A Plague in Venice

A Plague in Venice
Produced for:	Fantomen 4/2015
# of pgs:	32
Writer:	Janne Lundström
Artist:	Hans Lindahl
Original colorist:	Reprostugan
Producer:	Egmont Publishing AB

"A Plague in Venice" is a 2015 Team Fantomen story, written by Janne Lundström, with art by Hans Lindahl.

Plot synopsis

In 1575 the 2nd Phantom is travelling from Crete to Venice on a ship, falling in love with the beautiful Lucia Croce. When sailors on the ship die in the plague, the passengers of the ship are placed in quarantine for 40 days on the island of Lazzaretto outside Venice. On the island colonel Mocenigo and his men steal from the dying and the bedridden. The Phantom ask Lucia to marry him but she say no since she has other unspecified commitments. Also the Phantom becomes sick with the plague but manage to recover.

Leaving the quarantine after 40 days, the Phantom find that Venice is filled with dead bodies and that the few survivors are spending their remaining time drinking and frolicking. Searching for Lucia's house, he discover that religious maniacs are trying to knock down the front door. Inside he find Lucia's maid Elena with Lucia's young daughter Sara. Elena claim that Lucia is dead and that she loves him. Not believing that Lucia is dead, he finally manage to find her, celebrating a masquerade with the crooked colonel Mocenigo. Challenging the Phantom in a duel, Mocenigo is suddenly struck by the plague. As Lucia tend to the dying colonel, the Phantom leave, realizing that love has made him blind. Elena tell him that Lucia was Mocenigo's mistress since many years.

The Phantom leave Venice with Elena and little Sara. Later Elena and the Phantom get married.

Appearances

Recurring characters

• The 2nd Phantom
• The 1st Phantom (as corpse, in flashback)
• the future 3rd Phantom (as little baby)
• Ann (mentioned, as the fourth wife of the 2nd Phantom)

One-time characters

• Elena
• Sara di Baballi
• Lucia Croce
• Dr Romolo Rossi
• Colonel Fulvio Mocenigo
• Captain Capotti
• Mario, sailor
• Ettore

Locations

• Venice
  • Coast of Istria
  • Lazaretto Island
  • Trieste (mentioned)
• Ragusa
• Bengali
  • Deep Woods (implied)
    • The Skull Cave

Tribes

• Bandar

Reprints

This story has been published in the following publications:

Australia

• "A Plague in Venice", The Phantom #1722 (2015)

Norway

• "Pesten i Venezia", Fantomet 4/2015

Sweden

• "Pesten i Venedig", Fantomen 4/2015

Awards

• Best story 2015 (Norway)
• Best story 2015 (Sweden)

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Best Story Winners
Finland
1985: "The Prisoner at Capitolium" | 1986: "The Moor of Death"
Norway
1979: "The Heirs" | 1983: "Tale of Rex" | 1984: "Hero" | 1985: "Pirates of the Yellow Snake" | 1986: "The Beanstalk" & "Race Against Death" (tie) | 1987: "Devil's Adventure" | 1988: "Eden" | 1989: "The Last Unicorn" | 1990: "The Last Emperor" | 1991: "Death of a Patrolman, Part 2: Tracking the Killers" | 1992: "The Wolf is Coming" | 1993: "Aron" | 1994: "The Commander is Dead" | 1995: "The Demon's Image" | 1996: "Johnny Hotwire" | 1997: "The Ghost Who Died Twice" | 1998: "The Last Phantom, Part 1: The Eighth Circle" | 1999: "Devil's Story" | 2000: "The Phantom vs Singh 2050" | 2001: "The Invisible Phantom" | 2002: "In A Strange Land, Part 2" | 2003: "My Darling Pirate" | 2004: "Son of the Pirate Queen" | 2005: "The King of Norway" | 2006: "The Singh Brotherhood" | 2007: "Dogai - The Road to Power" & "The Commander is Dead" (best reprint) | 2008: "The Devil of Ravenscar" & "Kingdom of the Amazons" (best reprint) | 2009: "Duel at Deadman's Gulch" | 2010: "The Cabin Boy and the Princess" | 2011: "The Gulf of Aden Pirates" | 2012: "The Pirates' Prisoner" | 2013: "The Slave Ship Zong" | 2014: "Death of a Pirate Queen" | 2015: "A Plague in Venice" | 2016: "John X" & "Patrolman X" | 2017: "The Karabasan League"
Sweden
1978: "The Avenger from the Sea" & "Phantom Wedding" (tie) | 1979: "Devil's Story" | 1980: "The Treasure from Rhodes" | 1981: "The Legend of the Swords, Part 1: Excalibur" | 1982: "The Stone Carving People" | 1983: "The Water of Life" | 1984: "The First Phantom" | 1985: "The Beanstalk" | 1986: "The Battle on Malta" & "Devil's Story" (best reprint) | 1987: "The King is Dead" | 1988: "Eden" | 1989: "The Last Unicorn" | 1990: "The Cathedral Mystery" | 1991: "Devil's Story" | 1992: "Hoogan's Revenge" | 1993: "The Test" | 1994: "The Commander is Dead" | 1995: "The Set Up, Part 1" & Part 2 | 1996: "The Last Viking" | 1997: "The Ghost Who Died Twice" | 1998: "Return of the Zombies" | 1999: "Devil's Story" | 2000: "The Phantom vs Singh 2050" | 2001: "The Prodigal Son" | 2002: "The Long Bow of Little John" | 2003: "My Darling Pirate" | 2004: "Son of the Pirate Queen" | 2005: "The Battle on Malta" | 2006: "The Singh Brotherhood" | 2007: "The Phantom Crusader, Part 1" & "The Commander is Dead" (best reprint) | 2008: "The Castaways" & "Kingdom of the Amazons" (best reprint)" | 2009: "The  Phantom Gladiator, Part 1" | 2010: "The Cabin Boy and the Princess" & "The Dragon Throne" (tie) | 2011: "The Sons of Captain Walker" | 2012: "The Pirates' Prisoner" | 2013: "Year 1349" | 2014: "Death of a Pirate Queen" | 2015: "A Plague in Venice" | 2016: "Nat Turner's Spirit, Part 6: The King of Louisiana" | 2017: "Farewell to the Deep Woods" | 2018: "The Ghost at Gallows' Inn" | 2019: "The Devil in Stockholm" | 2020: "A Reckoning with the Nomad" | 2021: "Devil's Story" | 2022: "Saga of the Vultures Chapter One: The Haunted Castle" | 2023: "Ku Klux Klan"