XIII x 18 = A Full Set

With our review of The Last Round, downthetubes has now reviewed all 18 of the XIII books published by Cinebook over the last two and a half years - from the beginning of the saga of the amnesiac agent in The Day Of The Black Sun, through two presidential assassinations in America plus an attempted military coup in between them, a Central American revolution and the search for century old Mexican gold coins, right up to its finale.

Written by Jean Van Hamme and translated by Jerome Saincantin, with art by William Vance plus a guest spot by Jean Giraud/Moebius, the series has been, along with Lucky Luke, one of the two mainstays of Cinebook since 2010 with a new XIII title appearing every two months as the company showed its dedication to a series which had never been translated beyond book three before.

Due to the non-graphic novel nature of the 13th French book, The Investigation, and it basically retelling the story up to that point, it was not included in the main Cinebook series although the company have plans to publish it in English later in the year.

Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin spoke to us about the series in 2011 in XIII Questions About XIII while each of the 18 book reviews are listed below.

1 - The Day Of The Black Sun

2 - Where The Indian Walks

3 - All The Tears Of Hell

4 - SPADS

5 - Full Red

6 - The Jason Fly Case

7 - The Night Of August Third

8 - Thirteen To One

9 - For Maria

10 - El Cascador

11 - Three Silver Watches

12 - The Trial

13 - Top Secret

14 - Release The Hounds!

15 - Operation Montecristo

16 - Maximillian's Gold

17 - The Irish Version

18 - The Last Round


• Details of each of the XIII books are available on the Cinebook website along with the first two pages of artwork for each.

• Details of the original French XIII books, and the spin-off series XIII Mysteries, are available of the official XIII website (in French).

• View all the XIII books on amazon.co.uk

In Review: XIII - The Last Round

It has been a long haul, 18 books over almost two and a half years, but Cinebook have stuck with Jean Van Hamme and William Vance's amnesiac tattooed agent XIII and that has lead us all to the final book of the series, The Last Round.

XIII and his friends are still in their safe house in Mexico as they decide what must be done to clear their names in the USA where, unknown to them, two books have been published about the "XIII Mystery" which has made what has been happening public. However before they have a chance to return to the States, their safe house is discovered and attacked.

Pretty much everyone who has survived the last 17 books is in here which is as it should be as the series comes to a conclusion. The last couple of books have tied up the plotlines of the Mexican gold and just exactly who XIII is, although XIII doesn't yet know, which leaves Van Hamme with the problem of clearing the name of a supposed presidential assassin and IRA terrorist in front of a fascinated media which have just read two expose books about the XIII events.

One of these fictional books, The XIII Investigation, is the original 13th French book that Cinebook skipped in their series as it was neither a regular graphic novel nor vital to the ongoing plot due to it retelling what had happened in the series up to that point, while the other fictional book, The Kelly Brian Story, appropriately released by Moebius Publishing, is the equivalent of the XIII series' prequel title The Irish Version illustrated by Jean Giraud.

It is hard to say much about the plot of The Last Round without giving too much away, but Jean Van Hamme gives us an instalment that is both action packed and full of political intrigue as the different factions try to manoeuvre themselves to safety.

As always William Vance's artwork is more than up to the job and, while it was nice to see Jean Giraud's take on the characters' younger selves in the previous title, it is good to see Vance back with his planes, explosions and close-ups of pretty women - and he even manages to squeeze another fight in the rain in there as well.

I first read XIII via CatCom's Code XIII American publication of The Day of The Black Sun, the first book in the series, but I never expected that any English language publisher would ever have the dedication to get deep into the series let alone finish it. It is to Cinebook's credit that they did and, given that it has been such a backbone of their publishing schedule over the last few years, it will be interesting to see what they choose to replace it with.

XIII - The Last Round is a more than satisfying conclusion to a series that has never disappointed over a total of 18 books. If you haven't indulged yet, what are you waiting for?

• There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

• There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

• You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII. 

In Review: XIII - The Irish Version

As XIII the series nears its end, writer Jean Van Hamme takes time out to explain the beginning of the saga, and just exactly who XIII the man is, in The Irish Version and forsakes his regular artist for Jean Giraud, better known as Moebius.

Two college students go up a mountain, but only one comes down, and that one goes on to become the amnesiac killer known as XIII. But which of the two men was it - the American political science freshman Jason Fly or the Irish history freshman Kelly Brian? Except that neither was really who they said they are - Jason Fly is actually Jason McLane, the son of a left-wing journalist, and Kelly Brian is actually Seamus O'Neil, an IRA killer.

Long time readers of XIII already knew part of this story as it marked the chronological beginning of the "Who is XIII?" arc but here writer Jean Van Hamme gives readers the full story which acts as a stand-alone prequel to the entire XIII series. It begins with Seamus O'Neil telling Jason Fly/McLane his life story, not the cover story he had as a college student but the real one of growing up in Belfast during the Troubles and his desire to join the IRA told, obviously , from an anti-British republican perspective. This is then tied into the CIA's attempt to compromise O'Neil's cover using the rather familiar secretary of Dick Giordino. It all works very well indeed given that long time readers know what happens at the end, the big reveal here is who it happens to.

After Van Hamme's mis-step in Top Secret when he gave his IRA terrorist the unlikely name of Angus, and had him bizarrely fighting for the independence of Ulster, his research on the Troubles for this book is much better with real locations such as Crumlin Road Gaol and Court House coming to the fore. While the anti-car bomb measures around the Court House at the time would have prevented anyone jumping from its roof, as shown on the cover, actually reaching the roof of a lorry parked beside it, it makes for an intriguing, and very XIII-like, way for O'Neil to elude British justice.

