In
“Tarzan’s Return to the City of Gold,” Tarzan rescues a young man, Orando, from a
wild rhinoceros.
He soon learns that Orando is attempting to prove himself a
man, and undergoing a rite of passage.
Tarzan
also learns that Orando is the brother of Thia, from the city of Athne. He resolves to return the thirteen year old
boy home.
Before
that can happen, however, Tomos -- the major domo of despotic Queen Nemone -- captures
Orando and takes him back to the city of Gold: Zandor.
Now
Tarzan must travel to Zandor and seek the help of his friend in Nemone’s guard,
Phobec. But Nemone is bound and
determined to get her hands on Tarzan.
This
sequel to Filmation’s first Tarzan episode of the season is not
as strong or as involving as some of the other recent episodes I’ve written
about, in part because it feels like a rehash. It may be a little bias on my
part too. I will readily admit I have a hard time staying tuned to all the
politics between Athne and Zandor, and with names like Phobec and Tomos and
Orando.
Also, I don't typically like stories of this type, where villainous but beautiful princesses continually lust after a man. I've seen it too often, on Filmation's Flash Gordon for instance. I find it outdated and sexist, for sure.
Still,
there is an attempt to move the story of Zandor forward a bit in "Tarzan's Return to the City of Gold," and I do credit
the episode with that feat. Here, by the end of the show, Nemone promises to
change her behavior, and be a more just queen. She amends her tyrannical ways, and seems to
take to heart Tarzan’s counsel.
But
otherwise, the story seems like a whole lot of running around, getting captured
and held in dungeons, and more running around.
The episode’s final (moral) statement involves Orando’s journey. By realizing your mistakes you go a long way
towards growing up.
Next
week’s episode is an improvement: “Tarzan and the Strange Visitors.”
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