Prince Valiant: Peril of the Round Table

He spawned two films, an animated series, and two dramatic spoken-word records. Yet, Prince Val of Thule never gets his just due as one of the greatest comic strip heroes of all-time. They call Beowulf an epic, but a bard could tell his story in one sitting. Prince Valliant has told a single continuous story every Sunday (originally Saturday) since 1937. There were also two original comic book continuities. The first, which adapted and continued the storyline of the 1954 film starring Robert Wagner, represented the first publication of Prince Val not drawn by creator Hal Foster (and the first to feature dialogue balloons, instead of descriptive text boxes). It was a big-event movie, but not sufficiently successful for Fox to greenlight the proposed follow-up. Nevertheless, if you love that film, the next best thing to a sequel is Fantagraphics collection of the seven beautifully-restored Dell comics in the treasury volume Prince Valiant: Peril of the Round Table, written by Paul S. Newman and illustrated by Bob Fujitani, which just went on-sale.

Unlike the 1954 film, Newman’s first issue includes more of Valiant’s familiar backstory from Foster’s strip, chronicling how the Pagan Sligon deposed Val’s father, King Aguar. Taking shelter in Britain, Valiant squires for Sir Gawain, eventually rising to knighthood in his own right. The film ends with Aguar’s restoration, so for subsequent Dell issues, Sir Gawain essentially serves as an unofficial ambassador to Thule. Such is the closeness of their alliance that Valliant and Gawain jointly engage in quests at the behest of both King Aguar and King Arthur, including even an attempt to reclaim a certain chalice, on behalf of the latter.

Frankly, it is impressive how well Peril of the Round Table holds up when compared to vintage runs of the strip. Foster was the absolute gold standard of newspaper cartoonists. At the peak of his powers, the Valiant panels were truly museum worthy. While Fujitani’s art is not quite as richly detailed, he has a similar sense of dramatic composition. Indeed, his full-length splash pages just jump out at readers. Plus, the restored colors look vibrant, while retaining a nostalgic vibe, in keeping with comic books of the era.

Newman’s storylines also shrewdly incorporate very real medieval history and traditional lore. At various times, Val and his protective companion Baltar take on the Frisians, the Jutes, and Beber pirates. Generally speaking, the Thuleans join Arthur’s campaign to protect Christendom from lingering Paganism. Yet, their Norse roots still sometime re-surface.

In retrospect, Dell’s lack of a formal publishing schedule for Prince Valiant appears haphazard and doomed to failure. Yet, they managed to release seven issues that way. Again, if you love the movie, this is the closest you will get to seeing the cast (Robert Wagner, Sterling Hayden, Victor McLaglen, and Brian Ahearne) reprise their roles. However, Janet Leigh fans might be disappointed, because Newman never features Val’s love interest, Princess Aleta of Ord, in the continuation comics.

Regardless, Prince Valiant: Perils of the Round Table is beautiful publication. The heft of it just feels satisfying in your hands. It is an adaptation of an adaptation, but its alternate timeline will entertain Foster fans willing to give it a chance. For decades, Val’s stature was equal that of Flash Gordon and Tarzan, so it is encouraging to see Fantagraphics continue to reprint his strips and now the Dell Comics. Highly recommended for fans—and anyone who appreciates chivalrous adventure, Perils of the Round Table is now available at book and comic retailers.