Giraud's artwork works well as a replacement for series regular artist William Vance, albeit it feels a little too darkly coloured at times due, in part, to the skulking around that the characters do. While it does have that inevitable feel to British eyes of a non-British artist drawing the United Kingdom, I'm sure that Vance's version would have been similar. However I suspect that Vance's knowledge of military hardware would have prevented the wrong armoured cars appearing and the rifles used by both sides being less generic than what actually appear. That said, while Cinebook have not made a fuss about the artist, any new English language book by Giraud/Moebius is to be appreciated at the moment.

XIII - The Irish Version is an impressive stand-alone prequel to the entire XIII series which works just as well for Jean Giraud/Moebius fans, who would not want to have to read the rest of the series to make sense of what is going on, as it does for regular XIII readers as a resolution to the question of just exactly who XIII is.

• There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

• There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

• You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII. 

In Review: XIII - Maximilian's Gold

XIII reaches book 16, Maximilian's Gold, in which writer Jean Van Hamme and artist William Vance give readers the conclusion to the golden treasure hunt arc that began in book 11, Three Silver Watches.

XIII, Jones and co have left Costa Verde and are hiding out in Mexico from the US authorities as NSA chief Dick Giordino continues his attempts to capture XIII. In the relative safety of a friendly hotel, they start to unravel the mystery of the numbers and letters that are engraved on the three watches which gives them what they believe may be the location of the 100,000 gold coins that could be worth up to $15 million. However the suggestion that there may be something worth hunting for in the Mexican mountains attracts some unwanted attention.

With only two other books to go after this one in the XIII series, Jean Van Hamme is starting to complete some of the story arcs that he has so carefully plotted in the previous books. Maximilian's Gold is the conclusion to the buried treasure arc as XIII, Jones and others finally decipher the information on the watches and set out to find the gold that Sean Mulligan, who may or may not be XIII's father, has been searching for much of years. However as that goes on, the political machinations in Washington over the presidential assassination and power play that began way back in the first book in the series also begin to reach a climax as NSA chief Giordino shows that he is prepared to do anything to preserve his power base.

The last quarter of this book gives artist William Vance scope to provide some quite unearthly vistas and locations in the mountains where the gold may be hidden to go along with his much more familiar planes, boats and rainfall at the beginning of the book.

We are so close to the end of the XIII saga and Maximilian's Gold gives me hope that after all the plotting and side tracks that Van Hamme and Vance have taken readers down over the last 750+ pages of this ongoing story that the final conclusion will be just as interesting as the trip we have  taken to get there.

• There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

• There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

• You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII.

In Review: XIII - Operation Montecristo

With Operation Montecristo, XIII the series reaches the 15th book of the 18 that Cinebook are releasing and, after a run of solo adventures, writer Jean Van Hamme and artist William Vance get XIII the man back with his friends - albeit not in the most friendly of  situations.

XIII, Major Jones, Colonel Amos, General Carrington, and the Marquis De Preseau and his wife, and ex-SPAD, Betty, have all taken refuge in the central American country of Costa Verde, the president of which is XIII’s former wife Maria De Los Santos. Under pressure from the US, Maria is forced to imprison XIII while the US authorities attempt to extradite him for his “terrorist” activities.

However Maria organises a jail break to free XIII and his friends and get them to a safe house in the country. Whilst there Sean Mullway, who claims to be XIII's father, tells them that he believes he knows the location of the third silver watch which in turn will reveal the location of the gold that XIII’s ancestors hid. He believes that the watch is in the old church of Montecristo which, unfortunately, is now 150 feet below the surface of a dammed reservoir.

After the solo adventures that XIII had in the last two books, which harked back to the style of the earliest books in the series, it is good to get the gang back together again and off on a what is basically a secretive treasure hunt with little of the political machinations that the series has had recently. While it does feel that writer Jean Van Hamme has added a story that doesn’t really need to be there, there must have been a quicker way for XIII to find that third silver watch, this story is great fun with American agents trying to locate XIII and his friends, while they try to find the final clue to the treasure haul.

With XIII and Jones diving into the reservoir in scuba gear, artist William Vance gives readers five consecutive pages of silent underwater panels as our heroes search for the submerged church and then battle the US agents sent to kill them. With only two speech bubbles with question marks in them, those five pages tell the story of the search and battle remarkably well and are a highlight of the book.

As we get close to the conclusion to the XIII series, Operation Montecristo provides a breather to the heavier aspects of the on-going saga and gives readers a fun, action adventure.

• There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

• There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

• You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII. 

From all at downthetubes, we wish Cinebook’s sales table maestro Aldous Russell a speedy recovery and hope to see him fit and well at comics events later in the year.

In Review: XIII - Release The Hounds

Just when we thought that we were on top of who exactly XIII is, writer Jean Van Hamme and artist William Vance are out to turn more than just the two cover characters on their heads in the latest book in Cinebook's XIII saga, Release The Hounds!

XIII remains on the run from America's National Security Agency, the NSA, and their double agent Jessica Martin who also works for the illegal Executor organisation run by former KGB agent Irina Svetlanova. Jessica and three other NSA agents are prepared at all costs to stop XIII escaping from them while they are all on a sleeper train in California but, inevitably, he does with a reluctant Jessica in tow and after the high speed action in and around the train, they make their escape in, of all things, a hot air balloon. But can XIII trust a double agent who has tried so hard to kill him?

After the James Bond shenanigans in the second half of the previous book, Top Secret, the train fight on a stormy night at the start of this one comes as no surprise, especially since fights in the rain are such a XIII staple. Yet the aerial escape in a hot air balloon proves to be a short lived quiet interlude as XIII continues to make his way back to his friends in San Miguel via Mexico with a multitude of killers after him.

Jean Van Hamme almost pushes a little too far with this one. Partially I think it is to give William Vance a chance to show off his accurate aviation art as a selection of aircraft (Bell 206L Long Ranger, OV-10 Bronco, and a Cessna Skymaster) put in appearances as XIII heads south from the USA towards his friends in the Caribbean in a succession of different modes of transport. Partially it is also because Jessica's apparent change of heart over killing XIII early on seems a little too convenient to the plot and, given that we already know that she is a double agent, why does XIII suddenly trust her quite so much? However by the end we have an explanation and another twist that leaves XIII in yet another awkward position.

