Martin Mystère #409 (2024) p 16-17 Neo-Nazis in the streets

Martin finishes filming his documentary for the day. He talks to his primitive assistant Java, who responds in grunts:

“It's true, for now I've limited myself to stating the historical facts and introducing the characters. The most interesting part is yet to come...”

“Rrrrgh?”

“…and you can be sure that it will not disappoint the viewers of 'The Mysteries of Mystère.' Or at least, I hope so.”

“Hrm! Ghhrrgh!”

“In any case, you know that your opinion always interests me. After all the adventures we've lived together, it couldn't be otherwise. Now let's go back to the hotel. I really need a good shower and a hot meal.”

But trouble awaits on the drive to the hotel…

“Uh-oh, this is all we need. A demonstration is blocking traffic.”

“Grrrgh! Rrrrgh!”

“Hmm. You just quoted a line from 'The Blues Brothers.' Well, this is Bavaria, and these Nazis aren’t from Illinois. They were just ridiculous.”

“Yes, the police, I saw. They're monitoring the demonstration. So at least the traffic is flowing, albeit slowly.”

The idea of a “Neanderthal sidekick named Java” came directly from the Allan Quatermain comic written in 1965 by Alfredo Castelli before he developed Martin Mystère in the 1980s. DC readers may know that when Metamorpho debuted in Brave and the Bold #57 (1965), he too had a Neanderthal sidekick named Java. This makes me suspect that both comics were referencing a novel or film of that era, but I don’t know what it might be. The general trope of a primitive warrior sidekick is ancient, going all the way back to Enkidu in the Epic of Gilgamesh. It has appeared many times, from Leela in Doctor Who to Chewbacca, Ludo, Fezzik, and others.