days mothers trying to keep their careers and sharing parenting more evenly with partners is a struggle, so it’s interesting that it was being discussed in this story from nearly 30 years ago.

The 20 year age gap between them obviously doesn’t help things either, Jill is only 22 at start of story just after they marry, presumably by the end she must be 23, while people can be in relationships with large age gaps, it’s still a bit concerning that they must have started dating when she was only a few years out of school and there is only 10 years between her and Hannah, and obviously there were some things they didn’t communicate properly (like Jill’s career plans).  Clearly these issues don’t really appear until the baby arrives, at least by the end they seem to be on the road to recovery again, and joking and happy together.

While these days I am quite identify with the character of Jill, of course the main protagonist of the story is Hannah. Having to shoulder so much responsibility at a young age is difficult, and fearing that her family will break up and hearing her parents fight all the time is not a healthy environment to be in. It is quite hurtful for Hannah when Jill tells her not to call her “mom” anymore, as they had previously had such a good relationship. The instinct to cover things up both at home and at school, is a lot of young people’s experience, and we see how this impacts on the other aspects of her life. In this case it is nice things have a happy ending, and it is good that Jill reassures Hannah it wasn’t her fault for trying to hide things she knows she meant well. Going forward they should hopefully all be able to communicate and support each other better. It is one of the stories that really holds up well on a  reread, it is well written and Dembilio’s art is a good choice to capture the family drama.

 

 

Belinda’s Bonnets (1974)

Bunty,

Plot

Belinda Boyd’s father is the curator of a small museum and is given some hats for his collection of period costumes. Whenever Belinda puts one on her head she is transported back in time, getting into trouble each time she does so.  Removing the hat gets her back to the present.

Notes

  • Artist: Geoff Jones? Rodney Sutton?
  • No episode #873
  • Translated into Dutch as “De tijdhoeden” (The Time Hats) in Dutch Tina (Oberon, 1972 series) #31/1975 until 50/1975, but not in all issues in between.

Appeared

  • Belinda’s Bonnets  – Bunty: #868 (31 August 1974) to #875 (19 October 1974)

Unbeatable Beatrix

Judy, ,

Plot

In the year 1990, Riga Cussons is a pupil at a Special Grade School where future sports champions are given specialist coaching under ideal conditions. Riga aims to be a ski champion—Her closest rival, Beatrix Lander, proves hostile and, when Riga asks if she is related to the Beatrix Lander  who was permanently injured trying to become a Junior World Ski Champion twelve years previously, Beatrix vigorously denies any connection. Yet on a visit to the Landers’ house, Riga sees a woman she knows to be the former champion!

Notes

Appeared

  • Unbeatable Beatrix – Judy: #455 (28 September 1968) – #462 (16 November 1968)

The Scarlet Shawl

Judy

Plot

It is the year 1640 and England is torn by two loyalties—one to king Charles I and the other to Parliament. Puritan Squire Camden is arrested for refusing to pay the king’s unjust taxes, but he escapes from cavalier Sir Guy Farley and his men and is sheltered by the villagers of Spockley while Sir Guy and his men remain in possession of Camden Hall. Young Verity Goodstock, who works at the Hall, wears her scarlet shawl as a warning when the Cavaliers intend to swoop down upon the village to search for the Squire.

Notes

Appeared

  • The Scarlet Shawl – Judy:  #457 (12 October 1968) – #463 (23 November 1968)

Valley of Death

Judy

Plot

While Suzanne Flynn was visiting some distant American relatives who lived in Pinerock mountains in Kentucky, she became involved in a feud between the Flynns and the Macdermots who lived in neigbouring parts of the mountain. Some terrible things began to happen centered around an old mine. Each family blamed each other, Suzanne is very shocked to find a monster in the mine.

Notes

Appeared

  • Valley of Death – Judy: #767 (21 September 1974) – #776 (23 December 1974)

The Boy Next Door [1974]

Judy,

Plot

When Gil Handley and his family moved next door to Jane Barker, she and Gil always seemed to be at loggerheads but secretly she was quite keen on him.

Notes

  • Reprinted and translated into Dutch (as “De buurjongen”) and published in installments in various Holco publications from the late seventies until the early 1980s.

Appeared

  • The Boy Next Door – Judy: #767 (21 September 1974) – #778 (7 December 1974)