Korak is the Honorable Jack Clayton, son of English Lord John Clayton, Viscount Greystoke, also known as Tarzan, lord of the jungle. He is the hero of a 1915/6 magazine serial and 1917 novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs and a 1920 silent movie serial, as well as a character in several other Tarzan stories from 1914 to 1924. He experienced a revival in 1964 as the star of his own comic book series and as a major character in various Tarzan comic books, pages, and strips from 1966 to 1978.
As depicted in the comic books, pages, and strips, Korak has a lean, athletic physique, broad shoulders and thin waist, almost no clothing, a cute, boyish face, and full, thick hair. He is also an intelligent, enthusiastic teen-aged boy with excellent natural instincts and a good heart.
Korak strives to emulate his legendary father but lacks his strength, maturity and experience. Therefore, he is both more likely to enter into dangerous situations and more vulnerable to being defeated.
As the star of his own comic book series in 1964, Korak is a capable, young hero. His adventures were somewhat similar to those of his father Tarzan, but independent from them.
In 1966, ABC released the TV series Batman, featuring the frequently imperiled youthful sidekick Robin the Boy Wonder. As a fan of seeing cute, young sidekicks in trouble, I watched every episode.
The British Tarzan weekly started in 1977. This week's artist is the wonderful Dan Spiegle.
Korak continues to have a lean, athletic physique, broad shoulders and thin waist, almost no clothing except for a leather loincloth over his mid-section, a cute, boyish face, and full, thick, dark hair. However, under Spiegle, Korak tended to have a shorter, more compact, gymnast's build.
He continues to be a strong, athletic, teen-aged jungle boy. However, his smaller size makes him even more vulnerable to defeat to larger, more mature opponents.
He continues to be an intelligent, enthusiastic teen-aged boy with good natural instincts and a good heart. His youthful inexperience makes him vulnerable to dirty fighting techniques or seduction. His youthful enthusiasm may also lead him into trouble over good but dangerous causes or to otherwise confront dangerous opponents to prove himself.
This week, Korak and Tarzan encounter a scary volcano and call a geologist, who pronounces it safe. Tarzan leaves, but the volcano gets scarier. An apparent volcano god appears and threatens an eruption. After almost evacuating the area, Korak investigates the apparent volcano god and discovers that he is the geologist in disguise. The geologist discovered uranium in the area but pronounced the volcano safe in order to prevent other scientists from arriving and making the same discovery. However, during the evacuation, an old man refuses to leave, and Korak must prevent the eruption by removing a boulder, thereby relieving the lava pressure.
Korak starts by almost falling into the volcano, but is rescued by Tarzan. He is then fooled by a corrupt geologist into believing that the volcano will not erupt, but so is his father. When the apparent volcano god threatens an eruption, Korak prudently and ably evacuates the area. The young hero also shows his intelligence and strength by correctly deducing that the apparent volcano god is a fake, forcing the unwilling geologist to reveal his plan and his solution to prevent the eruption, and, with great effort and determination, removing the boulder thereby relieving the lava pressure. The son of Tarzan then ably organizes the effort to put out the smaller fires caused by the volcano. When his father returns, Korak gives a modest summary of his accomplishments.
Spiegle's artwork is wonderful. Viewers have plenty of opportunity to admire Korak's lean, athletic physique and cute, boyish face, although he is not as often in trouble in this story.
Favorite scene: page 2, panel b
Previous British Tarzan blog:
This blog is intended to raise interest in and appreciation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs character Korak. To see this story in context, you may find it in my Korak in British Tarzans blog at the following link:
This week's adventures can also be found at the following link(s):
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