One curious by-product of thumbing through all the issues involved in the "Panther's Rage" series of stories in Jungle Action was the sense of nagging familiarity I felt when I reached the storyline that came afterward--the Black Panther's altercation with the Klan, albeit without the "Ku Klux" prefix associated with the group. That's no great omission, since the "Klan" is often used to refer to that organization while leaving no doubt as to who and what we're talking about; but while the story itself follows suit with abbreviating the name, the captions on the issues' covers become conspicuous insofar as alterations which were made on the word in question.
Without an explanation forthcoming from either writer Don McGregor or additional information supplied to the issues' letters pages, the reasoning behind the spelling adjustment of "the Clan" is up for speculation. If I were to shoot from the hip on the matter, I'd probably punt to Marvel's legal department and presume that the company might have been concerned about use of the organization's name as a sales tool, or perhaps accusations from those who felt the company was giving the Klan free advertising. Or maybe this was opening the door to controversy that was too inflammatory even for Marvel. With over forty years of dust on this story, it would be difficult to do anything but speculate as to the true reason behind the decision; perhaps it's as simple as Marvel settling for pushing the envelope within and confront the Klan's agenda directly, controversy be damned--choosing not to trot out the Sons of the Serpent this time as its Klan stand-ins.
At any rate, the reason why this story was tugging at my memory will become apparent in a bit. For now, the debut issue's splash page has us wondering if the Klan has significantly altered not only its appearance, but, more importantly, its recruiting standards.
The catalyst for the Panther's involvement in this story is Monica Lynne, his lover, who pays a visit to the Georgia gravesite of her sister, Angela, an apparent suicide victim who died while investigating suspected Klan involvement in their town's political system and real estate. Monica, along with reporter Kevin Trueblood (who believes Angela was murdered), fall under attack by our purple-hooded torch-bearers--but, unobserved, the Panther is ready for them, and it soon enough becomes clear that the attackers have little to no affiliation with the Klan. (Though judging by their speech, they might fit right in.)
By the time the Panther and his captives reach the Sheriff's office, we learn that the robed men are part of the Dragon's Circle, whose methods are similar to the Klan's though both groups appear to be working at cross-purposes. On another night, however, the Lynne home is attacked by each--and the mystery of why both have the Lynne family in their crosshairs only deepens.
The Panther, whose formidable resistance is enough to both scatter the ranks of each and drive them off, later foils a third attempt on Monica's life, again by Dragon Circle men but who misrepresent themselves as Klan members. But before he can subdue them, the police arrive in force, only to see the men escape when they attempt to forcefully detain the Panther.
Yet the Panther has overheard details of a Klan meeting that evening, and decides to literally drop in. Unfortunately, he faces an armed mob here--and the formidable abilities that McGregor buffered the Panther with throughout "Panther's Rage" are sidelined* so that this part of the story can conclude with imagery that's both disturbing and symbolic in terms of past activities involving the Klan.
*If you're asking just what was the Panther's plan here when he attacked these men, join the club. It was clear he felt he could take these men, even knowing the odds--nor was this the first time he's faced angry, armed groups of men. (You can't face a more brutal lot than on a battlefield against Arkon's armed and trained warriors.) We see a good deal of flailing in this fight, but little to none of the Panther's speed and power, even with getting the drop on them. There's nothing like being abandoned by your own writer.
In the following issue, the Panther stuns both the assembled Klan members as well as no doubt his readers by escaping what appeared to be certain death, though badly injured. (We learn later that the ritual he undergoes twice a year to renew his Panther powers also provides him with limited healing abilities that in this case allow him to recover after just two weeks' hospital care.) In the interim, the Sheriff discloses the details of what his office learned about Angela's suicide, which doesn't shed any new light on the situation; while the Panther, Monica, and Kevin make arrangements to attend a legitimate Klan rally the next evening.
The Klan recruiting rally, taking up the last six pages of the issue, is used by McGregor to virtually lay bare his view of the Klan while also making use of Kevin and the presence of the Lynnes to counter their hate-filled rhetoric. In the end, they revert to type, by openly attacking first Kevin and then the Panther--while McGregor's narrative fills in the gaps and punctuates what we've seen and heard in this confrontation. Little has been resolved in the story in regard to Angela Lynne and the circumstances of her death--yet the public scene with the Klan has at least brought us full circle with their presence here.
However, McGregor still has more to say on the subject--and in the following issue he provides an epilogue of sorts, taking us back to the Klan's beginnings in the 1860s courtesy of the recollections of Monica's mother who recounts the Klan's dealings with her grandparents. It's that issue which jogged my memory of another tale that came to mind from the '80s, for reasons which will become apparent when seeing their covers displayed side-by-side.
It's the so-called Soul Strangler who's the common denominator in both stories, though at first glance he isn't the conventional villain he appears to be. In the Marvel Premiere story, the Soul Strangler shares the stage with the Klan (now spelled correctly on the cover--what a difference four years makes) and is featured prominently in their midst, just as in McGregor's epilogue; and it soon becomes evident that the new story (by writer Ed Hannigan and artist Jerry Bingham) is a sequel to McGregor's Klan arc that resolves Angela's murder while continuing to display the Klan's message in all its venom.
The Dragon Circle now figures in more prominently as well, with both organizations at war with each other for supremacy.
Things don't end well for the Reverend Blackburn or the Dragon Circle, while the Klan doesn't get off scot-free, either. All in all, the two-part Marvel Premiere story bookends McGregor's four-parter nicely, though it unfortunately doesn't make it into the Marvel Epic Collection: Black Panther or Essential Black Panther TPBs that collect the Black Panther Jungle Action issues.
As for the Soul Strangler, who was never real in the sense that we understand it, he continues to serve his purpose as a kind of mirror for us all--representing the irrational hatred that is unfortunately part of the world we live in, but leaving it up to us to decide what we'll embrace, and what we won't.
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