Older belgian and french comic artist

DeChupa

Hey guys, I just wanted to remind people of some great oldies. Everyone remembers Hergé with his Tintin comics as well as Rene and Goscinny with Asterix (although they both worked on different projects as well) but fewer (especially in USA) know Franquin who wrote quite a few Spirou books (french: Spirou et Fantasio) as well as created Gaston LaGaffe.

I really recommend Gaston to anyone who likes a dynamic, comic style. Apart from the fact that the stories are hilarious. Sadly I don't think Gaston has been translated to english, it's been translated to a few european languages so for full effect look for the stories in a language you understand. Otherwise, take a look at the pictures which are among the best and funniest comic style pictures I've ever seen.

Even someone like Gabe should check them out. Gabes style has become quite pro (beautiful in fact) but is still lacking in conveying a sense of motion or urgency through the images (but his static style and the backgrounds are excellent). Going through the works of these older masters should be worth it for anyone trying to improve their style, or just find enjoyable stories.

Spirou has been drawn by many other artists as well, some good, some not so good.

Corporal Carl

Oh man, when I think of how Guust Flater (Gaston Lagaffe in Flemish/Dutch) made me laugh during his 'early years' when he invented the rubber chair... I always liked the shorter (fewer panels) strips; as soon as they became 'full pages' I didn't like it as much anymore.

And when he used crossword clippings on his old yellow car to make it more 'Formula 1'-like :P
And didn't he make his own musical instrument, a cross between bagpipes, a didgeridoo and a harp?

He probably would be hugely politcally incorrect, because didn't he use to smoke in the early strips (just like the time when Lucky Luke smoked and drank whiskey, instead of having a straw in his mouth and drinking lemonade).

I really should pick up the earlier albums again, it must've been more than twenty years since I've read them...

DouglasDanger

Gabe and Tycho do not read the forums.

I am not familiar with European comix. I have read some Asterix and watched TinTin cartoons as a child, but that is about it. Some of my favorite artists, such as Brandon Graham and Paul Pope, talk about European cartoonists, so I have been meaning to scope things out. I haven't gotten around to it yet though.

Gaston doesn't interest, going by the wiki's summary

Gaston Lagaffe follows the classic "gag" format: one-page stories (initially half-a-page) with an often visual punchline, sometimes foreshadowed in the dialogue. The humour mixes slapstick, puns and running gags. Franquin's style is characterised by extremely nervous characters and action and very quotable dialogue. The series is much loved not only for its perfectly timed comedy, but also for its warm outlook on every day life. Although Gaston works at Spirou magazine and one of his colleagues is a cartoonist, the series satirises office life in general rather than the publishing or comics business; Franquin himself worked at home. In the later episodes, the reader could discover a visual reference to the story in Franquin's signature at the bottom of the page.

bwanie

Corporal Carl wrote: »

Oh man, when I think of how Guust Flater (Gaston Lagaffe in Flemish/Dutch) made me laugh during his 'early years' when he invented the rubber chair... I always liked the shorter (fewer panels) strips; as soon as they became 'full pages' I didn't like it as much anymore.

And when he used crossword clippings on his old yellow car to make it more 'Formula 1'-like :P
And didn't he make his own musical instrument, a cross between bagpipes, a didgeridoo and a harp?

He probably would be hugely politcally incorrect, because didn't he use to smoke in the early strips (just like the time when Lucky Luke smoked and drank whiskey, instead of having a straw in his mouth and drinking lemonade).

I really should pick up the earlier albums again, it must've been more than twenty years since I've read them...

Corporal Carl, your mentioning of Gaston Lagaffe makes you my favourite person of the day.

One small correction though, his french name is Gaston Lagaffe, Guust Flater is his Dutch name.

DD you don't know what is up apparently, because these strips are really funny. The best gags for me were usually:

- the endless quest to get the contract with mr Dupuis signed.
- the crazy inventions (so many backwards inventions)
- his pets! expecially that goddamn seagull of his.

edit: wait i see the OP also mentioned Gaston. You guys have to share the honor

Corporal Carl

bwanie, all honour goes to the original poster; he made me remind how I loved that comic too when I was a 'little one'.

And I must've mentioned it incorrectly, I meant to say that Guust was the Dutch/Flemish version of Gaston... I might've used a literally translated sentence from Dutch which doesn't work all too wel in English :P

In fact, Gaston/Guust must've been 'The Office' some 30 years before "The Office" became famous :


I didn't find a pic of the seagull being "characteristically angry"

streever

Well, he did make a decision based on wikipedia ;-)!

I loved the TinTin comics. I'll check Gaston out. Thank you for sharing!

DouglasDanger

streever wrote: »

Well, he did make a decision based on wikipedia ;-)!

I loved the TinTin comics. I'll check Gaston out. Thank you for sharing!

:x

Haha! Silly American!
:P

8-)

emoticons so kawaii!
<> <>
o

I don't really enjoy "gag" comix, and the only slice of life type thing I really enjoy is Scott Pilgrim. I think some of the creators' work I really enjoy, like Graham, Stokoe, Pope and O'Malley, has been influenced by this sort of real-life slice of life gag comix, but the actual material itself doesn't interest me

bwanie

I don't think anyone here mentioned anything about americans dude.

And you wouldn't know if you liked it or not, i don't think wikipedia is a viable way to assert that.

But given the fact that these are a bitch to come by on the net, let alone translated to english, it might be for the best.

It would be all the more frustrating if you did find yourself interested in these unique and timeless comics.

DouglasDanger

I can get a pretty good idea of something from summaries and preview pages. Wikipedia was not my only source in making my decision.

streever

Do you want to keep telling us that you don't want to read it, or may we have a discussion about it, and not about your assumptions of it? I would prefer that. Thank you.

bwanie

man there are so many strips i'd like to post, but that means scanning and translating and i just don't feel like that now.

ManonvonSuperock

fill that OP with pictures and scans.

as for Euros, I like Milo Manara. Even though his stuff is ultra-porn-tastic, he's also quite skilled at line quality, colors, pacing, and panel layout.

streever

you scan it, maybe somone here will translate!

The_Glad_Hatter

I remember going to a Franquin exhibit in brussels a few years ago. The exhibition was great, but what really struck me was this one room they had full of originals (all the other art they showed were reproductions).

i must've spent an hour with my nose pressed against the glass. The amount of detail and control, combined with his lively lines, was amazing.

That + Idées noir makes him the unquestioned master of inking in my book...

The_Glad_Hatter

Some Pages from Franquin's Idées Noirs. i guess translating it is kinda ok since they never appeared in english.
i just chose some random strips that wouldn't require too much work to translate.
Ofcourse know that the original dialogue probably has a better flow. Plus there was a cultural reference that i had to drop.

spoilered for size.. even though the crappy scans still don't do the linework justice..

and "you shouldn't confuse your lil son's smile with the sea's teeth"

and "you shouldn't mix up happy horse-jumping and Hara-Kiri"

Virral

I'm vaguely familiar with the character Gaston, having spent some time in Europe. I think our American readers might be more familiar with Marsupilami, another Franquin creation that was turned into a Disney cartoon.

bwanie

hooba hooba hooba
hop, hop, hop