Raiders of the Lost Ark (comic)

The Raiders of the Lost Ark comic adaptation was published by Marvel Comics from September through November 1981.

Plot summary

In 1936, Indiana Jones recovers a lost golden idol in the jungles of Peru, but is betrayed by his guides and eventually loses the idol to his longtime rival, Belloq. No sooner has he returned Stateside than he is approached by members of Army Intelligence, who reveal evidence suggesting the Nazis have discovered the lost city of Tanis and are near to discovering the Ark of the Covenant. After hearing of how powerful the Ark is, Intelligence requests Jones go after it, but first he needs a vital piece to find the Ark's resting place, which he believes is in the possession of Abner Ravenwood in Nepal. Ravenwood is dead however, but his daughter, Marion, possess the piece. But the Nazis are after it as well. And worse, Belloq is helping them! Jones must keep the Ark out of the hands of evil....but first he has to find it.

Differences from the film

As with the novelization, the comic book differs from the movie in many ways:

Barranca does not die.
In The Raven fight, the Giant Sherpa does not appear. Instead, the Mean Mongolian is the one who fights Indy to a standstill and then cooperates with him briefly to kill the Second Nazi with Toht.
Indy never encounters the Arab Swordsman during the Cairo fight sequence and thus nevers shoots him.
Indy takes out the second German Mechanic with one punch; the first mechanic is knocked out with the Flying Wing's chocks by Marion, and he fires his gun hitting the plane's fuel tank, setting off the explosion.
Sallah explains to Indy and Marion that he was able to escape punishment by convincing Dietrich that he and the other diggers were "tricked" by Indy into believing he (Indy) was a German.
The Desert Chase is executed differently: There are no soldiers riding in back of the truck, only the driver and soldier riding shotgun in the cab. Toht dies because he rides in Gobler's car, and they drive off the cliff. Gobler's gunner is also absent because Gobler's troop car with mounted gun was replaced with a staff car similar to the one occupied by Dietrich and Belloq.
Indy uses his whip to lash himself to the submarine's periscope for the journey to the Nazi island,
At the Nazi island, Indy confronts Belloq and threatens to destroy the Ark after Belloq has changed into his ceremonial robes. Rather than surrender, he is attacked and subdued by the Nazi officer Captain Mohler. Dietrich prepares to execute Jones, but Belloq persuades the colonel to tie Indy up instead, and to kill him after the Ark has been opened.

Raiders of the Lost Ark (comic)

Contents

Plot summary

Differences from the film

Appearances

Characters

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