Fantomen Nr.16/2004
by Rolf Gohs
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- Son of the Pirate Queen
- Script: David Bishop
- Art: César Spadari
- "First" published in Fantomen Nr.16/2004 by Egmont, Scandinavia (not until 29 July!). Original cover shown on the left, thanks to Brian Jensen.
- Message from the Publisher:
Here she is again! Kate Somerset, otherwise known as the Pirate Queen, re-enters The Phantom's life. In this new story, Son of the Pirate Queen, writer David Bishop and artist César Spadari delve deeper into the relationship between Kate and The Phantom, but as you will discover, the story is still uncompleted.
To refresh your memory about previous adventures starring Kate and The Phantom, refer to Frew issue #1354 (The Pirate Queen) published in 2003 and #1374 (also The Pirate Queen) published earlier this year.
Son of the Pirate Queen is a dramatic offering! The Phantom finally learns he is the father of Chris, the Pirate Queen's son and as you will discover near the end of the story, also learns that Chris has become a pirate - and a member of the most elite crew in the despicable ranks of the Singh Brotherhood. Naturally enough, there will be a follow-on adventure from Son of the Pirate Queen, but it does not appear likely to be published much before the end of 2004. More's the pity!
Although this trio of Pirate Queen stories is slightly far-fetched and in conflict with accepted Lee Falk Phantom history, all are fascinating. Occasionally, it does no harm for current writers to delve into scenario possibilities which Lee never pursued. After all, there were so many unanswered questions for fans to ponder when Lee's long and creative life came to an end. Whatever (I wonder) happened to early female villain Sala ... and Byron, I another strong character from the early years ... and the Giant of Kaluga, the Marshall Sisters, Little Toma, Prince Hali, the Gibs brothers and so many other memorable players?
I can imagine some purists will be wondering why so many comparatively recent stories have touched on themes which Lee Falk conveniently bypassed. I can only suggest they accept all the stories as pure escapist entertainment.
As has been stressed on many occasions, the only official Phantom history is to be found in Lee Falk's Chronologies spanning 1936-1999.
As this is written, I am not privy to what happens if and when The Phantom and Kate Somerset track down the errant son. However, towards the end of Son of the Pirate Queen, The Phantom almost gives everything away as he reads the Chronicles to Guran!
In our next issue, on sale 23 July, we will bring you another new adventure entitled The 21st Phantom. Lee Falk wrote several adventures about the appearance of the current Phantom, but there are some surprises in this new offering, written by Claes Reimerthi and illustrated by Paul Ryan. We all know that the current (21st) Phantom was away from the Deep Woods for some time as he was educated in the United States. He rushed back to the jungle to say farewell to his dying mother and while he was not exactly immediately pushed into his role as the new Phantom, it must have taken some time to acclimatise to the jungle and peacekeeping in the wilds. The 21st Phantom' explores what thoughts must have gone through his mind when the time came to take over from his dying father (the 20th Phantom). You will find Reimerthi's script completely acceptable and Paul Ryan injects just the right amount of sympathy into his superb art. Covers for this issue will come from Antonio Lemos.
There are loads of new stories to come, including a follow-up to the story you are about to read with more art from Paul Ryan and script by Claes Reimerthi.
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