Over the break you may have seen Tintin, that plucky little cub reporter causing scrapes and forever in the middle of international incidents, on the big screen in all his 3D smoothed-out glory. There were high hopes the Spielberg/Jackson co-production would catapult the character into public (read: American) conscience all over again. He’s certainly had a lengthy respite from the limelight.
First conceived in 1929 by Georges “Herge” Remi as his moralistic derring-do alter-ego, Tintin and his faithful companions (Snowy the white dog and Captain Haddock the pickled sailor) lit up young boy’s bedrooms for decades. Some argue the original comics, 23 complete volumes over 46 years, are cornerstones of the modern day graphic novel but that’s neither here nor there; Tintin represents something far bigger than oft-argued terminology. For generations of readers he was an escape from the ordinary – a courageous ambiguously-aged action hero, the only cool head in a tough situation and the perfect foil for a parade of baddies. His globe-straddling antics also planted seeds of travel and colourful images of the wider world young kids could only dream of.
This Canadian production from 1991 is undoubtedly the most complete screen representation of Tintin and co. Over 39 episodes, every major adventure and comic is covered. The 2D animation is mostly faithful to its source; neither overly flashy nor cheap and nasty and at 22 minutes per episode the action is fast-paced, never lingering too long and devoted almost purely to plot development. The changes reflect our modern standards and tastes – remembering that Herge was a privileged arch-conservative, reactionary colonialist and (allegedly) anti-Semite. The infamous Tintin in the Congo volume where unrepentant racism is wheeled out for guffaws is, unsurprisingly, not adapted in this collection. So yes, the original comics had their problems. Rest assured though, this collection is family safe and rollicking fun.
