Cassius who recruits Gypsy the owl, whose reputation as an ex­ pert in poisons is legendary. The elderly Gypsy, under duress, tricks Kimba into eating a spe­ cially-doctored fruit, thus paving the way for a hostile takeover by Claw—but the reluctant poisoner has secretly left a potential loop­ hole in the mix... This episode contains some particularly strong imagery: the freshly-drugged Kimba suffers a violent, psyche­ delic seizure before lapsing into a coma, his entire body taking on a shade of purple. In past episodes, we have
twice encountered Kimba’s hu­ man friend Roger Ranger with­ out being offered a clue as to where he came from, or why he can effortlessly communicate with the animals. “A Human Friend” finally provides his story. Roger, along with his significant other Mary, were stranded near Kimba’s jungle territory after a non-fatal plane crash. Mary’s fear and distrust at the animals around her (she even dreams of returning home to civilization, only to have mutated into an ape herself!) results in an incident in which the unoffending Geraldine Giraffe is injured (though not severely). Kimba is able to dis­ suade a furious Boss Rhino from leading a vengeful charge against the interlopers—but only be­ cause the humans are due to cross a fragile bridge over a deep chasm anyway. The bridge does indeed collapse—only Mary makes it to the other side, where she immediately gives Roger up for dead and tearfully abandons him. In reality, Kimba and his friends have saved Roger—and with overwhelming effort, have also learned to speak his lan­ guage! The episode also estab­ lishes Bucky the Antelope as the teacher of a newly-formed ani­ mal school in which human lan­ guage and other social niceties
16
Gypsy the Owl and the eponymous hero of Osamu Tezuka’s wise and warm anime series KIMBA THE WHITE LION.
are studied; as well as a rather grisly sight gag in which a charg­ ing rhinoceros, on colliding with the Boss, crumbles into powder! (Most injured characters in this series rely on the stock conven­ tions of crutches, casts and cross-shaped bandages materi­ alizing out of nowhere.) “The Wild Wildcat,” known
as Wiley, is antisocial in the extreme and revels in acts of random destruction. Kimba’s ef­ forts to befriend him are doomed to failure until he secretly
overhears evidence of common ground they share: they’re both orphans. With that knowledge, Kimba bonds with Wiley, but
joining him on his playful ram­ pages (including the trashing of Dan’ l Baboon’s restau­ rant—back in business again) proves unwise, as it puts him at odds with the rest of his kingdom. Rounding out Volume 4 is
“City of Gold,” in which the mis­ chief of Tom & Tab results in the jackals becoming lost in the
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