Number 1886: Turok goes 'round 'n' 'round

The original Turok comics had a very simple premise. Turok and Andar, two pre-Columbian Native Americans, wander into a lost valley. They become lost within the lost valley and can’t find their way out. They share what seems like a huge place with a variety of prehistoric men, and creatures extinct in the outside world. This particular story, from Turok Son of Stone #4 (1956), fits that storyline. Turok and Andar, and their caveman pal, Lanok, look for Lanok’s home, and get into tussles with dinosaurs. The second story in the issue (not shown here), continues from this story, but is more of the same. That is not to say that Turok Son of Stone is not entertaining within its self-contained parameters, but a reader knows what he is going to get.

The story is credited by the Grand Comics Database to Gaylord Dubois for the script, and Bob Correa and John Celardo for the artwork.

I have mentioned before I never read any of the comic book revivals of Turok, but I did come across a 2008 animated movie of Turok. The full movie is on YouTube, no less. (As I write this, anyway. If you are reading this post later and encounter a black screen, it is YouTube’s fault, not mine.) The storyline of the original comics is too simple for modern tastes, so this is gorier and has a revisionist story bringing the heroes into the lost valley. I think the look of the characters in animation is uninspiring, but I'm not the target audience for the film.

I give praise to the people who made the film for using Native American actors for the voices, including Adam Beach, Adam Gifford, Irene Bedard, Michael Horse, and Russell Means, among others.

Posted in: Pappy Comics