Broken Frontier

With a back catalogue that consists of over 200 albums, representing nearly 90 series of books, publisher Cinebook has distinguished itself as one of the premier purveyors of translated European comics work. Their extensive range of French and Belgian titles covers just about every conceivable genre and age group from the comedic cowboy capers of Lucky Luke to the critically-acclaimed conspiracy thriller of XIII. In the first of a semi-regular series Broken Frontier takes a look at the first albums of three of Cinebook’s series to give potential readers an entry point into an entire new world of European graphic storytelling…

Long John Silver
Xavier Dorison (writer), Mathieu Lauffray (artist)

Taking Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novel Treasure Island as an inspirational starting point, Dorison and Lauffray’s Long John Silver is set two decades after that seminal masterpiece of adventure fiction. When Lady Vivian Hastings discovers that her husband is dissolving her family estate to finance his expedition to Guiana-Capac, the fabled South American city of gold, she hatches her own plan to thwart him. Approaching Dr. Livesey, from the original novel, she enlists the aid of the legendary pirate Long John Silver and his cutthroat crew to infiltrate the enterprise on her behalf…

It’s Long John Silver’s peculiar moral code (or perhaps “amoral code” would be a better, if non-sequiturial term, for it) that will most intrigue and darkly delight the reader in the pages of Dorison and Lauffray's eponymous series. This is a tale of the requisite piratical cross and double-cross, strained alliances and stark betrayals where, such is the scheming of so many of the cast, that Silver’s own warped principles seem almost admirable in comparison.

What brings Dorison’s script alive here, however, is Mathieu Lauffray’s stunning artwork. Full of rich period detail that appears extensively researched I have little doubt that Long John Silver was a devoted labour of love for this artist. I have read few comics in the last several years to so effectively immerse me visually in their worlds as this album series has. As the storyline  progresses and the action shifts to the South American jungle you will be staggered at the sheer beauty of Lauffray’s layouts and the humanity (whether laudable or otherwise) of Long John Silver’s characters.

Without a doubt, Long John Silver was one of the very best comics I read in 2011 and the first three albums in the series are available from Cinebook now. Less a sequel to Treasure Island and more a revisitation of the world of Stevenson’s novel, Long John Silver has all the makings of a grandiose, unforgettable, historical epic.

The Chimpanzee Complex
Richard Marazano (writer), Jean-Michel Ponzio (artist)

Comprising three volumes, the first part of The Chimpanzee Complex throws the reader headfirst into a complex science-fiction mystery. Set in the year 2035, the central character of this ambitious space opera is astronaut Helen Freeman. In this opening chapter Freeman has just discovered that her dream of being on the first manned mission to Mars has been scuppered due to budget cuts.

Simultaneously, a spacecraft from humanity’s 20th century exploration of space has just crashlanded into the Indian Ocean. To the shock of the authorities, that capsule contains long-lost Apollo XI astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. But if Armstrong and Aldrin have been lost among the stars all these decades then who returned to Earth in 1969? It’s an enthralling mystery that will take in an unknown Russian space mission, the lunar landscape and fabled Mars itself by its paradoxical finish.

There are shades of Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey to Richard Marazano’s mind-bending script as this three-album series progresses. The Chimpanzee Complex is a story that makes the reader work to fit in the puzzle pieces and it flaunts a certain dalliance with narrative ambiguity in a rather unashamed manner. That, however, is a great deal of what makes this multi-layered sci-fi journey such a rewarding read.

The other, more human strand, to the story is the examination of Helen’s relationship with her daughter Sofia; a powerful study of the conflict between personal ambition and personal responsibility, and the sacrifices we make to attain our dreams. It’s a quite, quite beautiful parallel plotline that is, by its denouement, every bit as satisfying as the main thrust of the three-part arc.

I won’t be the first, or last, reader to note that Jean-Michel Ponzio’s ultra-realistic art has the feel of classic Brit comics creator Arthur Ranson to it. While some of his characters do, perhaps inevitably, look occasionally rather posed – I suspect photo-reference plays a heavy part in his layouts – there’s no arguing that in all other respects his pages are visually spectacular. From sweeping other planetary terrains to claustrophobic spaceship interiors, the artwork of The Chimpanzee Complex is the perfect complement to its writer’s vision.

Philosophical and reflective, The Chimpanzee Complex is a mini-masterpiece of oblique fantasy storytelling that has as much to say about human nature as it does about the mysteries of outer space. Pick up the first volume, sub-titled Paradox, and you will find yourself immediately engrossed in this commanding work.

XIII
Jean Van Hamme (writer), William Vance (artist)

It’s an admission that will do me no favours in the eyes of some, but I am forced to admit to never having either seen or read The Bourne Identity. Robert Ludlum’s thriller is often cited as an influence on this conspiracy caper, twelve volumes of which have so far been released by Cinebook.

This opening album, sub-titled The Day of the Black Sun, begins with a mysterious stranger being washed ashore on a remote beach, his memory destroyed by a bullet wound to the head. With the only clues to his identity being the Roman numerals “XIII” tattooed on his neck, our amnesiac protagonist is just beginning to settle into this small seashore community when a group of apparent assassins arrive, intent on removing him from the picture.

As “XIII” or, as he has been named by the locals, Alan, begins following the clues to his past inadvertently left by his would-be killers he uncovers a trail that leads to shadowy organisations, conspiracies and his own possible involvement in a political atrocity…

Throughout fiction, whether comics, prose or film/TV, there are those very occasional gems of storytelling that hook you instantly with their twisting plots and pull the reader into a mystery that has them eagerly anticipating the next volume, instalment or episode. XIII is one such title; a complex, fast-paced voyage of discovery that immediately immerses its readership in a treacherous, violent world where questions are continually asked about the status quo and where the motivations/truth about the main players is intriguingly blurred throughout.

In The Day of the Black Sun writer Jean Van Hamme provides a textbook example of how to set up the premise for an ongoing series and engage your audience from the very start. Vance’s realistic and attentively detailed art is an able stylistic accompaniment to this real world espionage atmosphere. Gritty and compelling, there’s clearly a reason why XIII has spun off into the realms of TV adaptations and video games. With Cinebook having now published ten of the nineteen XIII albums as translated editions, the time is ripe for jumping into this absorbing thriller mystery.

The first volumes of The Chimpanzee Complex and Long John Silver are priced £6.99/$13.95 with XII Volume 1 priced £5.99/$11.95. For more on the books in the Cinebook range check out their website here.