Retro Comic Recap: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom #3

Good morning,

I hope everyone's been enjoying the holiday weekend. I'm kicking off the day with a discussion of the final issue of Marvel's adaptation of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. This adaptation was also released in a single-volume Marvel Super Special. The cover of this issue showed Mola Ram forcing Indy to taste the blood of Kali as Short Round watched on, as he was restrained by a Thuggee guard. The issue had a cover date of November 1984. 

Indiana had just been captured by the Thuggees and taken to Mola Ram (in the previous issue). With Pankot Palace's maharajah and Short Round observed, Ram forced Jones to drink from a cup that supposedly contained the blood of the Thuggee god Kali. Meanwhile, Willie Scott had returned to her room and reported what she'd seen to the maharajah's aide, Chattar Lal. She soon learned that the assistant had already been converted.

A short while later, Willie was placed in the cage, about to be the cult's next sacrifice. Jones and Lal stood on the stage and watched. In the slave pit under the temple, Short Round was put to work. He noticed an injured guard and ran to his aid. There was a change in the man's eyes that Short Round recognized immediately. As the guard was taken back to Mola Ram, Indy's young friend knew that if pain made the guard wake up, the same could happen to Doctor Jones.

He eventually broke free from his chains and ran toward the temple. Short Round neared his friend and grabbed a torch to protect himself. He waved it at the brainwashed professor, who soon insisted that he be left alone to deal with the child. Indy gave a wink, and Short Round knew that everything was okay. Together, they fought off the guards and worked to free Scott.

Indiana grabbed the Sankara stones before the trio went to rescue the children in the mine. He came across one of the larger guards, and their struggle was made more difficult for Indy because of the voodoo doll that the maharajah had been using. Short Round climbed up to face him, and the young leader soon realized the error of his ways.

The maharajah promised to alert the British military (whom we saw last issue) while Short Round, Jones, and Scott escaped in a mine car. Their journey was perilous, but finally ended moments before they were faced with a tidal wave from the water container that had been knocked over during their trek. The trio finally left the cavern right before the waters burst through the stone walls.

Indy led his friends up to a bridge, only to find their foes waiting on the other side. He gave Short Round a signal, and he and Willie started wrapping their arms around the ropes so that they would be tethered when Indiana brought the structure down. A swift slice of Jones' machete brought everyone who stayed on, clinging on for dear life.

Everyone made a mad dash for the top. Mola Ram tried to surpass Indy and grabbed for his bag. He found some of the Sankara stones, but fell to his death leaping after them. By then, the British military had arrived and was busy picking off the remaining Thuggee cultists. Jones made it to the top, with one of the stones still in his possession.

A few days later, the adventurers returned to the small village (shown in the first issue). Indiana returned the stone to the shaman and embraced Willie as Short Round pondered the motives of grown-ups. That marked the end of this excursion.

I felt like this final issue was a bit rushed at times, but it wasn't bad for a three-issue limited series. Once again, some more violent and gory parts of the film understandably weren't included. There were also a few short scenes in the adaptation that didn't make the movie's final cut. We would see Short Round in an issue of the regular title, but as far as I know, we never saw Willie Scott again, unless she appeared in some of the Indiana Jones comics published by Dark Horse. I don't have any of those titles in my collection, so I don't know about that as of this writing. 

That's all for this article and adaptation. Later today, I'll resume my coverage of the ongoing Marvel Indiana Jones series with a recap of the twenty-first issue of The Further Adventures of Indiana Jones. Indy, Marion Ravenwood, and Marcus Brody continue their quest to clear Marcus' name. They travel to another location where they run into one of Brody's old colleagues, and we learn that another party is most interested in their exploits. Until then, have a great day and don't forget to be kind to one another.