From BLUE BOOK, where it was first published
as a seven part serial from from October 1930 to April 1931 (under the
title "Tarzan, Guard of the Jungle"), this is for the most part a
dreary, confusing mess. Although it gets off to a strong start with a band
of international Communist conspirators setting out to loot Opar and closes
with a very effective sequence as Tarzan conducts a war of nerves against
the invaders, In between, however, is a pointless jumble of characters
wandering aimlessly through the jungle. Apes and Arabs carry off the white
women, lions stalk hungrily, Tarzan drops down on an antelope for a meal,
all familiar stuff. The book might have worked much better as a short novella,
leaving out most of the padding in the center. As a coherent story of an
attempted conquest of Opar, with the Apeman helping La regain her position,
TARZAN THE INVINCIBLE would have had much more impact.
There are some great moments, as when Tarzan`s quick thinking
deals with being trapped in a dungeon between a hungry lion and a crew
of unruly Oparian goons, or later when he is tied up in the jungle and
watching a hyena slowly circling in. But the effect of the good scenes
is muffled by the surrounding filler which brings the story up to book
length.
Burroughs, who previously had demonized the Germans as
barbaric Huns in TARZAN THE UNTAMED and who later would go after the Japanese
as "cowardly monkey-men" in TARZAN AND "THE FOREIGN LEGION", was in 1930
enraged about the Communists. He has an assortment of thugs from different
nations bullying their way through Africa, hoping to find enough gold in
Opar to finance revolutions in Mexico, the Phillipines, India and elsewhere.
Now, every writer of adventure stories needs villains, and the nationalities
suitable change over time. But Burroughs portrays the various Communist
agents here as absolutely vile... greedy, braindead or secretly planning
to start a new African Empire of their own; they are not shown with any
depth or subtlety, and are basically fiends with BAD GUY practically painted
on their shirts.
To be honest, Burroughs often seems to hate the human
race in general. The only reason he admires animals is because he glamorizes
them and gives them virtues they don`t in actuality possess. (The extent
of his research into wildlife is shown as he invariably has solitary lions
and elephants wandering through the deep jungle, instead of living in groups
on the savannahs.) Except for Tarzan himself and his loyal Waziri, there
are few human beings in the second half of the series that are likeable
or even tolerable. (Although there is always the mandatory young couple
to go through the usual ritual of misunderstandings and romance.)
One exception to the tired recipe is La, the High Priestess
of the Flaming God. She actually comes to life on the page, with a vivid
personality and presence. La is not exactly a New Age tree hugging sweetheart,
of course, since she has spent most of her life stabbing victims to death
on the altar of her people`s god. (And in fact, in this book, she promptly
kills a guy who presumes to grab her by the shoulder. He`s not the last
one she does a little open heart surgery on, either.) But she also is human,
willing to make friends with Zora Drinov when they fall in together. La
is a passionate little wildcat, openly telling Tarzan she is ready to be
his mate then and there. The potent image of this gorgeous, barely dressed*
woman,, offering herself to the even more naked Apeman has gotten generations
of young readers worked up.
It`s strange, but when Tarzan firmly turns her down, he
never mentions his own mate. In fact, he gives no reason at all. (Hey,
Tarzan! If YOU don`t want her....) After his return from Pellucidar, the
Apeman seems to have abandoned his wife, his plantation, his son and the
rest of his family. Instead of Jane and Korak, his companions now are Nkima
(the bloodthirsty troublemaking monkey) and the Golden Lion himself, Jad-Bal-Ja,
always an imposing figure. These are friends he doesn`t have obligations
to protect or care for, either, as they wander off at will. Tarzan invariably
appears as a lone wanderer in the wilds of Africa, as if his marriage and
his kinfolk never existed. It`s a real loss to the series, as is the dual
nature of our hero being both a savage Apeman and a cultured English lord
at the same time. This simpler, cartoonlike interpretation is not nearly
as satisfying.
*La, maybe it`s none of my business, but just
how comfortable can those gold breast plates be in the hot African sun?
My God, didn`t it ever occur to you to borrow a strip of cloth from Zora
to wear?
