The Singh Brotherhood (story)
| The Singh Brotherhood | |
| |
| Start date: | February 17th, 1936 |
|---|---|
| End date: | November 7th, 1936 |
| # of strips: | 228 (38 weeks) |
| Writer: | Lee Falk |
| Artist: | Lee Falk, Ray Moore |
| Original colorist: | unknown |
| Preceded by: | N/A |
| Followed by: | "The Sky Band" |
"The Singh Brotherhood" is the first Phantom daily story, as well as the very first Phantom story all categories. It was originally published in American newspapers from February 17th to November 7th, 1936.
The story was written by Lee Falk and drawn by Ray Moore, with pencils by Falk for the first few weeks.
Plot Summary
Diana Palmer returns to New York after two years in the South Seas. Her ship is however, attacked by thieves before it reaches the port. A mysterious stranger then appears, The Phantom, and saves Diana and the valuable cargo of ambergris that she has brought with her.
Through the events that later follow, Diana learns some very mysterious things of The Phantom, such as that an old man named dr. Dodd saw him when he was a young boy seventy years ago. We also learn that the Singh Brotherhood is behind the attempts to steal the ambergris and kidnap Diana, the only one who knows the exact location of the graveyard of the whales where enormous amounts of ambergris exists.
Finally Diana decides to go back to get some more ambergris and are thereby supported bu The Phantom when he learns that she needs the money for a child hospital.
Diana is, however, kidnapped by the Singh Brotherhood and taken to their base at the bottom of the sea. She gets new non-European clothes because the leader, Kabai Singh, hates the western world and its fashion.
The Phantom manages to enter the base and the rumours about him make the pirates quiver, afraid as they are of all that has been said about him.
Diana and The Phantom manage to escape, but The Phantom has to swim to the surface with only a diving helmet on his head and becomes severely injured by this. He disappears shortly before Diana is picked upp by a British naval ship that destroys the base.
The Phantom is found by the Bandars, the tribe that he lives with, and their medicine man Guran tries to drive off the demons that he believes possess the injured Phantom. The Phantom persuades them to bring the British military doctor Melville Horton. Horton heals The Phantom's injuries and is rewarded with a ruby necklace give to his beloved. Horton gives the necklace to Diana, even though she doesn't want to marry him. The Phantom shows up at the wrong moment and believes that Diana and Horton are a couple.
Horton is then sent on a suicide mission with too few men against savage natives who slay every one of them except Horton, whom they decide to burn alive. The Phantom saves him and sends him back to Diana with some treasures that would help finance an expedition to retrieve the rest of the ambergris. Horton realises that the Phantom thinks that he and Diana are a couple and tries explain that Diana loves the Phantom, but the Phantom has already gone.
The Phantom then guards the expedition from afar and manages to stop an attempt to steal the ambergris by the Singh Brotherhood. He then reveals himself to Diana and tells her the story of how the Phantom originated.
Back at land the Phantom is participating in an attempt to destroy the new Singh base and is caught as he alone tries to enter. Kabai Singh's protegé, Sala, falls in love with the Phantom and offers to help him if he returns her love, but he refuses as he cannot lie to her. The Phantom is sentenced to be boiled but is rescued by Sala who cannot see him die, even though he doesn't return her love. At that moment, the Royal Air Force attacks with bombs falling everywhere, Kabai tries to kill the Phantom once and for all, but is instead stabbed by Sala. Sala then gets injured by shrapnel and, dying as she thinks she is, reveals that she never was a real member of the Singh Brotherhood, but a spy for an organisation called "The Sky Band". The Phantom takes her information seriously, but the British officials are skeptical. The Phantom therefore decides to take a second talk to Sala.
