It’s an interesting issue for a number of reasons. It’s a mix of Lost Horizon and Edgar Rice Burroughs with Indy and Marion finding their way to a lost city in the Himalayas. Yeti-like creatures protect the city, which has many secrets.
One of those secrets is the presence of Abner Ravenwood; Michelinie doesn’t resolve that mystery–probably not allowed to do it under the license–but his solution for it is fantastic.
There’s a lot of action and almost no story. The revelations about the lost city are mostly just to move the action along. After one moment of introspection from Indy, Michelinie solely concentrating on the action.
The writing makes it work.
The awful art is sometimes incredible. Trimpe’s little heads are something to see. He doesn’t even do well on the landscapes–but he gets better inks on those panels.
It’s an ugly comic, but decent.
CREDITS
The Search for Abner, Chapter Two: The City of Yesterday’s Forever!; writer, David Michelinie; penciller, Herb Trimpe; inkers, Vince Colletta, Danny Bulanadi and Ernie Chan; colorist, Robbie Carosella; letterer, Joe Rosen; editor, Eliot Brown; publisher, Marvel Comics.
One could just sit and admire Michelinie’s storytelling economy. Not even the great character work he does on Indy, but just the economy of how he structures the catch-up.
It’s a very fast paced issue from Michelinie. Maybe he knew he had Trimpe and Colleta back on art and didn’t want to make the reader suffer. That explanation is as good as any, especially when one considers the resolution to the previous issue’s cliffhanger–crabs attacking Indy–is the longest sequence in the comic.
Herb Trimpe and Vince Colletta on art. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen more rectangular, two-dimensional headed people.
David Mazzucchelli does the pencils this issue. Best looking Indiana Jones so far.
What a difference a penciller makes… Ricardo Villamonte really doesn’t cut it. Indy’s always got a befuddled look.
I can’t believe I forgot to mention Indy’s Spanish gypsy sidekick from last issue–he returns here–I think he’s based on Speedy Gonzales. There’s the yellow sombrero and the annoying dialect.
It’s another great plot from Michelinie. He writes some decent exposition too. His dialogue is inconsistent though. For whatever reason he can’t write Indy’s dialogue. Everyone else’s is fine though. Very strange. I think it has to do with him writing Indy as a tough guy first, smart guy second.
It’s an adequate, underwhelming resolution. Michelinie handles the cliffhanger from last issue well then sends Indy off into the jungle. It’s the jungle from the beginning of Raiders, but there’s no fanfare to its return. There is another Raiders connection–the villain has a secret–but it’s lame.
Michelinie–writing off a plot from Archie Goodwin–does a direct sequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark. It’s practically a reunion issue too. While Marion and Marcus show up all the time, a slimmed down Sallah is in the first half of the issue (Michelinie sticks to the established Further plot structure).