ABSTRACT – O’DONNELL, PETER & HOLDAWAY, JIM – MODESTY BLAISE - THE RED GRYPHON –(in the BAD SUKI collection) 2005 Titan Books. A third collected Modesty Blaise story from the 1960’s and 70’s London Evening Standard Comic Strip. Modesty is in Venice visiting an old friend, Aquino. He is renovating a Venetian palazzo, and in particular, a massive stone statue of a Red Gryphon on its roof. The Palazzo is on an island, which Count. Alborini wishes to buy, though he does not legally own the deeds. When Modesty takes pity on two orphans who are stealing on the streets of Venice, because they have run away from an orphanage run by nuns (where they are being separated), Modesty and Aquino treat the children to a meal. The children however steal Aquino’s briefcase. In it are papers confirming that the Island Alborini is worthless now, except for the jewels hidden in the statue of the Gryphon. The children try to sell this information to Count Alborini, who has Aquino drowned in the Venetian canals, Modesty swears vengeance and calls onher friend, Willie, from England to assist her. Modesty then rescues the children from the Count who tries to kill them, and sends the to the orphanage for safety.
Modesty destroys the tools, which Acini’s gang try to smash up the Gryphon. They realise that they need a specialist with a Thermic Lance. Willie is able to convince them that he is the specialist, and they hire him. Modesty lets the villains capture her, so that she and Willie can attack them, but the plan goes wrong. They realise Willie is working with her, and shoot him, but only injuring him. He ad Modesty (now in handcuffs) fight the villains, and throw the evil Alborini into a deep pit with spikes in intended to cut victims up smash their bones as they fall to the canal below. Modesty finds the Gryphon treasure, leaving half of it to people taking care of the orphans at the convent on condition that the children are not separated again. A strong story which shows the swinging lifestyle Modesty lives, in that she is clearly having affairs with both Willie and Aquino at the start of the story, and Willie doesn’t seem too cut up about it.