The Digger

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Episode 66 of The Trigan Empire

The Digger
aka De mol (Dutch title)
The Mole (Dutch title, translated)

Written by Mike Butterworth
Illustrated by Oliver Frey

The Digger was originally published in 8 instalments in issues 808 (9 July 1977) to 815 (27 August 1977) of Look and Learn magazine.

It is reprinted in Volume 6 of The Rise and Fall of the Trigan Empire (Rebellion).

Plot summary

The Trigans have built a gigantic excavation machine of electronic perfection. The machine is called “the digger”. They can use it to dig a tunnel through an immense mountain range in a single day. After the demonstration, which Trigo himself attended, the chief engineer gets into an argument with assistant Rollah. Rollah is fired and has to pack his things. To take revenge, he tampers with the electronic systems that form the brain of the machine. As Rollah walks away, the machine’s headlights seem to follow him like eyes. The machine starts up, follows Rollah, and kills him.

The machine goes rogue and drills through the nearby town of Chizz. Janno’s squadron is ordered to bomb the digging machine, but just before they can, the machine drills into the ground. Near the capital, the machine resurfaces and destroys highways and harbors. Peric receives a message from within the digging machine. The machine demands radioactive material as fuel so that it can exist forever. Otherwise, it will destroy Trigan City. Peric suspects that the digger has been tampered with and that it can now think for itself.

One of Trigo’s guards warns his family to flee. This causes panic in the city and leads to looting. They decide to give the digger its fuel. Janno and Peric travel to the agreed location in a heli-jet. the digger lets them in with the fuel. Inside, Peric presses a button on the control panel. This enrages the digger, and it closes its doors. Peric just manages to get out, but Janno is trapped inside.

Trigo decides to bomb the digger, even though Janno is still inside it. But the digger retaliates with its deadly eyes and destroys the bombers. Peric believes the brain is so intelligent that it can develop new things, but he has altered its direction indicator and hopes that the digger can no longer find Trigan City.

Indeed, the digger loses its way, and when Janno pulls a lever on the control panel, it goes completely berserk. It drills underground to the polar region, then on to the jungle of Daveli, where it damages one of its eyes. the digger lets Janno out, and Janno sees the damage. He even suspects the digger is in pain. With the available tools, Janno manages to repair the eye.

Soon after, heli-jets arrive to pick up Janno. the digger has sent a message in which it expresses remorse and says it has been reformed by Janno. the digger is deactivated and becomes a monument to the idea that machines should not be allowed to think.