Fantomen Nr.10/2004
by Hans Lindahl
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- The Hood
- Script: Claes Reimerthi
- Art: Joan Boix
- First published in Fantomen Nr.10/2004 with the title Leather Hood by Egmont, Scandinavia (6 May 2004). Original cover shown on the left, thanks to Brian Jensen.
- Message from the Publisher:
The Phantom plays detective again in this new adventure set in 1781 in Cornwall, on the west coast of England. The Hood, written by Claes Reimerthi and illustrated by Joan Boix, is a fascinating story aimed to keep you guessing about the identity of Leatherhood the villain, until the climax.
Claes Reimerthi is a lover of history, who often creates Phantom adventures set in far flung parts of the world and who always goes to a great deal of trouble to ensure everything involved in his plots is historically accurate. So too, does artist Joan Boix, who researches every detail of Reimerthi's scripts to get everything - from clothing to weapons, architecture and methods of transportation - absolutely correct.
If you think there are some elements of The Hood which seem familiar, I think it is only reasonable to agree! There is a slight connection between the nephew of the businessman and the character Wambo from Lee Falk's 1957 story, Wambo The Gambler. Masked (or hooded) villains have appeared before! However, Claes Reimerthi's script must be regarded as highly original and there is nothing new about writers adapting ideas from other creators. After all, Paul Hogan's blockbuster movie, Crocodile Dundee was loosely based on elements of the theme from the famous film, Tarzan's New York Adventure, starring Johnny Weissmuller! Hogan loved the Tarzan plot and used similar ideas in his script to show how a simple Australian bush man (Crocodile Dundee) could outwit big city Americans (including a handful of villains) on their own turf! As I have pointed out on several previous occasions, Hollywood often borrowed plot and action scene ideas from many of Lee Falk's comic strip scenarios chronicling the adventures of The Ghost Who Walks!
It will be worth looking at a detailed map of England to establish where Cornwall is located! It is a fascinating part of England. The area boasts Land's End, which is the southernmost part of England and among many other fascinating towns, boasts Penzance, St Austell, St Ives and Falmouth. In olden times, the coast around Penzance was a haven for pirates and smugglers. Today, this comparatively small part of England is a popular tourist destination because it has so much fascinating history, spectacular coastal views and beautiful countryside. Not far off shore to the south-west are the Scilly Islands, reputed to have England's warmest weather and some of the country's most glorious gardens. Everywhere are charming villages which have remained largely unchanged for centuries.
Covers for this issue are by Antonio Lemos who has cleverly captured the mood of the setting for The Hood.
Our next issue will be #1384 which goes on sale on 21 May. It will be a 100-page special which will bring us up to date with all the new American-created stories. To follow are two more new adventures - The Mysterious Commander and The Resurrection Mob, which will be on sale respectively on 28 May and 11 June. The Mysterious Commander has been written by Lennart Moberg and illustrated by Bob McLeod and the script for The Resurrection Mob is from David Bishop with art by Kari Leppänen, comic book creators who rank with the best in the world and whose work is familiar to all fans.
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