Jean-Claude Fournier qui signe généralement du seul nom de Fournier, est un scénariste et dessinateur français de bande dessinée, né le 21 mai 1943 dans le 20e arrondissement de Paris.
I have an original 1977 hardback in French from Dupuis, with a hand drawn dedication from the author to my brother, as my parents bought this book from the author’s stall at the Festival d’Angouleme in 1980 on a family holiday. A distant but treasured memory, as we had a good chat with the author that day, my brother and I. He was much amused that two “English” kids were so enthused by French cartoons.
This episode is based in the culture of Brittany, the author’s home region. Although there are good guys and bad guys and a very unsubtle anti-nuclear message throughout this story, it is an unusual episode in that it takes on the supernatural (the only one to do so, other than Le Gri-gri ...) in the shape of the titular character, who is the regional conveyor of the dead to the afterlife. Very amusingly, that character has modern, real-world concerns, as his actions are a protest against the potential worsening of his terms and conditions of employment and the increase in overtime should there be a nuclear disaster.
Trust the French to come up with a unionised version of death. Long before Terry Pratchett too, check the dates.
This is a great episode with a good plot compared to earlier episodes (despite some glaring plot holes), nice art, cracking incidental characters and sparkling dialogue. The recurring character Ororea is involved throughout. Although she’s eye candy in some parts, she takes full part in the action, equally with the MCs, and is in fact the only functioning journalist of the group. The author really has moved the series on.
Je n’ai pas été transportée par ma lecture. D’accord, il y a le folklore celte ; d’accord, il y a une dénonciation des centrales nucléaires ; mais il n’y a pas de fantaisie dans cet album. On ne rit pas, l’aventure est à peine haletante, les personnages ne sont pas bien intéressants, pas assez travaillés, creux.
Kuten edellinenkin Fournier, niin liikaa henkilöitä, pääjuoni melko tyhjänpäiväinen. Jotenkin näistä jää puuttumaan se Franquinin juonien jännittävyys ja mysteerit. Nyt löytyi Itoh Kata, mutta myös muita taikureita, jolloin niidenkin merkityksellisyys jäi vähäiseksi.
Vaikka Franquin ei ollut Leloupin tai Jacobsin tasoinen yksityiskohtien piirtelijä, eivätkä juonetkaan olleet niin mahtipontisia mysteereitä, niin kuitenkin oli kiva ihailla hänen piirrostensa hienoja yksityiskohtia ja jänniä tarinoita. Fournierin piirrokset ovat välillä melko yksinkertaisia sutaisuja ja jotenkin niistä jää puuttumaan se vauhdikkuus, jota Marsupilamitarinat erityisesti tarjosivat.