Wikipedia article as overview
Artist: Philippe Francq (as usual for Franco-Belgian comics, one artist does all the artwork, i.e. drawing, inking, colouring), Writer: Jean van Hamme (who also did the Thorgal and XIII series).
As always, spoilers for plot will follow!
Album 1, The Heir (L'Heritier)
Plot: Nerio Winch, head of the Winch Group, a holding of several different companies around the globe worth millions, is murdered. Largo Winczlav, a 26-year old Yugoslavian tourist in Istanbul, is framed for a murder by "American tourist Benny". In Turkish prison, he meets Simon, a burglar, and breaks out. Meanwhile, John Sullivan tells the board of directors of Winch that Largo is the adopted son of Nerio Winch and heir to the whole fortune; he will also keep the group together instead of splitting it into several companies. Once Turkish high officals learn how they treated a million-dollar-heir, they try to undo their mistake, but Largo and Simon have already taken steps and escape from prison. During pursuit, the police shoots to kill, their car flies of the bridge, but they get to the house of the British consul and meet two girls, Charity and Sue-Ann. The two Turkish officals decide to bury their mistake now, and send a special forces team to the villa to kill everybody and make it look like a burglary gone wrong. Sue-Ann gets her throat slit, but the rest are killed by Largo and Simon, who escape with a car and race to the airport, where they jump onto a plane with Charity in the last minutes.
Comments and nits: As noted in the wikipedia article, the first albums are based on novels van Hamme wrote in the 70s and re-worked slightly. Two albums belong together and have a similar colour scheme on the front. Also, like the other artists he's worked with in the past, Francq goes for the realistic, watercolour-like (for landscapes) style.
Interesting to note are the indications that the action doesn't take place in the here and now. While clothing and hair styles aren't obviously dated to the 70s (since Francq drew this recently), several crucial story details or rather, their lack of, shows an older setting. Two examples: no cell phones for anybody! And no personal computers anywhere. Not in the board room, not in the Turkish offices.
Since van Hamme himself brings it up: on page 22, Sullivan, describing Largo to the board members, says "All what Nerio told me about him was that he studied in Heidelberg, London and France [two cities and one country??], speaks six languages, likes to travel and lives somewhere in Europe." It's not mentioned which six languages. At a guess, English and French for international ease, German because of Heidelberg, and the rest as trump cards.
However, during the scenes in the Turkish prison - when Largo talks with the Turkish officials, guards and other prisoners; and when he talks with Simon (and earlier, with the American), there's no indication what languages are spoken. Yes, it would be bothersome to translate everything with "subtitles". And I dislike the common method of showing foreign language in comics by using a different alphabet (in one of the Percy Pickwick novels, he picks up a young man with amnesia, who has a nightmare where he screams in Kyrillic. Obviously, he's Russian. Now, in real life, I might recognize that somebody speaks a Slavic language, but I wouldn't be able to hear the difference between Polish, Czech, Slovakian, Russian etc.).
Still, Largo talks with the American (presumably good English, because Benny thinks he's American, too), he talks with the Turks (where it would be interesting whether he talks Turkish (as one of the six languages) or English. Also, we only learn Simon's first name (during the escape attempt), neither his last name nor his native language.
For that matter, I'd like to know how Largo knows that Simon is a fellow foreigner and not a Turk if not by language. Largo himself has blond hair, light brown (yellow) eyes and European features, but Simon has black hair and eyes and southern features.
Since Simon immediately comes to Largo's aid when the trouble over the sneakers erupts, and says "These guys stick together" (Where it's a bit unclear whether he means "all those Turks" including the guards, or "all those prisoners as one gang" making false testimonies to the guards), putting himself and Largo as both foreigners in a different category. It would therefore be an important information what language Simon talks to Largo initally - English? A different one? (We learn more about Simon and Largo's background in Album 2, and while, if they spoke English, the Turks might have understood them, if they both spoke German, they might have an advantage by not being understood by the opposition. Sadly, this opportunity that foreigners can speak a different language than the main crowd to convey secret information doesn't seem to be utilized. That's a bit disappointing, since it's already a dumb stereotype in Hollywood movies to have all foreign baddies discus their plans among themselves in English only so that the audience and the hero can overhear them.
Another major wonderment: Largo tells the Turkish police officer he's Yugoslavian. Now, this is obviously before the post-communist breakup, since he doesn't call himself by ethnicity (Bosnian/Serb/Croatian ... as would be expected today). But - shouldn't the fact that Yugoslavia is a communist country at that time raise somebody's eyebrows? Yet neither the board members when Sullivan tells his tale nor the Turks react to him being a commie, although it's still cold war.
For that matter, I'd really like to know how Nerio Winch, a stinking rich American, managed to adopt a child from an orphanage (he was not directly related to) in a communist country. Yes, I know that in the past ten years or so, rich Americans have bought children from China to adopt (and Europeans have helped their adoptions of Russian and Eastern European children with loads of cash, too). But that's after the collapse of Communism /the relaxing of standards and opening of markets. During the 70s, when communism was strict, I wonder if the officals could be bribed by the class enemy.