Appearances
Recurring characters
- The current Phantom
- Devil
- Guran
- Diana Palmer
- Sala
- Melville Horton
- Kabai Singh
- Achmed Singh
- The Grandfather of the current Phantom
- The Father of the current Phantom
- Sir Christopher Standish/The 1st Phantom
One-time characters
- Mike
- Fats Hogan
- Spike
- Butch
- Phyllis
- Jimmy Wells
- Dr. Owens
- Wong
- Wing Loo
- Pete
- Dr. James Dodd
- Dr. Neal
- Dabi
- Turi
- George
- Bill
- Juga
Locations
- USA
- New York, NY
- Long Island
- Palmer Hospital for Crippled Children
- Long Island
- New York, NY
- Sumatra
- Indian Ocean
- Java Sea
- Bay of Bengal
- Java
- Dutch East Indies
- Luntok
- Bandar Village
- Neglami River
- Mount Trepnich
- Krakatan
Tribes
Organizations
- The Singh Brotherhood
- The Sky Band
- Colonial Service
Vehicles
- S.S. Trottner
- HMS Valor
Objects
Trivia
- Several elements of the Phantom myth are introduced, including The Phantom and his alias "The Ghost Who Walks", Devil, Diana, Guran, the Bandar tribe, the Singh Brotherhood, the Skull Mark, the Oath of the Skull, the Skull Cave, the Skull Throne and others.
- The Bandar is said to be cannibals and Guran is introduced as "the fanatical witch-doctor" of the tribe.
- Diana is introduced as a "famed young explorer" and is notably wealthy.
- The home of the Phantom is given to be the island of Luntok in the Dutch East Indies, a British protectorate between Java and Sumatra.
- The name of the man who became the first Phantom is reported as Sir Christopher Standish, and the year in witch he swore the Oath of the Skull as 1525.
- The current Phantom is seen swearing the Oath while his father was still alive.
- The story features the first meeting between the Phantom and Diana, as well as the first time the Phantom propose to her. Diana is also asked to marry Jimmy Wells as well as Mel Horton.
- The phrase "The Phantom only warns once", years later given as an old jungle saying, is mentioned by the Phantom himself three times.
- The Phantom suit is said to be gray.
Related stories
Followed by
"The Sky Band" by Lee Falk and Ray Moore
Reprints
This story has been published in the following publications:
Australia
- The Phantom 1 (1938)
- The Phantom #6 (1949)
- The Phantom #97 (1956)
- The Phantom #184 (1961)
- The Phantom #292 (1965)
- The Phantom #439 (1971)
- The Phantom #609 (1977)
- The Phantom #816 (1984)
- The Phantom #918A (1988)
- The Phantom #1128 (1996)
- The Phantom #6 replica, included with The Phantom #1156 (1997)
- The Phantom #1472 (2007)
Brazil
- A Gazeta #169 – #242 (1936–37)
- Fantasma Pocket #1 – #2 (1990–91)
Finland
- "Supermustiskirja" (1975)
- Mustanaamio 26/2006
France
- Aventures et Mystère (issues #1 to 5) (1938)
- Collection à 8 francs (story in 5 issues) (1945-1946)
- Aventures et Mystère (issue #1) (1947) (reprint of 4 issues published in 1938)
- Aventures # 13 to # 30 (incomplete story) (1950)
- Le Fantôme Spécial #10, #11, #12 (1964)
- Fantôme # 333,334 (Remparts), Le (1971)
- Album Copyright Tome 1 (Futuroplis) Le Fantôme 1936 – 1937 (1984)
- Collection Intégrale (Soleil) (reprint of Spécial Le Fantôme # 10 to 12) (1993)
Italy
- Avventuroso # 101 to #142 (1936-1937)
- L'Uomo mascherato Superalbo #67, #68, #69 (1964)
- L'Uomo mascherato Eureka Pocket # 1 (1970)
- L’uomo mascherato (1971)
- Ristampa Nerbini (1975)
- Phantom #1, #2 (1991)
Mexico
- Paquito #10016 – #10020 (1953)
Norway
- "Stor jubileumsbok" (1975)
- Fantomet 1/1988
- Klassikerserien 6 (2004)
- Fantomet 25/2006
Spain
- El Hombre Enmascarado #1, #2, #3, #4 (1960)
Sweden
- "Stora jubileumsboken" (1975)
- Fantomen 26/2006
USA
- Big Little Book #1100 (1936)
- Feature Book #20 (1938) + Feature Book #22 (1939)
- The Phantom versus the Singh Brotherhood (1979)
- Feature Book #20 + Feature Book #22 (1993 reprints)
Yugoslavia
- Mika Miš #68 to #145 (1937)
- Zabavnik #13 and #17
- Tobijeve novine #7 to #10
- Hrvatski Dnevnik #1 to #9
- EKS Almanah #30 (1976)
- Biblioteka Nostalgija #2 (1981)
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