As for that awkward position on the cover, with both XIII and Jessica upside down with Jessica's hair seeming unaffected by gravity, you'll understand it when you read the book.

XIII - Release The Hounds! is not the best chapter in the ongoing XIII story but it remains an enjoyably entertaining one and, with Cinebook skipping the retrospective book in the series, The Investigation, that means there are now only four books to go before the conclusion of the saga when, hopefully, all will be explained. 

There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII.

In Review: XIII - Top Secret

Who is XIII? Writer Jean Van Hamme and artist William Vance's renegade agent/spy has reached a section of his story arc when we as readers know a lot more about him and the machinations that were going on in the previous books in the series. With major characters from previous stories now dead, XIII is in no less trouble than before in the XIIIth book in the XIII series, Top Secret. 

The events of the previous book, The Trial, despite being in the national interest have left XIII himself on trial for crimes against the United States. The secret trial, orchestrated by the American intelligence community, was never going to be easy for XIII amd while he escapes custody, he ends up captured by former KGB agent Irina Svetlanova who, having lost an eye to XIII in a previous encounter, is in no mood to given him any help.

With the Mongoose dead, writer Jean Van Hamme has to introduce another lurking dangerous killer into the series and so brings the glamorous Irina, who readers have seen in previous books, to the fore. He also adds another American traitor to the cast in the form of NSA agent Jessica Martin and cannot resist the temptation for lesbian undertones in the relationship between the two women. Van Hamme gives this section of the story a James Bond feel, unusual for a XIII plot, by placing Irina in charge of a secret international killing organisation headquartered in a ocean-going ship. Yet for all the Bond styling for the middle of the book the last section of the book gets us back to what the series is best at with XIII on the run for his life.

The Irina/Jessica section of the story gives artist William Vance a brief chance to inject some of the female glamour that would be more common in Van Hamme's Largo Winch books into XIII before getting back to the grim and gritty action that he has shown that he is so good in previous books in the series.

There is a minor trip up in the story when a Provisional IRA terrorist with the unlikely name of Angus Brannigan is brought to the trial to give evidence against XIII and who claims to be  fighting for "the independence of Ulster". That is not something either side has fought for in Ireland over the last century, indeed the concept would be an anathema to the Provisional IRA, and it does seem to suggest that Van Hamme did not have a strong understanding of the conflict was about when he wrote this in 2000. This misstep does concern me a little as to what the penultimate book in the XIII series, The Irish Version, will be like when it is published in English in 2013 but, given that the original French versions were published five years apart, I can hope that Van Hamme would have researched the situation better for that later book.

XIII - Top Secret is a book of two halves with the trial section somewhat exposition heavy and action light while the second half heads off into James Bond/Largo Winch action territory against a somewhat over-the-top villain, yet it remains a XIII book and XIII books are always worth reading.

There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII. 

Cinebook will be selling their range of books including XIII at the Comica Comiket Fall 2012 Independent Comics Fair in the City Of London on Saturday 10 November 2012 and at Thought Bubble's Royal Armouries Hall in Leeds on the weekend of 17-18 November 2012.

In Review: XIII - The Trial

Who is XIII?

For the last two years of these reviews I have listed the current pseudonyms that XIII the man was using over the course of the many books in this series - a list that has grown rather long. However over the last couple of books writer Jean Van Hamme and artist William Vance have revealed the man and his family background so that readers have a much better understanding of who he is and what had happened to him prior to his amnesia shown in the first book. XIII - The Trial, while furthering the main thrust of the XIII story, uses much of that back story as the basis for its plot.

The XIII saga began with the assassination of American President William Sheridan and, over the course of many books, readers discovered that his brother, Wally, was the instigator of that assassination and much of what happened afterwards which finally resulted in Wally becoming the new president of the United States Of America. At his retirement ceremony, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff General Ben Carrington, whose daughter Kim had been used as part of the greater assassination plot, uses his access to President Sheridan to kidnap him and hold him hostage in a disused underground missile silo. With the American public unaware of the kidnapping, and the US military unable to recapture the silo without the President being killed, Carrington advises that XIII and Major Jones must recapture the dangerous assassin known as The Mongoose and bring him to the silo. With both the President and the Mongoose under his control, General Carrington intends to put President Sheridan on trial for his crimes and broadcast the proceedings for all the nation to see.

The Trial sounds like the rather credulity-stretching plots of one of those cheap TV movies that clutter the evening schedules of the less well known satellite channels. However Van Hamme is such a good writer that he can take the so-so bare bones of the story and weave his XIII tapestry around it resulting in a book that harks back to much of what has gone before and reuses many characters familiar to long time readers, yet remains surprisingly accessible to new readers due to the format of the trial explaining the whole assassination plot. The book is effectively split into three - the initial kidnapping and official reaction to it, XIII and Jones capturing The Mongoose, and finally the trial in the underground silo, and with this episodic timeline it is perhaps not as satisfying as other titles in the series but the ending does establish the characters for the books to come.

Vance's artwork, while dealing with a lot of closed rooms and talking heads during the first and last sections of the story, gets to shine during the middle as XIII and Jones plot to retrieve The Mongoose from his luxurious Caribbean hideaway. While the Pentagon building, Caribbean island and underground silo locales leave Vance little chance for his rapidly-becoming-a-XIII-trademark of a fight in the rain, Jones adds yet another accurately illustrated military jet to the rather long list of Air Force and Marine Corps aircraft that this US Army officer is able to fly (and in this case crash... and walk away from... in the rain).

Twelve books into the series, and with such an overarching plotline, it can be difficult to recommend a jumping on point for this series other than the first book. XIII - The Trial, despite being deeply embedded within the main XIII assassination storyline, is just such a jumping on point as it provides a taster of what has gone before along with the promise of more intrigue to come.

