The judge (comic)
The Judge is a comic book from the Lucky Luke series drawn by Morris and written by René Goscinny . According to the Ehapa-Verlag (or at the beginning: Delta-Verlag from Ehapa and Dargaud ) this volume is the 31st in the series. The comic had previously been published by Kauka in Lupo modern as a sequel story or in Zack by Koralle-Verlag , but the comic was given different names at the time.
Originally the comic was first published 1957-1958 in the Belgian-French comic magazine Spirou and in 1959 as the 13th volume by Dupuis in Belgium.
This band was filmed for the Lucky Luke cartoon series . There was already a film version with the singer Pierre Perret , Le Juge (1971), in which Lucky Luke did not appear.
content
Lucky Luke is set to drive a herd of cattle from Austin , Texas to Silver City , New Mexico . Here he and his companions pass the town of Langtry, which lies on the Pecos River , and rest in the area. The judge Roy Bean works in the city , who has no training as a judge and who uses the office to his own advantage. He owns the bear Bruno, who supports him. Lucky Luke is arrested for alleged cattle theft and sentenced in Bean's saloon, but manages to escape. A Bad Ticket appears in town who also wants to be a judge. After the conflict between the two judges, the population, led by Lucky Luke, decides that one of the two must leave town. The decision should be decided by a poker duel, but both cheat, so that there is a tie. Bean leaves town voluntarily. Since Bad Ticket is just as unfair, Luke complains and is supposed to be hanged. Beans Bear frees him from this situation. Luke and Bean surprise Ticket, but they can get locked into it. When they break free, they are mistaken for dead and considered ghosts. The population wants to hang up a ticket for the suspected murder, but schoolmaster Williams wants to track down the alleged ghosts. When they return, Bean takes over the judge's office again until the army, previously notified by Luke, arrives. Bean has to judge himself. He decides that he is no longer allowed to exercise the office of judge. Schoolmaster Williams becomes the new judge and ensures that peace comes to the city. Bean continues his saloon and becomes a cult symbol, whereas Luke drives his herd to the destination.
Remarks
The real Roy Bean, who spoke the law west of the Pecos as a self-appointed justice of the peace in Langtry on the Pecos River , was the model for this story. The fact that he owned a saloon is also true, the historical name of the court saloon The Jersey Lilly can be found in the comic. On the other hand, unlike in the comic, Bean didn't have a bear, just an apparently dangerous dog.
At the end of the volume is an article excerpt on Bean from Heinz-Josef Stammel's Der Cowboy. Legend and reality quotes.
Up to the volume The Judge , Morris numbered the pages of his Lucky Luke comics continuously. On page 566 (the last page of The Judge ) he ended this type of page counting.