Cellulose
to Celluloid: Flash
Gordon on Paper and Film
Chapter
Twelve: Princess Aura borrows some treacherous stunts
from the Witch Queen of Mongo
The
Earth People have serious trouble in the Sunday papers
as arch-villainess Azura seduces Flash.
Princess
Aura carries on playing HER dirty tricks after the tournament
as the Saturday serial continues.
Azura,
Witch Queen of Mongo represents an era where Alex
Raymond's artistry blossomed, and helped define a golden
age of newspaper illustration. His distinctive flowing
brushwork marks this period -- featuring breathtaking
action in an alien world where anything could happen,
and did -- at a frantic pace, with bewildering twists
and turns.
Azura's
wicked brew obliterates our hero's memory. The Witch
Queen consumates her lust for Flash, unlike the dithering
Princess Aura. Raymond's strip would be toned down in
the conservative Hearst papers before too long.
Princess
Aura first tries to sneak Flash away while he is unconcious,
and gets a second chance at him when he wakes up suffering
from amnesia. However, censorship and treachery continue
to keep them apart.
Zarkov's
Invisibility Ray saved Flash's life, and brought some
much-needed comic relief to the movie serial.
The
Invisibility Ray was adapted from the Witch Queen
sequence, where the Earth People earned a small victory.
Flash
Gordon
is the property of it's copyright holders. All images
are used for scholastic purposes ONLY in the context of this
article.
Text and graphic design copyright by Michael R. Evans 2008
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