The Adventures of Tintin: Tintin in America / Cigars of the Pharaoh / The Blue Lotus (3 Complete Adventures in One Volume, Vol. 1) Review
Volume One of the Adventures of Tintin contains three very early stories by Belgian artist and storyteller Herge about his cartoon hero, the young journalist Tintin. Herge produced Tintin adventures in the form of early graphic novels from the late 1920’s until the mid-1970’s. He went back later to update the artwork and clean up some anchronisms, but the stories have held up well over time and retain a huge fan base to this day.
In “Tintin in America”, the crusading reporter Tintin travels to Chicago to take on the Mob. The ensuing series of hair-raising adventures would be quite frightening if we didn’t know that Tintin and his faithful dog Snowy always find a way to survive. In pursuit of a fleeing criminal, Tintin ends up out West and is introducted to the ways of the Cowboys and the Indians. Herge was still perfecting his storytelling style in this adventure, which deals heavily in the stereotypes some Europeans used to see when they looked at Depression-era America.
In “Cigars of the Pharoah”, Tintin and Snowy run afoul of a drug-smuggling gang while visiting Egypt on an ocean cruise. The chase takes Tintin to the Saudi Arabian desert, the Red Sea, and ultimately to the jungles of India for a showdown with the gangmembers. This adventure is especially notable for introducing the bumbling detectives Thompson and Thomson, and the recurring villain Rastopopoulus.
“The Blue Lotus” begins with Tintin and Snowy still in India. A mysterous message related to the drug-smuggling ring of the previous story draws Tintin to war-torn China, under invasion by the Japanese Army. Tintin takes refuge in the international settlement at Shanghai and befriends a young Chinese lad named Chang. His pursuit of the drug ring will take Tintin and Snowy across the battlefield and into exceptional danger.
Herge’s simple yet wonderfully detailed artwork and carefully plotted storylines come together in these three early adventures. Herge did extensive research to try to add authenticity to the stories, all of which pre-date the Second World War. Volume One is very highly recommended to Tintin fans of all ages.
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Customer Reviews
Long Waiting – L. Veit – Seoul, Korea
The book arrived in one piece, I mean, in good condition, but it took way too long! I won’t buy in this shop again.
The Adventures of Tintin Volume One – Daniel Brandel – Canton, MI USA
I grew up with Tintin. I wish they were still writting these. Can’t say enough good.
Tintin – a product of past thinking – Aaron Gabriel Blazer – RIchmond, CA
I was really taken aback to see the view of other cultures represented in this work. At some level, I know that peoples consciousness at the time was less enlightened but it was truly unnerving to see such blatant racism on display. I suppose there was some value there in the historical lesson, even if that wasn’t the intent of the author. Awful!
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