Read/Watch 'em In Order #150
When I finished up reviewing the Bretwalda stories, I had mentioned that I was thinking of going through either an issue of Pirate Stories or an issue of Foriegn Legion Adventures for the next "Read 'em In Order series. Well, I've solved that dilemma by choosing to write about Hok instead.
Who is Hok? He's a Stone Age leader of an extended family unit at the end of the Ice Age, trying to keep his people alive and fed while they clash with neanderthals. These stories were published between 1939 and 1942, mostly in Amazing Stories. The author returned to the character one more time in 1986, with a story that appeared in a magazine titled Pulse Pounding Adventure Stories.
Written by Manly Wade Wellman, the Hok saga consists of imaginative and action-filled tales. And Hok is a great protagonist.
The first story is "Battle in the Dawn." Hok's family unit (led by Hok's dad when the story opens) is looking for a new hunting ground. They have an encounter with man-like beings they call "Gnorrls," based on the sound Hok hears them vocalize. These guys aren't quite human, but Hok realizes they are intelligent and use weapons, though they have nothing to match the javalins that Hok and his people use.
But though better armed, the humans are outnumbered. Hok's dad and stepmom are killed. A baby is taken by the Gnorrls. Hok pursues, but the Gnorrls have the baby for lunch before he can catch up. He slaughters the three Gnorrls he finds, including the Gnorrl child.
With this grisly set piece, Wellman establishes the rules of the world he is describing. Survival is for the fittest and being the fittest means being ruthless. There's no taking prisoners without a practical reason for doing so. There's no non-combatants--women and children fight and die along with the men. In the end, you win if you kill the enemy. Otherwise, you die. There's no third option.
Hok's people find a cave with a defensible entrance and drive off a Gnorrl attack. After that, things are peaceful for a time. Hok goes back south to find a woman. He finds one--named Oloana--and kidnaps her from her family unit. (There's no tribal structure for man yet--just family units.) She struggles with him, but capturing women for wives is just how its done. Except Hok, in the end, decides he doesn't want an unwilling wife. He lets her go--though not before inventing the kiss. Well, giving her freedom and the kiss does the job. Oloana decides she wants to go with Hok and demonstrates her feelings by stabbing her old fiance in the back while he's fighting Hok.
Later, Hok learns that Oloana's brother (named Rivv) has been captured by the Gnorrls, taken alive because the Gnorrls are hoping to learn how to make and use javelins from Rivv. Hok figures Rivv is a goner, but Oloana insists Rivv be rescued. In the end--"the debate came to a conclusion that feminists might regard as epoch-making--the woman had her way."
Hok pursues the Gnorrls and, after killing a saber tooth that gets in his way, helps Rivv get away. This opens up the opportunity to befriend Rivv's family unit. Hok practices some primitive diplomancy and gets a third family unit to join them as well. Only together, Hok argues, can they defend themselves against the Gnorrls. Hok's not sure they can win in the end, but he's a savvy enough leader to keep his fears to himself.
Hok proves to be a good tactician. When a Gnorrl horde approaches, his plan includes finding defensible high grounds, sets up ambushes and lights a forest fire to force the Gnorrls along a specific route, and leaves extra supplies of javelins in pre-designated spots to allow the humans to resupply. What follows is an epic battle scene, with the survival of the human race at stake.
As I said, Hok is a great protagonist. He's ruthless, especially if judged by modern standards. But he's smart, forward-thinking, brave and has strong leadership qualities. Wellman does an excellent job of making a Stone Age man the hero while still realistically portraying him as a product of his era.
You can read this story online HERE.
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