Holiday Specials Raise Deep Questions

 My wife and I watch the various traditional holiday specials each year, beginning with It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown at Halloween. These specials often raise deep philosophical questions.

I don't claim to be the first person to ask these questions. Many have been out there for many years and I have simply jumped aboard the Deep Question Bandwagon.

For instance, many have wondered if, at the end of A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, when Snoopy and Woodstock sit down for a turkey dinner--does this Woodstock some sort of cannibal?

Jumping to another holiday classic, this meme I found reminds us all that the fact that Yukon Cornelius never spun off from Rudolph into his own special. Or even his own series. The guy was awesome. This might just be the greatest crime ever committed against Western civilization. 

Of course, the debate about whether Frosty the Snowman actually owns the hat that brings him to life has been endless. One lawyer (and I apologize that I can no longer find the original source of this quote) writes: 

" The plot of Frosty the Snowman starts when the hat blows onto Frosty's head, making him alive. The Magician see's this and he takes the hat after it blows off of Frosty's head saying "If that hat is magic I want it back" to which the girl says "But it's not yours anymore, you threw it away" But he didn't throw the hat in the garbage he threw it at the garbage and then went to retrieve the hat meaning he wanted the hat back but Karen claims he abandoned the hat. The law of Abandoned property states "Abandoned property is something that the owner has knowingly discarded because she no longer wants it...Generally, the finder is permitted to keep abandoned property. But because the owner loses all rights in abandoned property, a court never presumes abandonment. The finder must prove that the owner intended to relinquish all rights." Lost property is different " Lost property is something accidentally given up...Usually, the finder of lost property has rights superior to all the world except the true owner. If the true owner comes forward, he gets his property back." this is already enough because 1) he didn't abandon it and 2) if he did abandon it Karen would have to find evidence that he did abandon it and all is fine until the bunny steals the hat from the Magician at the Townsquare and runs back to the kids with the hat on his head giving it to Karen and Karen, sees the bunny with the hat and she doesn't even hesitate to take the hat off the bunny's head to make Frosty alive again (is he even alive in the first place)."

But there's one question that I believe no one had raised before. Remember Hocus-Pocus the rabbit from Frosty? 

At one point, Hocus Pocus has to tell the other woodland animals to build a fire to keep the little girl Karen warm.

Later, when Santa Claus shows up, Hocus Pocus updates him on the situation and the narrator tells us that "Naturally, Santa spoke fluent Rabbit."

But that line implies that Rabbits have their own specific language, which in turn implies each species of animal has ITS own language

So how did Hocus Pocus tell the other animals they needed a fire? If each species has its own language, how did H.P. communicate with them? Or is Hocus Pocus a multi-animal linguist? If so, when did he pick up that particular skill?

The Frosty the Snowman universe, as well as the Holiday Special multi-verse in general, is filled with unplumbed mysteries.

Defending the Fort

 

cover artist unknown

Four Color #513 (November 1953) is the second of Ben Bowie's half-dozen appearances in that magazine appearances in that magazine prior to the 18th-Century trapper getting his own series.

The first story in this issue was written by Paul S. Newman, which accounts for its fast pace and expert story construction. The art is by Bill Overgard.

The story--"The Hostiles"--is centered around a remote fort threatened by the Hurons. It's constructed as a series of sort of mini-adventures all keyed on the siege of the fort. Each incident adds to the overall tension before the last adventure brings the story to a conclusion.

Mini-adventure #1: The Hurons steal the fort's horses. Ben and his apprentice Jim follow and steal the horses back. This is followed by Ben and Jim leaving the fort to find the men originally sent after the horses, leading them back to the fort before they get jumped by the Hurons.

Mini-adventure #2: Two ladies unwisely take a canoe ride. Zeke and Nakah, coming to the fort to join Ben, save them from a Huron war party.

Soon, the fort is besieged by the Hurons. This leads to the next two mini-adventures--dealing with an Indian sharpshooter in a tall tree who can see into the fort, then saving a building set aflame with fire arrows. 

Finally, Ben tunnels out of the fort at night to scout the Huron position, then leads a group of men out through the tunnel to attack. The Hurons are captured and the fort is saved.

It's just a standard frontier adventure, not breaking any new ground. But Newman's great writing and Overgard's lively art make it very entertaining and reinforce my idea that Ben Bowie is one of the most consistently entertaining comic books of all time. 

Read it yourself online HERE. 

Next week, we'll take a look at the second story from this issue. 

Booktube: The Greatest Book Ever Written

 

Cover Cavalcade

 DECEMBER IS WALTER BAUMHOFER MONTH!

This cover is from 1934.