Fanholes Side Story: Lord of the Apes

Lord of the Jungle is an ongoing series from Dynamite based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs novel Tarzan of the Apes. The first issue opens with John and Alice Clayton stranded in Africa. Jane is with child and eventually gives birth to a son but dies one year later from fever. John Clayton soon joins her as he is killed during a gorilla attack. Their son is later ‘adopted’ by the female gorilla Kala. The boy grows up with the apes, calls himself Tarzan or White Skin and eventually discovers the cabin his parents lived in. He learns to read and write all on his own.

Some years later Tarzan encounters a group of castaways who include Jane, her father, and William Clayton, who is Tarzan’s cousin. Tarzan saves Clayton from the perils of the jungle and later protects Jane, rescuing her from gorillas and even providing the group with food. Jane is instantly drawn to Tarzan, who is this attractive savage man who can write perfect English but not speak.

Eventually Jane and her group make their way off the island but leave Tarzan behind. Tarzan saves Paul D'Arnot from cannibals and in return D’Arnot teaches the jungle lord English and well as French. Tarzan becomes somewhat obsessed with finding Jane again and follows her to America. He saves her from a nefarious plot and just as he is about to profess his love she tells him of her engagement to Clayton. As issue six ends it is confirmed that Tarzan is in fact the son of John Clayton and heir to the Greystoke estate.

The first six issues cover the entirety of the first novel, Tarzan of the Apes, though there are some liberties taken. None of changes drastically alter the narrative, at least in my opinion. Being a Dynamite book it does have several variant covers and has a somewhat compressed story. I should point out that this adaption is not authorized or endorsed by the Burroughs Estate. In fact, they are suing Dynamite over the Warlord of Mars comics. That being said as a long time fan of Tarzan I enjoyed these six issues and would recommend them to anyone who was curious about the lord of the jungle.