There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII.

 

Cinebook Titles On DVD

It has been a while since we reviewed any Cinebook titles here on downthetubes so this week we will be putting that right with a selection of reviews of various Cinebook releases from the last few months.

Before that, and with a eye to the wave of big budget films based on US comics hitting our cinema screens over the summer, it is worth remembering that Steven Spielberg's disappointing The Adventures of Tintin is not the only recent Franco-Belgian bandes dessinee series to hit the big screen.

Indeed the live-action The Extraodinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec, directed by Luc Besson, was everything that the Tintin film should have been but, while it is readily available on DVD in the UK, that fact that it is subtitled will put off all but the most determined fans. The Adele Blanc-Sec books are published in English (or perhaps that should be American) by Fantagraphics but there are also three bandes dessinee series that are published in English by Cinebook that have recently have had live-action outings.

The Largo Winch series, written by Jean Van Hamme and illustrated by Philippe Francq, is the closest thing Cinebook has to James Bond and the French film industry thought so too as they took the character to the big screen in 2008 in Largo Winch: Deadly Revenge with Tomer Sisley as Largo and British actress Kristin Scott Thomas as the female lead. Moving the W Organisation from New York to the perhaps more picturesque skyscrapers of Hong Kong, the films tweaked Largo's origin story and built it into the feature film. The film is in a mixture of languages depending on the country any particular scene is set in although the main two languages are English and French with the British DVD having English subtitles for those sections that need them.

"Nerio Winch, self-made tycoon and head of the mysterious corporate empire known only as W Group, has been brutally murdered. Due to an absence of siblings Nerio's legacy is in danger of falling into the wrong hands. Without a suitable replacement the W Group will be destroyed. But Nerio had a dark past and a deadly secret: an adopted son by the name of Largo Winch. Adventurer, assassin, killer, maverick and international playboy, Largo Winch is the last of a dying breed. Now head of a global corporation he must fight for what's rightfully his and avenge his father's death. Bullets will fly and heads will roll in this highly explosive, spectacular thriller that gives Bourne and Bond a run for their money. Based upon the highly successful comic book series and novels by Philippe Francq and Jean Van Hamme, Largo Winch takes action cinema to another level. ...Largo Winch: Deadly Revenge."




Deadly Revenge was successful enough for a sequel to follow in 2011. The Burma Conspiracy again featured Sisley Tomer this time with Sharon Stone as his leading lady in a story that was even more like a Bond film than the original and, with Ms Stone rather than the Paris based Scott Thomas in it, the collection of languages featured were more weighted toward English.

"When the occupants of a Burmese village are massacred, the incident is linked to a billionaire playboy and international man of action and his deceased father's multi-national corporation. Determined to clear his name and hunt down the real culprits, he journeys into the hazardous terrain of the Burmese jungle in search of the truth, armed and loaded. Sharon Stone (Basic Instinct, Casino) and Tomer Sisley (Labyrinth, The Nativity Story) star in the explosive, high-octane thriller The Burma Conspiracy."




From the deadly serious Largo Winch to the much more humorous Lucky Luke and while there have been various television and cinema versions of Morris and Goscinny's cowboy character, the latest is the 2009 version simply entitled Lucky Luke with The Artist's Jean Dujardin as the title character (dealing with a horse rather than a dog) and the film also features Dujardin's wife, Alexandra Lamy, as Belle, Luke's romantic interest. With a multitude of Lucky Luke book characters featured, the film is completely in French as so is fully subtitled on its British DVD.

"Jean Dujardin (Oscar® and BAFTA® winning star of The Artist) stars as Lucky Luke, a crack-shot gunslinger with a lightning fast draw and a conscience to boot. After witnessing the savage murder of his parents at the hands of the vicious Cheater Gang, Luke dedicates his life to bringing the very wildest in the west to justice, that is with a non-lethal twist. Years later, when the President of the United States assigns Luke the task of cleansing the streets of his hometown, the crime-ridden cesspool known as Daisy Town, Luke is stirred back into action."




Finally there is the 2008 television mini-series XIII: The Conspiracy based on the early XIII albums written, like Largo Winch, by Jean Van Hamme and this time illustrated by William Vance. The XIII books share more than a numerical title with the 24 television series so it is perhaps unsurprising that US television would attempt a version of XIII while 24 was still popular. As this was made for America (unlike both the previous and more recent live-action XIII TV series) and so is in English with Steven Dorff as XIII, Val Kilmer as The Mongoose and Lucinda Davis as Jones, while the story diverges from the books by adding a new female character, Sam, played by Casino Royale's Caterina Murino.

"The first female US President Sally Sheridan is shot dead by a sniper during her Independence Day speech. Her assassin narrowly escapes the scene with his life, national security hot on his heels - or so it seems. Three months later, a wounded man is found. The young man (Stephen Dorff) cannot remember the slightest thing about his own identity. The only clue is a tattoo on his neck, "XIII". Could his lightning reflexes and killer instincts betray him?"




There are more details of the Cinebook publications of Largo Winch, Lucky Luke and XIII at the Cinebook website.

In Review: XIII - Three Silver Watches

Who is XIII?

Book 1 - Mr Alan Smith?
Books 2 and 3 - Captain Steve Rowland?
Book 4 - Corporal Ross Tanner?
Book 5 - Agent Jason Fly?
Books 6 and 7 - Writer John Fleming?
Book 8 - Agent Jason McLane?
Book 9 - Arms Dealer Karl Meredith?
Book 10 - Revolutionary El Cascador?

XIII - Three Silver Watches is about to tell us, at least from the point of view of his family history.

The revolution in Costa Verde is over and XIII's wife from his previous life, Maria, is now in charge just in time to discover that the former regime's military commander is planning to attack the capital with the remainder of his troops to take back the country. Maria orders XIII on a suicidal mission to blow-up the one bridge that the tanks must cross over to reach the city. American Sean Mullway goes with him and, as they travel towards the bridge, he uses the time to give XIII the history of his family beginning with three Irish friends who travelled to America to find their fortunes, married three sisters and who were each given a silver watch by their father-in-law.

