The mid 1960s were a great time to be a kid, especially a cartoon-watching TV junkie. Sure, you got your Space Ghost and Gigantor and Frankenstein Junior and Astro Boy and Peter Potamus and the Jetsons.. but if you were REALLY "lucky" you got to watch SINBAD JUNIOR!!


Oh sure, he didn't look anything the Sinbad you saw in the movies - for one thing Sinbad used to be, you know, Arabic - but who cares? He sailed around the world with his pet parrot, and he had a magic belt! AND he had his own comic book from Dell! Oh what kind of adventures await us on the high seas with Sinbad??


As near as we can tell, when ocean-themed danger threatens the world, pharmacists call upon Sinbad Jr to solve they mystery.


And since this is a Tony Tallarico comic there are lots of filler panels of characters wandering around in easy-to-draw silhouette. No matter what crisis threatens the world, there's always time for a few panels of "Just a little further!"


One of these stories involves a crazed bald dentist who's invented a "fire ray" he's using to melt the South Pole and cause global warming, leaving absolutely no room for debate as to who's causing it. Somebody should have told him that industrial pollution and deforestation are doing a fine job by themselves!


Meanwhile in another story some crazy admiral guy builds a giant doorway entrance to his underground canal, and ships of all sizes and descriptions just sort of sail into the door and get captured. Even the United States Navy "wandered in there by mistake". That's the kind of hair-trigger decision we expect from the US Navy, I guess. How will Sinbad conquer these evil menaces? Is it time to call upon the magic power of his pants-supporting device?


Usually when men grip their waist regions and say "I sure hope this works!" they're in a situation involving Viagara or Cialis. However when Sinbad shoots magic rays from his groin it's merely wholesome family entertainment.


In the industry they call this "the money shot."


But for pulse-pounding comic artistry it's hard to beat what many aficionados consider to be the apogee of Sinbad Jr.'s comic career - I speak of course of the Tallarico magnum opus, "The Big Race". See that third panel, the one that's just three triangles and some wavy lines? Gentlemen, hold onto your hats as the envelope of comic book laziness is bent beyond recognition!!


Reggie Van Dough here is going to win the race by throwing garbage overboard with his puffy, disfigured hands. Luckily, the white triangle helps the green triangle and he's back in the race!


"This will stop them!" Yes, this smoke screen will stop the artist from having to draw anything but swirls and squiggles and the occasional triangle. Pages and pages of scribbles. Behold the wonder of the Silver Age Of Comics, people!!


And just as it seems we're being overwhelmed with inky scribbles, Tallarico switches his game plan to embrace another tip in the Hackin' It Out Handbook - the silhouette. And if you want to fill up even more space with a minimum of drawing, why not try close-ups?


Was it the greatest race ever? It sure was, if you're talking about a race to the end of 32 pages drawn with the absolute minimum of effort. Sinbad Jr remains a footnote in the history of 60s cartoons, and his comic book adventures are more or less a footnote of a footnote. A scribbly, smoke-covered footnote... with a magic belt.

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