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GOODIES COR COMICS SYNOPSIS #23
(by Linda Kay)
(from C&G 95 – November 2003)
Issue 158
9 June, 1973 No. 46
The basis of The Goodies of doing "Anything, Anytime, Anywhere" affords one the opportunity to put them into practically any situation, be it a completely original and off the wall plotline or a tried and true comic staple. This month's Cor!! comic which we'll be reviewing is definitely of the latter category as the Goodies try their hand at becoming rainmakers (a device which has been used in comedy since the silent movie era and probably before!).
Cover banner: "Goody-Goody! TV Stars "The Goodies" Appear Inside!"
Header: THE GOODIES' LUCK "DESERTS" THEM WHEN THEY TRY TO STOP A DROUGHT!
The Goodies are in their office when a country farmer enters, complete with droopy hat, pitchfork in hand and a stalk of wheat sticking out of his mouth (not to mention buck teeth!). He explains his problem to the trio as Tim attempts to get water out of a tap, only to end up with a glassful of dust.
FARMER: Goodies ... there be this drought on, and my crops need water! I want 'ee to make it rain!
GRAEME: H'mm ... I've "snow" idea "weather" we can do that!
The Goodies drive the farmer out to the country on their trandem. The farmer sits on Bill's shoulders at the back and points out the way with his pitchfork (a chicken dashes out of their way as they pass).
FARMER: My farm be right ahead!
TIM: Bags I have first go ... I know a native *rain dance*!
At the farm, Tim dons a wild looking witch doctor's outfit and dances around Bill, who has been tied to a tree (a la a sacrifice). Graeme watches on with a skeptical look.
GRAEME: Are you sure this 'mumbo-jumbo' will work, Tim?
TIM: Oom - bah - oo - la - la!
Instead of bringing up a mighty rain, Tim only succeeds in getting one tiny little cloud to pour down on his head. Bill laughs hysterically (so hard he shakes off the ropes binding him to the tree) as Graeme walks away confidently.
BILL: Ho, ho! Talk about an *isolated shower*!
TIM: Gloop ... splutter!
GRAEME: H'mm ... this calls for the scientific approach!
A LITTLE LATER ...
Graeme has built a strange flying device which consists of a small refrigerator with wings. He wheels it out on a wheelbarrow. Tim (still soaking wet) eyes the machine with surprise.
TIM: What have you got *there*?
GRAEME: My patent Mark I, *remote-controlled flying FRIDGE*!
Graeme reads from a huge book as Bill and Tim eye a small cloud overhead.
GRAEME: It says in my encyclopedia that you can make it rain by *seeding the clouds with dry ice*!
TIM: Dry up, then - here comes a cloud now!
Graeme mans the controls of his miniature cloud dusting plane and it takes off then zooms around erratically. Bill and Tim hit the ground to avoid being struck by the plane.
TIM: Duck, Bill, before it knocks us 'cold'!
GRAEME: Er ... I'll get the *hang* of it in a minute!
The flying fridge flies over the cloud and the door opens.
GRAEME: It's above the cloud now! *Fridge door open - ice cubes away*!
The Goodies are suddenly pummelled by a fair amount of falling foodstuffs, including eggs, bacon, fish and a roast chicken (marked Grade C).
TIM: Grough! You might have taken the grub out of the fridge first, Graeme!
BILL: It's raining *eggs and bacon* - but not a drop of water! You've *failed* miserably!
The makeshift plane crashes to the ground, making a big hole in the farmer's field. The farmer is hopping mad.
FARMER: Oi asked ee to *water* my field - not *dig it up*!
BILL: Hey, *that's* an idea - let's dig a *well* and get water that way!
Bill heads to a nearby shed as Tim and Graeme watch.
BILL: I'll see if I can find something to dig with in there!
Bill returns carrying a huge mechanical seed drill. Already Graeme and Tim are clinging to each other with fear and the farmer doesn't look to sure, either.
BILL: I've - puff found this drill!
FARMER: Hoi! That be my portable automatic *seed* drill!
Bill suddenly trips and falls onto the drill, which is pointing straight down into the ground.
Graeme runs for his life.
BILL: *Aargh*! I tripped!
GRAEME: *And* you've switched the drill on!
Bill clings to the top of the drill as it spins wildly, making him nothing more than a blur as the other Goodies watch with amusement.
GRAEME: Hey, the drill is supposed to do the spinning, Bill, not *you* as well!
BILL: Grough! Turn it off - I'm feeling 'seedy'!
Suddenly a geyser of water comes shooting up out of the ground with Bill on top of it looking confused. Graeme dances with glee and Tim watches with amazement but the farmer is madder than ever.
GRAEME: Hey, Bill's actually struck water!
FARMER: Aaar ... he's struck the water main! I'll have to turn all my house-water off now! You Goodies are hopeless!
The Goodies run for their lives as the farmer starts shooting at them with a shotgun (also startling a crow on a nearby branch). The farm is already badly flooded.
TIM: Our efforts were a washout!
GRAEME: I can't think of *any* other way to make it rain!
BILL: The trouble is we're tired - we need a holiday!
We next see the Goodies running to catch a train wearing swimsuits and carrying beach gear such as inflatable ducks, sandbuckets, shovels and life savers.
BILL: That's it!
Finally we see the Goodies at the seashore where it's now pouring rain. Bill sits on the inflatable duck in the water while Tim attempts to make a sand castle with the soggy sand and Graeme writes a letter. People on the boardwalk are being blown everywhere or are huddling for shelter under a canopy.
BILL: The one *sure* way to make it rain is to go on holiday!
TIM: It happens every time.
GRAEME'S LETTER: Dear Farmer, with you were here . . !
Sign-Off Line: The forecast is for fun in next week's super "Goodies" tale!
RATING (using the BLACK PUDDING RATING SYSTEM):
III - Goody goody yum yum.
This is a fairly cute variation on the old rainmaking theme and the ending really is its strongest attribute. The jokes and puns throughout the comic are passable (although some are downright painful and there are a number of panels without any real jokes) but the individual attempts to try to make rain are funny and there are some clever moments, such as the food falling out of the refrigerator onto the Goodies heads and Bill drilling into the farmer's water main (okay, it's an old joke but it works well here). The artwork isn't overly complicated and there aren't a lot of background jokes in this outing, which keeps it from rating a bit higher (the only really clever subtle thing is the sandcrab with an umbrella in the last panel), but it's certainly an entertaining strip which builds to a logical and ironic conclusion.
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