Princess Pantha
Encyclopedia
Princess Pantha is a fictional jungle heroine that appeared in comic book
s published by Nedor Comics
. The character was revived twice; first by AC Comics
, and second by writer Alan Moore
for his Tom Strong
spin-off, Terra Obscura
. She first appeared in Thrilling Comics
#56 (October 1946).
that appeared in in the 1940s. Her origin story is told in her first appearance: Pantha is a circus
performer visiting Africa
to find a legendary wild gorilla
for her act. She was accidentally stranded in the jungle
s of Africa for several months, and survived by virtue of her ability to sound like a gorilla. She soon replaces her Western clothing with her trade-mark leopard-skin bikini
. Even after being rescued by adventurer Dane Hunter, Pantha decides to stay in Africa to search for the mysterious white gorilla.
The adventures of Princess Pantha appeared in Thrilling Comics from issue #56 until #74 (October 1949), when she was replaced by stories about cowboy Buck Ranger. Art Saaf
illustrated most of Pantha's stories, with Alex Schomburg
drawing all her cover appearances.
. AC comics later published new adventures featuring Princess Pantha for their Jungle Girls: Wild Side series.
Princess Pantha is one of the many Nedor Comics characters revived by Alan Moore
for his Tom Strong
spin-off, Terra Obscura
. The stories were published by America's Best Comics, originally an imprint of Wildstorm
, now an imprint of DC Comics
.
In Tom Strong #11 (January 2001), Strong visits the alternate Earth of Tom Strange, which he names Terra Obscura. The superhero team of Terra Obscura, SMASH
, had been imprisoned in suspended animation since facing an alien menace in 1969. Strong and Strange are able to overcome the alien menace thirty years later, and free SMASH. Princess Pantha is one of the heroes freed by the duo in Tom Strong #12 (June 2001).
Pantha appears in Terra Obscura vol. 2 (October 2004 - May 2005), as an associate member of SMASH. She also begins dating Doc Strange, as her husband Dale Hunter had died while she was in suspended animation. These stories were written by Peter Hogan, based on plots provided by Alan Moore. The artwork was supplied by Yanick Paquette
.
The stories featuring Princess Pantha have been collected in several trade paperbacks.
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s published by Nedor Comics
Nedor Comics
Nedor Publishing was a comic book imprint of publisher Ned Pines, who also published pulp magazines under a variety of company names that he also used for the comics...
. The character was revived twice; first by AC Comics
AC Comics
AC Comics is a comic book publishing company started by Bill Black.AC Comics specializes in reprints of Golden Age comics from now-defunct companies whose properties lapsed into public domain and were not reprinted elsewhere...
, and second by writer Alan Moore
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
for his Tom Strong
Tom Strong
Tom Strong is a comic book created by writer Alan Moore and artist Chris Sprouse initially published bi-monthly by America's Best Comics, an imprint of DC Comics' Wildstorm division.-Background:Tom Strong, the title character, is a "science hero"...
spin-off, Terra Obscura
Terra Obscura
Terra Obscura is a 2003 comic book miniseries spun off from Alan Moore's Tom Strong series. The stories are written by Peter Hogan, and drawn by Yanick Paquette and Karl Story with additional flashback sequences drawn by Eric Theriault. Each story is co-plotted by Alan Moore and Peter Hogan...
. She first appeared in Thrilling Comics
Thrilling Comics
Thrilling Comics is the title of a comic book series published by Standard Comics for 80 issues from 1940 and 1951.It was used again in 1999 by DC Comics as the title of one of the issues of the Justice Society Returns storyline.-Characters:...
#56 (October 1946).
