THROBBIN' HOOD: PRINCE OF HEAVES

ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES (1991)
dir: Kevin Reynolds

The story of Robin Hood has been told many times in different versions, even parodied in different versions, too many to post here, so I'll just concentrate on the 1991 movie, that was meant to be the blockbuster of that year, though largely forgotten about now.

THROBBIN' HOOD: PRINCE OF HEAVES
MAD #307, December 1991
w: Stan Hart
a: Jack Davis & Angelo Torres

Although Angelo Torres isn't credited, he was often used when Jack Davis did a movie parody and they weren't satisfied with the faces, which is weird since Jack Davis was often the go-to guy for a lot of magazines when it came to caricature.

The Cracked parody is a little more detailed so I'll synopsize the movie along with that instead.

”If you build it, they will come” was a famous quote from Kevin Costner's big hit Field of Dreams

Twins was a movie that came out a few years earlier where Danny DeVito and Arnold Schwarzenegger were twins.

The one thing from this parody that wasn't in the other one was Sean Connery's unbilled appearance as King Richard at the end.

Then there was the German cover.

Cracked in the late 80s and early 90s would put the movie on the cover in time for its release and do a few humorous shorts, one issue before doing the actual parody.

THE NEW AND SOMETIMES IMPROVED ROBIN HOOD
Cracked #265, September 1991
w & a: Michael Ricigliano

“Read my lips, no new taxes” was a slogan in George H. W. Bush's '92 run.

Don Martin some Robin Hood gags for MAD and here's one of the posters he did for a Super-Special.

But here are the strips he did in the issue of Cracked before the one with the main parody. Some of the sequences are hard to figure out at first but it's really not that hard.

ROBBING HOOD, PRANCE OF THIEVES
Cracked #266, October 1991
w: Lou Silverstone
a: Walter Brogan

The cast was Lady Marian (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), Azeem (Morgan Freeman), Friar Tuck (Michael McShane), Guy of Gisborne (Michael Wincotte), The Sherriff of Nottingham (Alan Rickman), Mortianna (Geraldine McEwan), Littlejohn (Nick Brimble), and Robin Hood (Kevin Costner).

The dancing wolf is a reference to Costner's movie Dances With Wolves that came out that same year. Daffy Duck was in the famous Robin Hood Daffy.

Robin Hood, a disciple of King Richard, is held in prison, and escapes with his friend Peter DuBois (Liam Halligan), helping a Moor named Azeem, who is indebted to Robin for the favor. Peter dies in the escape and Robin vows to protect Peter's sister Marian.

Robin and Azeem eventually return to Robin's homeland of Locksley. In his absence, his father has been murdered and Locksley has been taken over by the Sherriff and his cousin Guy, and they have blinded Robin's father's manservant Duncan (Walter Sparrow). Mortianna is a witch that works on behalf of the Sheriff and foretells Robin Hood approaching. Robin goes to see Marian and she doesn't need his help.

Robin and Azeem outrun the Sheriff's men and escape into Sherwood forest where they encounter Littlejohn and his group of bandits. He earns their respect when he defeats them in a joust, though Will Scarlett (Christian Slater) initially doesn't quite trust him until they turn out to be brothers. They're joined by Friar Tuck and Robin forms the group into a band that, say it with me... steals from the rich and gives to the poor...they become folk heroes, even among the rich, which the Sheriff doesn't like and puts a price on their heads. Marian joins them.

The Sherriff kidnaps Marian and forces her to marry him. Will agrees to be a spy for the merry men and lures Robin to the Sheriff's castle where a melee ensues.

Robin is able to stop the wedding Marian has been forced into and marries her himself. Their wedding is interrupted briefly by King Richard, who has returned, but has only stopped the wedding to give his blessing and acknowledge Robin Hood as the rightful heir to Locksley.