From the first XIII book showed us all the covers and English titles for the 19 books in the XIII series, this particular book has always intrigued me - just what does the F-15 Eagle air-superiority fighter launching a Sparrow air-to-air missile on its cover have to do with three silver watches? The quick answer is - nothing.

This is a book of two parts, the part in which XIII must lead a small team to destroy a bridge in Costa Verde that will prevent a column of tanks starting a counter revolution, and the part in which Mullway tells XIII a century's worth of his family history. It is the family history that is the most intriguing since the bridge plot, which by the characters' own admission sounds like a war film, only serves to give XIII something to do as he listens to the story of his family.

Indeed this sequence in the book is not helped by the F-15 being the wrong aircraft for the job firing a Sidewinder missile that, as well as being a different missile to the one on the cover, couldn't do what the plot needs it to do. It is the first time in 11 books that writer Jean Van Hamme and artist William Vance have made such a major mis-step in the technical hardware of the series. Vance's art is as accurate a depiction as reader's have come to expect of him which, ironically, is why I can say that the missile is the wrong type. While Van Hamme throws in a couple of the staples of the XIII series - Major Jones being able to fly any aircraft that is put in front of her as well as proving once again to be seemingly indestructible, Vance is able to add one of his own as yet another fight takes place in the rain.

However for all the talk of bridges, planes and missiles, it is the family history that is the main part of this book and a major data dump as regards XIII the man. It begins slowly, almost like the "begats" at the beginning of the New Testament, where we were are inundated with names, marriages and children in a way that does make the reader wonder just where it is heading and if it might actually get interesting at some point. Then all of a sudden the three brothers are fighting for first one side and then the other in the Mexican civil war and the surnames of characters from earlier XIII books are introduced and previously unknown family relationships between them and XIII are established.

XIII the strip first appeared in issue 2408 of the weekly Spirou comic magazine in 1984, while this book was first published in French over ten years later. Had Van Hamme worked out the family relationships of his on-going plot at the beginning or, as the titles in the series sold well enough that the series was bound to continue, did he construct at least part of this family history around what he had already written? In all probability is the latter of these and this book, for all its flaws, just goes to show how skillful a writer he can be.

XIII - Three Silver Watches brings a new depth to the XIII saga and, with its new links to many of the series already established characters, presumably sets the scene for encounters yet to come. While the XIII books always leave me wanting to read the next in the series, this one leaves me wanting to reread it again to make sure that I have all this background information straight in my mind before I move on to those next books.

• There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

• There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

• You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII.

In Review: XIII - El Cascador

Who is XIII?

Book 1 - Mr Alan Smith?
Books 2 and 3 - Captain Steve Rowland?
Book 4 - Corporal Ross Tanner?
Book 5 - Agent Jason Fly?
Books 6 and 7 - Writer John Fleming?
Book 8 - Agent Jason McLane?
Book 9 - Arms Dealer Karl Meredith?

While holidaying with Jones at the Caribbean home of Marquis Armand Preseau and Sgt Betty Barnowsky, XIII has become involved with the Santosista rebels on the neighbouring island of Costa Verde. XIII goes to Costa Verde undercover to help free the imprisoned Maria, sister of Angel, the rebel leader, and just possibly the amnesiac XIII's wife, but he is exposed and imprisoned. Jones, Betty and the Marquis lead a rebel attack on the prison island to free XIII at the same time that the main rebel force launches their revolution but, in the aftermath, XIII is accused by Angel of conspiracy with the old regime and put on trial by a revolutionary court.

Leading on immediately from the previous book, For Maria, El Cascador is very much a book of two halves - the fast moving and vicious battle for the prison island leading to the freedom of both XIII and Maria, which is then followed by the considerably slower and more static explanation of the complex motives of the various characters and XIII's trial in a kangaroo court. Indeed after the action of the beginning of this book, the talking heads of the trial could have been something of a let down, yet writer Jean Van Hamme maintains the intrigue as the various factions in the story vie for supremacy in the courtroom. It gives away nothing of the Costa Verde story to say that the book ends on a revelation that sets the scene for a continuation of the "Who is XIII?" story arc into the next book.

William Vance's artwork as always remains impressive, maintaining his usual level of accuracy from the Bo 105 helicopter to the mixture of Kalashnikovs and Armalites that the rebels use in their struggle against the regime. As we have seen from earlier stories, Vance seems to enjoy drawing his characters in rainstorms and this book is no exception with the prison attack taking place in a deluge while the subsequent hunt through the swamp also throws up a lot more water into the panels.

Prior to Cinebook releasing their first XIII book, I had read some of Van Hamme and Vance's stories via the American ComCat Code XIII publication but that, along with the Marvel US version, never got past the third French album yet, with El Cascador, Cinebook have reached the halfway point in the original 19 album series. When they published the first XIII book less than two years ago, they included English language versions of the covers of all 19 books in the series in colour on the inside covers of the book. They have continued to print these in all their subsequent XIII books and with El Cascador they have now completed all the books on the inside front cover and the next book, Three Silver Watches, will take them onto the inside back cover. Cinebook's dedication to XIII is impressive and they have taken English language readers far beyond where any other publishing house got to with the series. As a reviewer I am wary of getting used to how good each XIII title is as it arrives every other month. Having read the first book in the series the writing and art left me wanting to read the second and now, another nine books later, I'm still just as eager to read the next book.

El Cascador, in conjunction with the previous XIII book For Maria, provide something of a jumping on point for new readers. These two books could be read and followed without the need to have read the preceding eight XIII titles whilst giving the reader a revelation that will draw them back for the next instalment.

• There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.
• There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

• You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII.

