For quite a while I've known about the multitude of DiD situations in this classic, long-running series from the now defunct Fiction House Comics in the USA. Given that I couldn't see that anyone had done a proper catalogue of the damsels that get into trouble across the years that Jungle Comics ran, I thought I'd step up and do it. Given that there are a couple of scenes in the run that really tick my personal boxes, I feel that there's something for everyone in here.
DISCLAIMER:
Jungle Comics was first published at the beginning of 1940. We're talking EIGHTY years ago, so the comic is full of language, attitudes and stereotypes that were common in the USA - and elsewhere - at the time. In the interests of documenting history, I'm presenting the extracts 'as is', with no censorship. Times have indeed changed, and this comic is very much a product of its 1940s/1950s era, but I'm sure we can all see beyond the outdated stuff and enjoy the bounty of damsel action within.
Now, without further ado...
Jungle Comics DID Compilation
First published in January 1940 in the USA by Fiction House Comics, this was one of the stalwart titles from that publisher, along with Fight and Jumbo. Capitalising on the huge popularity of 'Jungle' stories at the time - classic jungle girl Sheena would make her debut and regular appearance in sister comic Jumbo - Fiction House's dedicated jungle title would feature a myriad of characters and stories.
Our regularly-featured damsel is Ann Mason, a young American woman of indeterminate age, and daughter of a professor who is killed within the first few pages of the first issue. She hooks up with Jungle Comics 'poster boy' and Tarzan-knockoff Kaänga and becomes his 'mate'. Many covers for the comic feature Ann in some kind of distress, usually tied up, but also caught in traps, grabbed by creatures/natives, or in some form of problem requiring Kaänga's help.
As I've said, Ann's age is completely unknown. I personally think she's in her early twenties - around 21/22 - but she could be as young as 18/19 at the start of the comic, or as old as 25/26 or so. Either way, once they'd settled down on a consistent character design, Ann is a very attractive damsel who occasionally gets to show some competency and either avoid trouble or get herself out of it without help. But, not often. Ann, sadly, is a bit of a pathetic character who almost always gets into trouble and needs saving. This mostly depends on the writer, of course.
Other damsels pop up from time to time in other stories featured within the comic, which was an anthology of several different stories each issue, though these were usually one-off girls involved in that particular plot and then never seen again.
Not all of the extracts involve a damsel being tied up. Sometimes they're just being grabbed, or being caught in a trap. Basically, any time a girl is 'in distress' counts for this, as I know that many of us like things beyond a girl just being tied up, so I've tried to include non-bound distress scenes for those here who like that sort of thing as well. I've tried to be comprehensive, but some moments are 'blink and miss them'.
There's also regular instances of GID in the comics, but they are not included here as I have zero interest in those. However, I will include CID, as they will include a damsel.
I'm also going to do this in ten-issue blocks so as not to overwhelm the posting system. Not every issue will have DID in it, so some blocks will be smaller than others. Given that the complete run was 175 issues, I figure this is the best way to maintain site integrity AND my sanity. What little there is of it.
So, here we go with the first set...
Issue #1 (January, 1940)
Cover: Ann is caught in some kind of 'wooden jaw' trap by her ankle whilst a lion leaps to attack and Kaänga drops in to save her.
Issue #2 (February, 1940)
Cover: Ann is held by the Standard Female Grab Area by a hunter...though to his credit he may be pulling her out of the way of the rampaging elephant!
Page 11: 'The Red Panther' - CID tied up and held by spear-wielding natives
Page 13: The Red panther swoops in and carries off a tied damsel, saving her.
Page 50: 'Roy Lance in the Revolt of the Black Continent': Hollywood starlet Joan is taken captive by natives and tied up.
Issue #4 (April, 1940)
Cover: A damsel - presumably Ann, but in a case of early installment weirdness she's blonde here rather than dark-haired - is tied up and tied to a charging rhino that's being wrestled by Kaänga... a rhino that appears to be a meat-eater, looking at those teeth!
Page 4: 'Kaänga': Ann is grabbed and carried off by a native.
Page 5: Ann is tied to a tree.
Page 8: Ann is still tied to a tree as Kaänga fights everyone.
Page 10: Ann is finally rescued by Kaänga.
Page 24: 'Camilla, Queen of the Lost City': Camilla is grabbed during a coup, carried off and thrown out of her own city.
Page 27: In an example of how utterly pathetic some of the 'damselling' is in the comic, Camilla jumps into a pool and IMMEDIATELY needs to be saved from drowning within a panel.
Page 60: 'Roy Lance': Ellen, the token girl of the story, is grabbed by a native.
Page 62: CID. Ellen and her father have their hands tied to a beam above their heads in some form of ritual flame sacrifice thing.
Issue #5 (May, 1940)
Cover: Ann, still blonde, held in the background by some kind of mutant gorilla thing whilst Kaänga shows his manly manliness in the foreground.
Page 14: 'Red Panther': Trio including one damsel tied spreadeagle on the ground ready to be killed by "a horde of poison red ants."
Issue #6 (June, 1940)
Cover: Another blonde Ann, hands chained behind her back and with a rope collar/leash on her neck is led away amongst some other slaves in the background as Kaänga swings on a vine to save them.
Page 5: 'Kaänga': Ann, dark haired in the actual story, is grabbed and tied up by natives.
Page 6: A tied up Ann is presented to the story's villainess.
Page 7: Ann - now untied - is thrown into a river to be eaten by crocodiles, only to be saved at the last moment by Kaänga swinging in and pulling her out.
Page 24: 'Roy Lance': CID with story-one-shot Jill and titular hero Roy tied up and thrown into a hut to be held captive.
Page 39: 'Simba, King of the Beasts': A girl named Gloria is grabbed by an ape.
Page 40: Gloria is carted up a mountain by the ape, only to get dropped and knocked unconscious.
Issue #7 (July, 1940)
Cover: Ann, now in her consistent, familiar form of dark-haired, barefooted jungle girl, is tied to some kind of altar whilst Kaänga, having broken free of his own bindings gives her would-be executioner a taste of a fine knuckle sandwich.
Page 2: Ann is grabbed and carried off by a henchman.
Page 4: CID with Ann and a large man tied to a pillar of some sort.
Page 8: CID with Ann and Kaänga tied to a spit over a fire.
Page 19: 'Camilla': Camilla is grabbed and held by some two-headed monster thing.
Issue #8 (August, 1940)
Page 6: 'Kaänga': Unnamed damsel one-off is grabbed by redneck-esque henchmen (in the jungle?!) and tied to a tree.
Page 11: 'The Red Panther': A girl has her hands tied above her, which are also tied to a tree as a large snake coils around her and is poised to strike.
Page 55: A villain holds a damsel by the standard grab area, and threatens her with a gun...though she seems remarkably unbothered.
Issue #9 (September, 1940)
Cover: Kaänga pulls a damsel - which might be Ann - to safety away from a horde of rampaging elephants.
Page 39: 'Simba': Recycled/traced art from the previous issue's page 55 of a villain threatening a damsel.
Issue #10 (October, 1940)
Page 13: 'The Red Panther': Some big-headed aliens grab hold of the story's resident damsel, Toni.
A bit of a poor showing for the last couple of issues of this set, but later issues of the comic tend to deliver more consistently.
Hope you guys enjoy this first collection. Issues #11-#20 to be covered in the next set.
