Harlem Heroes, Part 9

NAME
Harlem Heroes, Part 9
(according to Wikipedia, this is the first part of a strip also known as The Montezuma Mashers (sic))

FIRST PUBLISHED
2000 A.D. Prog 9

DATELINE
23 Apr 77

PAGE COUNT
4

REPRINTS
Sam Slade Robo-Hunter (Volume 2, Issue 14), 2000AD Extreme Edition 13 and The Complete Harlem Heroes.

SYNOPSIS
The Harlem Heroes play Montezuma's Mashers, while Artie Gruber attempts to kill Giant.

FIRSTS & LASTS
First appearance of Montezuma's Mashers and Cyrus Teegarten

INFORMATION
Lawns are available in synthetic grass-fibre.

The Harlem Heroes receive a rapturous welcome upon their return to Harlem. Their next league game is against the Montezuma's Mashers.

Montezuma's Mashers play their home games in a pyramid shaped stadium on Cyrus Teegarten's estate. They wear Aztec-like costumes.

Teegarten created the Ancient Order of Aztecs which includes much of American high society and Montezuma's Mashers fans. As a result of the Aztec influence and the economic circumstances of the Ancient Order, masks and personal shields originally designed to protect spectators from stray aeroballs have become more ornate and in some cases are made of solid gold.

Zanies is a nickname given to the eccentric.

GIANT
Ulysses Cord makes him uneasy.

SLIM
He is surprised by the Montezuma's Mashers player's outfits.

OTHER CHARACTERS
ARTIE GRUBER
He has been programmed to exact revenge on the Harlem Heroes. Newly revived, he jumps through the second storey window of the laboratory in Mega-City One and heads off to get his revenge. Three days later, he disguises himself as a Montezuma's Mashers fan, arms himself with a flamer gun and tries to kill Giant.

ULYSSES CORD
He is in charge of Transworld Tri-Vision. Cord has donated gas-powered aeroball mini-packs to Harlem's teenagers. He has a million-dollar side-bet with Cyrus Teegarten that the Harlem Heroes will beat Montezuma's Mashers.

CYRUS TEEGARTEN
He is a millionaire rancher who lives on an estate that lies on the site of an old Aztec temple. Teegarten created the Ancient Order of Aztecs, and his estate became a stamping ground for the American High Society. Montezuma's Mashers play their home games at a pyramid-shaped stadium on his ranch. He offers to pay a thousand dollar bonus to the Montezuma's Mashers player who scores the most air-strikes.

DEATHS
None.

BEST LINES
Commentator: "...And the Heroes' first league game since their Russian trip has really brought out the pace-setters, folks! You can almost hear their jewellery rattling..!"

WORST LINES
Slim: "Holy Moses! Get a load of that zany gear, Harlem!"
Zack: "They're like a bunch of armoured turkeys, just askin' to be plucked!"

CATCHPHRASES
Harlem Heroes Fan(s): "Hiya, Heroes...Here's the score, The Russian team are on the floor!"

Montezuma's Mashers: "We fly to the sun, with the greatest of ease, and we don't need the help, of a crummy trapeze!"

What? No, you need the help of a rocket fuelled jet pack.

CONTINUITY & CROSSOVERS
None.

INFLUENCES & REFERENCES
Unknown.

MISTAKES
Why doesn't Artie keep his Aztec disguise on?

RETROSPECT
None.

NOTES
None.

CREDITS
There are no credits printed in the strip itself and so the following are taken from Barney.

Script: Tom Tully
Artist: Dave Gibbons
Letters: Dave Gibbons

REVIEW
The first page is spectacular and the strip builds to another great cliffhanger. The Aztec escalator and the comments about money are very nice additions.

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