In Review: XIII - For Maria

Who is XIII?

Book 1 - Mr Alan Smith?
Books 2&3 - Captain Steve Rowland?
Book 4 - Corporal Ross Tanner?
Book 5 - Agent Jason Fly?
Books 6&7 - Writer John Fleming?
Book 8 - Agent Jason McLane?

With the ending of the eighth book, Thirteen To One, which seems to have settled the idea that XIII is US agent Jason McLane and who number 1 was, For Maria the ninth book in writer Jean Van Hamme and artist William Vance's spy series takes the plot off in a whole new direction.

After saving her life in the previous book, XIII's relationship with Jones is now closer than ever as they relax in the luxury of Marquis Armand Preseau and former SPADS Sergeant Betty Barnowsky's home in sunny San Miguel. However XIII receives a phone call from a mysterious, and not entirely wholesome, priest who, when they eventually meet, claims that XIII is married to Maria Santos but, since nothing is ever uncomplicated in XIII's life, she is the leader of the revolutionaries in neighbouring Costa Verde and is currently in prison awaiting execution.

While XIII does not remember Maria, he believes that she may be a link to his forgotten past. Therefore disguised as Karl Meredith, an arms dealer, XIII travels to Costa Verde to make contact with the rebels and to try to free Maria. However he doesn't bargain on running into Felicidad Moreno, the mistress of Costa Verde's General-President, who XIII already knows as the scheming Felicity Rowland and who recognises him through his disguise.

This is definitely one for the fans with returning characters Felicity Rowland from book 2, Sgt Betty (she of the flimsy underwear) from book 4 and the Marquis who took such a shine to Betty in book 5. Van Hamme sets the tone of the ongoing story as he bookends this episode with a mysterious cabal discussing XIII and how they could use him. However before that can happen there is the small matter of a central American revolution, an unknown wife facing a death sentence and XIII going undercover as an international arms dealer. There are times that Van Hamme doesn't do things by halves and this is certainly one of them.

It also gives Vance a chance to get down and dirty with his artwork of the back alleys and dodgy dealings of the rebels while spotlighting the wealth and glamour of both the Marquis' home and the presidential palace. Indeed the only misstep of the entire book seems to be on the cover which, strangely, depicts an event that isn't actually in the story. Perhaps the next book will explain it.

XIII - For Maria takes the tale of the amnesiac agent off in an interesting new direction while also leaving it on a cliffhanger which hopefully will be resolved with the tenth book, El Cascador, when it is published in November.

• There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

• There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

• You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII.

In Review: XIII - Thirteen To One

Who is XIII?

Book 1 - Mr Alan Smith?
Books 2&3 - Captain Steve Rowland?
Book 4 - Corporal Ross Tanner?
Book 5 - Agent Jason Fly?
Books 6&7 - Writer John Fleming?

After the linked stories of the first five books and the two part Jason Fly story of the sixth and seventh books, in the eighth XIII book, Thirteen To One, writer Jean Van Hamme and artist William Vance return to a theme familiar to fans of The Prisoner, who is Number One?

It has been two months since the events of The Night Of August Third, and two years since the beginning of the series, and number XIII turns his attention back to finding out just who number I is. With Major Jones angered that he wants to find Captain Steve Rowland's wife, Kim, who is also number XVII, XIII uses his ultimate contact, the President of the United States, to get the authority and information that he needs. In the meantime the Mongoose, the assassin who has been trying to kill XIII, escapes from prison and continues his hunt.

For all the fact that this is a single book story, it requires so much knowledge of the XIII back story that it would make no sense to anyone jumping into the series at this point. That said Van Hamme rewards the readers that have stuck with the series by giving them an intriguing plot with Presidential and Secret Service involvement along with an illegitimate child that the series must surely return to at some point in the future. Meanwhile Jones, despite all her apparent huffiness at the beginning, has to depend on XIII as he makes the ultimate choice between her and Kim Rowland.

On the art front Vance is obviously enjoying himself as both the Secret Service agent and Jones herself get red sports cars to drive around in, while the climactic sequences along America's north eastern coast give him plenty of scope for beaches, islands and luxury yachts.

XIII - Thirteen To One almost reads like a thank-you from its creators to the French readers who, when it was originally published in 1991, had stuck with the series for seven years. Fortunately for us it has only taken Cinebook just over one year to get this far and they continue to forge ahead with XIII at one book every other month. Despite this schedule, and the possibility of getting complacent with it, XIII continues to be a series that doesn't disappoint.

• There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

• There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

• You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII.

In Review: XIII - The Night Of August Third

Who is XIII?

Book 1 - Mr Alan Smith?
Book 2 - Captain Steve Rowland?
Book 3 - Prisoner Steve Rowland?
Book 4 - Corporal Ross Tanner?
Book 5 - Agent Jason Fly?
Book 6 - Writer John Fleming?

The seventh book in the XIII series, The Night Of August Third, continues the story begun in the previous book The Jason Fly Case.

XIII is trapped in the small town of Green Falls by an avalanche that has also trapped and injured his friend and ally, Major Jones. Still maintaining his cover of writer John Fleming, he is trying to track down what happened to the young Jason Fly, the person he now believes himself to be, and Fly's father on the third of August twenty years beforehand. Having made enemies of Sheriff Quinn and local bigwig Dwight Rigby, instigated partially by XIII's hitman enemy known as the Mongoose, XIII is now on the run with the town conducting a manhunt for him as he returns to the home of Zeke Hathaway. There he finds a hidden notebook that gives him much more information on his background.

In the meanwhile the Mongoose has tracked down Jones to the house of XIII's friend Judith Warner leading to a scantily clad Jones attempting to escape through the snow before she is imprisoned in the town's police station. This proves to be no safer for her as some of the locals break in with the intention of taking revenge on her for the death of their friend.

