DC Special #25

In "The Forest of Traps!" from DC Special #25 (1976), Robin's Merrie Men face suspicion and hostility as imposters tarnish their name across the countryside. As Robin battles a series of skilled challengers—a master swordsman, a quarter-staff expert on a spinning log, and a deadly archer—each duel tests his skill and resolve. When Prince John's forces close in, the true band of outlaws turn the tide with a clever trap, earning their long-lost honor back from the very villagers they once protected.

In a tale of boyhood and bowstring, young Robin dreams of the forest rather than the sword, until Old Hugh secretly teaches him the archer’s craft. Though the mighty bow proves too much for his arms at first, fate calls when brigands attack—forcing Robin to bend the bow and defend his home. When his father faces a deadly joust, Robin’s arrow saves the day, but his triumph brings only scolding. The bow remains, waiting—its power yet to be fully known.

In "The Outcast Viking," Jon, a man exiled by the village's fears, finds himself alone with the frozen giants of a glacier when a volcanic eruption unleashes a stampede of ancient mammoths. With only his ice boat and a sharp blade, he must carve a path through the ice to save the village he was cast out from. The story, written by a mysterious hand and illustrated with rugged, evocative art, blends myth and survival in a tale of exile, courage, and the wild forces of nature.