Nedor Comics
Princess Pantha is one of the many characters inspired by Sheena, Queen of the JungleSheena, Queen of the Jungle
Sheena, Queen of the Jungle is a fictional, American comic book jungle girl heroine, published originally by Fiction House. The female counterpart to Tarzan, Sheena had two things in common with Edgar Rice Burrough's Jungle Lord: Both possessed the ability to communicate with wild animals and were...
that appeared in in the 1940s. Her origin story is told in her first appearance: Pantha is a circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
performer visiting Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
to find a legendary wild gorilla
Gorilla
Gorillas are the largest extant species of primates. They are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forests of central Africa. Gorillas are divided into two species and either four or five subspecies...
for her act. She was accidentally stranded in the jungle
Jungle
A Jungle is an area of land in the tropics overgrown with dense vegetation.The word jungle originates from the Sanskrit word jangala which referred to uncultivated land. Although the Sanskrit word refers to "dry land", it has been suggested that an Anglo-Indian interpretation led to its...
s of Africa for several months, and survived by virtue of her ability to sound like a gorilla. She soon replaces her Western clothing with her trade-mark leopard-skin bikini
Bikini
The bikini is typically a women's two-piece swimsuit. One part of the attire covers the breasts and the other part covers the crotch and part of or the entire buttocks, leaving an uncovered area between the two. Merriam–Webster describes the bikini as "a woman's scanty two-piece bathing suit" or "a...
. Even after being rescued by adventurer Dane Hunter, Pantha decides to stay in Africa to search for the mysterious white gorilla.
The adventures of Princess Pantha appeared in Thrilling Comics from issue #56 until #74 (October 1949), when she was replaced by stories about cowboy Buck Ranger. Art Saaf
Art Saaf
Arthur "Art" Saaf was an American comic book artist from the Golden Age of Comics who also worked in television. He commonly went by Art or Artie....
illustrated most of Pantha's stories, with Alex Schomburg
Alex Schomburg
Alex Schomburg was a prolific American commercial and comic book artist and painter whose career lasted over 70 years.-Biography:...
drawing all her cover appearances.
AC Comics
During the 1990s, AC Comics reprinted the adventures of Princess Pantha, along with many other public domain characters from the Golden Age of Comic BooksGolden Age of Comic Books
The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books, generally thought of as lasting from the late 1930s until the late 1940s or early 1950s...
. AC comics later published new adventures featuring Princess Pantha for their Jungle Girls: Wild Side series.
America's Best Comics
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
for his Tom Strong
Tom Strong
Tom Strong is a comic book created by writer Alan Moore and artist Chris Sprouse initially published bi-monthly by America's Best Comics, an imprint of DC Comics' Wildstorm division.-Background:Tom Strong, the title character, is a "science hero"...
spin-off, Terra Obscura
Terra Obscura
Terra Obscura is a 2003 comic book miniseries spun off from Alan Moore's Tom Strong series. The stories are written by Peter Hogan, and drawn by Yanick Paquette and Karl Story with additional flashback sequences drawn by Eric Theriault. Each story is co-plotted by Alan Moore and Peter Hogan...
. The stories were published by America's Best Comics, originally an imprint of Wildstorm
Wildstorm
WildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, published American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
, now an imprint of DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
.
In Tom Strong #11 (January 2001), Strong visits the alternate Earth of Tom Strange, which he names Terra Obscura. The superhero team of Terra Obscura, SMASH
SMASH (comics)
The Society of Modern American Science Heroes, or SMASH, is a team of fictional superheroes whose adventures are published by America's Best Comics and take place on the parallel world of Terra Obscura.- History :...
, had been imprisoned in suspended animation since facing an alien menace in 1969. Strong and Strange are able to overcome the alien menace thirty years later, and free SMASH. Princess Pantha is one of the heroes freed by the duo in Tom Strong #12 (June 2001).
Pantha appears in Terra Obscura vol. 2 (October 2004 - May 2005), as an associate member of SMASH. She also begins dating Doc Strange, as her husband Dale Hunter had died while she was in suspended animation. These stories were written by Peter Hogan, based on plots provided by Alan Moore. The artwork was supplied by Yanick Paquette
Yanick Paquette
Yanick Paquette is a Canadian penciller in North American comics. He has worked for Antarctic Press, Topps, Marvel and DC Comics and since 1994.-Career:...
.
The stories featuring Princess Pantha have been collected in several trade paperbacks.
- Tom Strong: Book Two, issues 8-14 (hardcover: ISBN 1-84023-456-3, paperback: ISBN 1-56389-880-2).
- Terra Obscura v2 (ISBN 1-4012-0622-0, 2005). Collects issues #7-12.