The Jason Fly Case and The Night Of August Third are two parts of the one story although, as ever, this book provides a detailed full page catch-up at the beginning. The relative peacefulness of the first book is thoroughly shattered in this conclusion with the series moving back into full blown action adventure mode as the plot twists back and forth from danger to intrigue to explanation.

Two sections standout: the book changes from colour to black and white art as XIII reads the notebook that details the two decade old back story of Jason Fly giving a true flashback feel to the panels, while the normally indefatigable Jones finally gets into a situation in the jail cell that she cannot save herself from. This jail scene, with its racial and sexual overtones, takes the series to a place that it has not previously been to and places Jones into a situation of implied peril that is perhaps more effective, and unnerving, than the multitude of fist fights and shoot-outs that we have seen her in before.

Just when you thought that XIII was giving you a relatively quiet small town mystery with The Jason Fly Case, The Night Of August Third turns the tables and reminds you just how much of an adrenaline rush Van Hamme's writing coupled with Vance's artwork can be.

• Buy XIII Vol.7: The Night of August Third from amazon.co.uk 

• Buy The Night of August Third: XIII Vol. 7 from amazon.com

• There are more details of the English language XIII books on Cinebook's website.

• There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

• The downthetubes review of the previous XIII book, The Jason Fly Case is here.

• You can read an interview with Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin on downthetubes at XIII Questions About XIII.

XIII Questions About Cinebook's XIII

Cinebook began publishing English translations of Franco-Belgian bandes dessinee graphic novels in 2005 and, with well over 100 titles now available, have succeeded in bringing many characters familiar to European audiences to the English speaking world either for the first time with series such as Clifton and Orbital or with multiple releases of series that had previously only had a few books translated like Lucky Luke and Thorgal.

One of the series that falls into this second category is the spy/mystery series XIII from writer Jean Van Hamme and illustrator William Vance which had only previously had the first three of its nineteen albums translated by both CatCom and Marvel in the US. downthetubes' Jeremy Briggs talked to Cinebook publisher Olivier Cadic and XIII translator Jerome Saincantin about the series.


DTT: XIII began in issue 2408 of Spirou magazine in 1984 before being complied into the first album Le jour du soleil noir (The Day Of The Black Sun). When did you both first come across the series?

Jerome Saincantin: XIII was one of the few comics that my father wasn’t buying religiously back then, so my first contact must have been around 13 or 14, when I began going to the local library after school – mostly because I’d run out of new stuff at home! I remember liking it a lot for the “real world” feel it had, something I’d only found in Yoko Tsuno thus far. But XIII was a lot grittier than Yoko, or the other BDs I was used to – Asterix, Achille Talon, Lucky Luke or even Valerian. While I always enjoyed reading it when I could, for a long time it remained a series I’d catch up on at the library or through my friends. It’s a problem – you can’t buy everything!

Olivier Cadic: It was our readers who asked me to publish XIII. I’d never read it back then.

DTT: What do you think sets XIII apart from other spy or mystery series?

Jerome: Well, the obvious answer is its quality. The art is consistently fantastic and didn’t lose anything over the years; and Jean Van Hamme really IS a master storyteller – it’s not just a sales pitch! He can weave suspense, action, humour and a great deal of plot seamlessly into a single story, and there’ll be something for everyone and no one will feel left out – that’s an incredible talent, right there. Not to mention the plot is actually intelligent and consistent. There are many other spy/mystery series available, some of them quite brilliant; but I don’t think any of them have that broad an appeal. Plus, at least for me, it was the ORIGINAL spy/mystery series. The very first! Maybe older readers would have a different take, of course, but as far as I’m concerned, new series get compared to XIII. It’s the reference.

Olivier: The outstanding quality of Van Hamme’s storytelling, combined to Vance’s unique art style.

DTT: Was the fact that the first three albums had previously been published in English in the States an issue in deciding to publish XIII?

Olivier: We had published other series by Jean Van Hamme - such as Thorgal, Largo Winch and Lady S. At first, readers believed that, like all other publishers before, we’d give up quickly. But seeing that we were in fact successful, they began asking us, week after week, to publish XIII. They were very frustrated at having only the first three volumes available. That’s what convinced the French publisher and the authors to sell us the rights.

DTT: The first story arc runs through the first five XIII books. Are there similar story arcs throughout the rest of the series?

Olivier: Buy your XIII book every two months to get the answer. ;-)

DTT: Rather than pause at the end of each series story arc, the Cinebook plan for XIII then is to publish the nineteen books of the series at the rate of one every two months over the course of 3 years to be completed in, appropriately enough, 2013. The only other Cinebook series to get the same speedy releases is the very popular Lucky Luke. Was this ambitious schedule part of your original plan when you were looking to license the series for English publication?

Olivier (left): One visitor at the Bristol Comics Expo had told me: “Never try to publish XIII. It’s cursed. No publisher’s ever gone past volume three.” My answer had been: “If Cinebook publishes XIII, it’ll be blessed.” So, when we got the opportunity to negotiate for the rights, I decided to show both authors and readers that it was Cinebook’s calling to let them find each other. The readers had awaited the rest of the series for too long. We wanted to present all those who believed in Cinebook, and had been waiting to discover the entirety of XIII, with a gift. To do that, it was necessary to let them know when the end would be published—so they’d know for sure that we intended to go the distance. The authors loved my idea: everyone will know who XIII is in 2013!

DTT: Have you had any feed back from writer Jean Van Hamme or artist William Vance about the Cinebook versions?

Jerome: I haven’t met William Vance, though I hope I get the chance at some point. I did meet Jean Van Hamme at Angoulème this year. He’s a bit of a formidable character! The man is quite nice, but he also has a no-nonsense, I-have-paid-my-dues-and-will-not-take-any-crap attitude that discourages the lowly translator from asking outright if he’s happy with the work done! I was afraid I might get eaten, you know! Joking, of course. He’s not an ogre! It’s just that I’m still in the “I can’t believe I’m working in this field” phase and am easily intimidated by celebrities! As far as I know, he has made no complaints about our translating work – and he does speak English. So I’ll take this as an endorsement!

