“Bull Digger”

2 pgs. Appeared for the first time in foreign prints (see German, Spain, Italy, Brazil, Sweden and France). Reprinted [B&W] in Horror in the Dark #4 (1991), and [COLOR] in Heavy Metal #159 (1995).
Story/Art/Color(colored by overlays): Richard Corben (written sign © 1983 Ricard Corben, in Heavy Metal version, there is additional written sign “by Corb” just under the title). Lettered by hand (Corben) in Heavy Metal version and (mostly) printed in Horror in the Dark version.

Brazil [BRA]: as “Escavadeiras no Cio” in Heavy Metal – Edição Brasileira # 3 (1989).
France [FRA]: as “Bull Digger [FRA]” in US Magazine [II] #24 (1985), and Créatures de crève (1989).
Germany [GER]: as “Bull Digger – Der Goldgräber” in Epic [GER] #11 (1984), and as “Bull Digger Der Goldgräber” in Der Dämon im Cockpit (1985).
Italy [ITA]: as “Bull Digger [ITA]” in L’Eternauta #57 (1987).
Spain [SPA]: as “Toro zapador” in Zona 84 #1, and Richard Corben obras completas #12 (1992).
Sweden [SWE]: as “Tjurgrävaren” in Bild och Bubblas Stora Seriebok (1989).

Style: Black line with colors. Genre: SF / Humour. Time Span: Future. Nudity: Full frontal nudity.
Keywords: Robots. Mining. Malfunction. Copulation.
Original Art Plate: 39,5 x 30,3 cm [Source: Angoulême, 2019].
Synopsis: Ape-man is driving gigantic male robot and a voluptuous girl a female one. They are mining, while one of robots gets malefunction on female robot.
Comment: Corben’s own story is only marginally SF; it is made for male magazine and it is visible. Bodypainting is wonderful. There is no actual need for censorship, because only female body is shown naked. There exists some rewritten parts during chancing handwritten text into printed: in the end (B&W version) last two quotes, “I think it was a short in the sublimation curcuit” is turned to “I think it was a short in the sublimator circuitry”, and “Can’t you make it last longer?” to “Oh yeah? You’d better stop leaving those copies of MECHANICAL BREEDERS GAZETTE around in the hanger.” There is also in the color version a signature “Corb” in the opening frame, not in B&W version. Pay attention on very Vaughan Bodé type rounded frames and positions of word bubbles.