Unless Nerio directly paid a million or two to Tito or similar to get a few favours in return?
On p. 24 "Benny" is killed in Rome airport with an umbrella. This was a staple of 70s and 80s espionage novels, based on the apparently real case of the Bulgarian Umbrella. (Note how the wikipedia article first states that the umbrella was used in murdering Markov, and then later says that it could never be proven, and they don't know for sure whether an umbrella was used. Also interesting that, although the Bulgarian secret service during the Cold War used the umbrellas, a British company produced them!)
Cont'd. in next post.
Cont'd from above
During the killing of Nerio Winch and the telephone calls with "Benny", they take great care to not show the killers face or identifiying features. However, both from the portraits on the inside cover (which shows the heads of all Winch groups) and from the full shots during the board meeting, several people can be eliminated by the reader because they are too thick compared to the slender figure of the killer.
An interesting side note regarding the board of directors showing once again the 70s frame: all directors are white and male. No Asians, only one Mexican (Emil Jaramale, head of electronics & data systems). There's one guy who looks Asian (or sleep-deprived with his eyes closed - it's hard to tell), Waldo Buzetti, but he's US (Head of TV & Radio networks). And considering how much sitting around in meetings directors usually do, it's a bit surprising that only some of them are the typical overweight older guys. In the 70s, obesity wasn't that big a problem or widespread as today, apparently.
Another note: Apparently, van Hamme thought it funny or fitting to have the one German named after a famous general(issimo) - Wallenstein (Head of Supermarkets & Dept. stores.) Wallenstein is rather well-known in Germany not for his historic achievments, but because Friedrich von Schiller} (the second greatest German writer, after Wolfgang von Goethe}) wrote a play with him.*
On p. 10, after "Benny" has knocked Largo out, he first takes his wallet, and then pulls up his pant leg to take the knife strapped in a sheath to his leg. I wondered why Largo would carry a knife in that place - not practical enough to use against street muggers - and how Benny's employer knew about that.
Given how elaboratly Benny frames Largo, I wondered if his trust in Simon simply because he's also in prison and helps him in a brawl isn't misplaced - what if Simon was also planted?
When Largo and Simon escape to the consul's house, Charity does comment on how lucky (fortuitous?) it was of Largo to pick exactly the house that won't be searched because of that! Or did Largo, like a really well-prepared tourist, memorize the adresses of the consuls in Istanbul in case of trouble? Also, Charity's "rationale" for taking in dangerous escaped prisoners - she's rebellious - is a bit fortuitous, too. At least Largo himself says on p. 38 that they could be dangerous criminals! And it doesn't end well for Sue-Ann...)
But then we get to see some nice cheesecake and beefcake, with both Largo/Simon and Charity/Sue-Ann half-undressed and naked. I have to say, even given the advantage of youth, both of the guys are in excellent shape - look at those six-packs! (Yummy.) Even if Largo regularly works out, how did Simon, who seems to have spent some time in prison, keep that great shape?
I would like to point how sweet/hilarious it is that Simon the burglar, escaped criminal and well-shaped hetero male, wears boxers with pink hearts on them (p. 42 ff). Yes, it could be argued that it's not a guy's boxer, but a normal short from one of the girls (although Charity found male clothes for Largo from her father's stuff), but neither of them seems bothered by it in the least or even remarks on it.
For that matter, Largo himself is a male Mary Sue/wish fulfilment, if you look closer at it: he's got a load of money at his back to bail him out if he wants to, but doesn't have any obligations of being rich; he's young, strong, healthy and good-looking (therefore, successful with the ladies - no glasses or geekiness for him!); he speaks the main languages and is well educated, also trained in fighting, yet can travel around as he wants to ... who wouldn't want to be like him?
I like that, when Largo is taking a bath (p. 39+40) and Charity comes in, he first grabs the towel to hide, and then, when he makes too direct a pass at her, she dunks him! Not the passive girl for falls for the rugged looks and rough charme of the male hero.
On p. 43, Largo is deadly accurate when throws his knifes (both hands!), which is an unusual skill. He also is good at not only normal brawling, but shows martial art techniques.
On p. 23, during their prison escape, Simon says "Fantastic, Largo! As if you never did anything else!", to which Largo replies "I had a good education/training ... I'll tell you later, we're not alone". I wonder if he spent some time after studying at schools/universities with special forces training? Because that's not normal education, me thinks.
And it's really fortuiotus that Simon is left-handed when shooting the guy about to stab Largo on p. 42. Even if he's left-handed (since his right arm is still broken), how did a European burglar get to be such a good shot? Shooting is not usual pasttime for many Europeans.
On p. 16, when Largo arrives at prison, he still has the bloody bandage around his head (from where Benny bashed a vase on it). On p. 18, when the trouble about his sneakers starts, he no longer has it, and no open wound is visible from then on. Does that mean that several days passed? Because the ownership of sneakers (when everybody else in the cell is barefoot!) makes it seem as if only a short time passed.
Largo is not only a quick healer, but charmed that all bullets miss him, even machine guns.
* ed.: Only one link per post is allowed now? Bit difficult, I think.