Olivier: Jean Van Hamme came to London for the launch of XIII by Cinebook. We’d organised the launch in a club at midnight. I’d told our distributor that, exceptionally, Big Ben would strike thirteen times. They believed me - and luckily enough, no one went and checked!

DTT: The work of a translator, like that of a letterer, is often taken for granted - a good translation passes unnoticed but a poor translation is very obvious. The translation of XIII is so natural that it feels as if it was originally written in English. Did you find the series easy to translate in comparison to other albums or books that you have worked on?

Jerome (right in white with Orbital artist Serge Pelle): It’s important to note, first, that I’m the PRIMARY translator for this series and several others – but that every translation job is team work. I translate; the first draft is looked over by a first person in the UK for easy mistakes, then corrected by a professional proofreader in the US. It goes back to me, and back and forth as needed until we’ve reached a consensus on everything. Then it’s re-read yet again by a couple of fans in the UK for a fresh look. I think that’s one of the reasons for Cinebook’s success – from the beginning, Olivier decided to do things properly, not half-baked. So, thank you very much indeed for the compliment! But I will accept it on behalf of the whole team, not just me!

Now, about the actual question here - XIII is indeed one of the easier series to translate. I’m naturally at ease with fluid, familiar register dialogue, especially in “American,” and years of reading Tom Clancy and Stephen Coonts novels have given me a passing familiarity with the worlds of military and intelligence. The most difficult sometimes was to stick to the age limit, especially in SPADS – snippets of Full Metal Jacket and Heartbreak Ridge kept pushing their way into the dialogue, stuff that made even me blush!

In comparison, some series are difficult, or bordering on the nightmarish. Long John Silver is an absolute joy, but requires extensive research into period speech and naval vocabulary; The Bellybuttons had me delve into whatever language teenagers find “hip” these days which wasn’t always easy. And of course, there’s our collective bogeyman: Blake and Mortimer… Whole slabs of very formal, very British, 50’s text… Sometimes, when I’m working on B&M, at night, I curl up and cry… :p

DTT: How far ahead of the publishing schedule are your translations and how long on average does it take you to translate a book?

Jerome: I’m currently working on the September/October batch, for example. So I’d say 3 or 4 months in advance. The publishing side of things isn’t my department, so mostly I translate when I’m told! Speed of translation varies widely, depending on my schedule, on how inspired I feel by the comic at the time, and of course on difficulty and research needed. On average, though, I’d say it takes about a week of actual work to produce a proper first draft, then maybe another week or two of back and forth for an almost-final version. Last typo-catching sessions can still take place a lot later. That’s for normal comics of course. Blake and Mortimer, now… *shudder*

DTT: Since Jerome is not credited as the translator in the Cinebook versions of the first three books, did the Cinebook versions use the previously published translations those three books?

Olivier: Erica worked from Catcom’s version.

Jerome: Yes; the texts were given to Erica, our American proofreader, first, to check the language; then I was asked to read them to make sure there wouldn’t be any conflicts with the following volumes – on choices of names, for example, or the meaning of acronyms (SPADS), etc…

DTT: XIII Book 1: The Day Of The Black Sun was available free with issue 5 of Comic Heroes magazine. How did this come about?

Olivier: They contacted us and came with this great idea. I love great ideas!

DTT: The original covers that the XIII albums were published with have been updated with new illustrations by William Vance and Cinebook are using the new versions. Was there an option to use either the old or new covers or does original publisher Dargaud prefer that all foreign editions standardise on the current French covers?

Olivier: We use most of the new covers. We were free to decide which one we preferred.

DTT: There are French live action TV series and films of many of the Cinebook titles including Largo Winch and Iznogoud while XIII was made into a mini-series XIII: The Conspiracy in 2008 starring Val Kilmer and Stephen Dorff and broadcast in the UK on channel Five. Have either of you seen it and is it any good?

Jerome: I must confess I haven’t watched it yet. Not out of doubt as to its quality, but because I don’t want to muddle my own (and by now, established) “sound” of what XIII is like with the movie’s take on it. I also have a backlog of DVDs to watch that’s bordering on the ridiculous!

Olivier: The Largo Winch movie is really great. The special effects are worthy of the effort, and our blue-jeans wearing hero was perfectly cast. The Iznogoud movie didn’t fare quite as well. It takes enormous talent to adapt Goscinny’s humour. But the fans can see their heroes ‘live’, and that’s always nice. I found the XIII mini series with Val Kilmer and Stephen Dorff really outstanding. I’m not surprised NBC decided to broadcast it twice, a year apart, in the USA.

DTT: The main XIII series concluded with the nineteenth book however there is a sister series entitled XIII Mysteries currently running to three books and a 20th main series title due later this year in France, all of which have been produced by different creative teams. Could you tell us a little about these and if Cinebook might consider translating them in the future?

Jerome: Well, as far as publishing it, I cannot tell. Regarding the spin-off XIII Mysteries, I haven’t looked at it yet. I’ve lived in Ireland for ten years, a country where finding comics – especially European BDs – is akin to looking for snow in the Serengeti. I’ve been back in France for a year, but the backlog of comics I missed, and sometimes didn’t even hear about, is quite extensive. I’ll get to it eventually! As for volume 20, I just heard about it, and I’m very much looking forward to it! Youri Jigounov is an excellent artist who should be a good successor to William Vance. And I want to know what’ll happen to XIII – he’s a bit of a personal friend by now!

Olivier: The XIII Mysteries series is a massive success and I found the books really great. There’s every chance we’ll include them in our schedule for 2014 onward.

DTT: Olivier and Jerome, thank-you both for your time.

Jerome: Thank you kindly.

Olivier: Thank you!

There are more details of the English language XIII titles at the Cinebook website.

There are more details of the original French language XIII titles at the official XIII website (in French).