{"id":30187,"date":"2024-07-17T08:00:25","date_gmt":"2024-07-17T08:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=30187"},"modified":"2024-07-17T06:24:55","modified_gmt":"2024-07-17T06:24:55","slug":"lucky-luke-volume-23-a-cure-for-the-daltons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2024\/07\/17\/lucky-luke-volume-23-a-cure-for-the-daltons\/","title":{"rendered":"Lucky Luke volume 23 – A Cure For The Daltons"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\" \"\"
\nBy Morris <\/strong>& Goscinny<\/strong> (Cinebook)
\nISBN: 978-1-84918-034-4 (Album PB\/Digital edition)<\/p>\n

This book includes Discriminatory Content<\/strong> produced during less enlightened times.<\/em><\/p>\n

Doughty, dashing and dependable cowboy \u201cgood guy\u201d Lucky Luke<\/strong> is a rangy, implacably even-tempered do-gooder able to \u201cdraw faster than his own shadow\u201d. He amiably ambles around the mythic Old West, having light-hearted adventures on his petulant and rather sarcastic wonder-horse Jolly Jumper<\/em>. For nearly 80 years, his exploits have made him one of the top-ranking comic characters in the world, generating upwards of 85 individual albums and spin-off series like Kid Lucky<\/strong> and Ran-Tan-Plan<\/strong>, with sales thus far totalling upwards of 300 million in 30 languages. That renown has translated into a mountain of merchandise, toys, games, animated cartoons, TV shows and live-action movies and even commemorative exhibitions. No theme park yet, but you never know\u2026<\/p>\n

Brainchild of Belgian animator, illustrator and cartoonist Maurice de B\u00e9v\u00e8re (AKA \u201cMorris\u201d) and officially first seen in Le Journal de Spirou<\/em><\/strong>\u2019<\/em>s seasonal Annual L\u2019Almanach Spirou 1947<\/em><\/strong>, Luke actually sprang to (un-titled) laconic life in mid-1946 in the popular periodical before ambling into his first weekly adventure \u2018Arizona 1880\u2019 <\/em>on December 7th<\/sup> of that year.<\/p>\n

Morris was one of \u201cla Bande des quatre\u201d<\/em>– The Gang of Four – also comprising Jij\u00e9, Will and Franquin: leading proponents of a fresh, loosely free-wheeling artistic style known as the \u201cMarcinelle School\u201d. The compelling cartoon vision came to dominate Le Journal de Spirou<\/em><\/strong> in aesthetic contention with the \u201cLigne Claire\u201d style favoured by Herg\u00e9, E.P. Jacobs and other artists in rival publication Le Journal de Tintin<\/em><\/strong>. In 1948 said Gang (all but Will) visited America, meeting US creators and sightseeing. Morris stayed for six years, befriended Ren\u00e9 Goscinny, scored some work at newly-formed EC sensation Mad<\/strong> and constantly, copiously noted and sketched a swiftly disappearing Old West.<\/p>\n

Working solo until 1955 (with early script assistance from his brother Louis De Bevere), Morris crafted nine albums – of which today\u2019s was #7 – of affectionate sagebrush spoofery before teaming with old pal and fellow transatlantic \u00e9migr\u00e9 Goscinny. With him as regular wordsmith, Luke attained dizzying, legendary heights starting with Des rails sur la Prairie<\/em><\/strong> (Rails on the Prairie<\/strong>) which began serialisation on August 25th<\/sup> 1955.<\/p>\n

In 1967, the six-gun straight-shooter switched sides, joining Goscinny\u2019s own magazine Pilote<\/em><\/strong> in La Diligence<\/em><\/strong> (The Stagecoach<\/strong>). Goscinny co-created 45 albums with Morris before his untimely death, whereupon Morris soldiered on both singly and with other collaborators. He went to the Last Roundup in 2001, having drawn fully 70 adventures, plus numerous sidebar sagebrush sagas crafted with Achd\u00e9 & Laurent Gerra, Benacquista & Pennac, Xavier Fauche, Jean L\u00e9turgie, Jacques Pessis and more, all taking their own shot at the venerable vigilante.<\/p>\n

Lucky Luke<\/strong> has a long history in Britain, first pseudonymously amusing and enthralling young readers in the late 1950s, syndicated to weekly anthology Film Fun<\/strong>. He rode back into comics-town in 1967 for comedy paper Giggle<\/strong>, using nom de plume Buck Bingo<\/strong>. And that\u2019s not counting the numerous attempts to establish him as a book star, beginning in 1972 with Brockhampton Press and continuing via Knight Books, Hodder Dargaud UK, Ravette Books and Glo\u2019Worm, until Cinebook finally found the right path in 2006.<\/p>\n

As so often seen the taciturn trailblazer regularly interacts with historical and legendary figures as well as even odder fictional folk in tales drawn from key themes of classic cowboy films – as well as some uniquely European notions, and interpretations. That principle is smartly utilised to sublime effect in A Cure For The Daltons<\/strong> with the motivating spark of foreign \u201calienist\u201d being based on controversial actor Emil Jannings (Theodor Friedrich Emil Janenz) who won the very first Best Actor Oscar before returning to Germany to become the official state-sanctioned face of Nazi cinema and drama…<\/p>\n

Cinebook\u2019s 23rd<\/sup> Lucky Luke<\/strong> album has a pretty contorted not to say convoluted history. Officially the 69th<\/sup> individual exploit of the frontier phenomenon, it originally ran from June 23rd<\/sup> to August 4th<\/sup> 1975 in general interest magazine Le Nouvel Observateur<\/em><\/strong> (#554-560) and re-serialised that same year in #1-13 of Nouveau Tintin<\/em><\/strong> (September 16th<\/sup> – December 9th<\/sup>) before being rushed out au continent<\/em> before year\u2019s end as 44th<\/sup> collected album Lucky Luke: <\/strong>la gu\u00e9rison des Dalton<\/em><\/strong>. In 2010 in was first published in English as A Cure For the Daltons<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The plot and premise are familiar ones as snobbish, argumentative American East Coast intellectuals – this time the New York Institute of Science – invite a distinguished European authority to try their civilised tricks and tactics on the rough-&-tumble barbarians of their own untamed western frontiers. This seductively voluble wise man is Doctor Otto Von Bratwurst<\/em>, a pioneer of the cerebral therapy later proponents will call psychoanalysis and he claims all criminals suffer from an illness caused by past childhood trauma: one he can remedy by talking to them…<\/p>\n

The claim causes uproar and the loudest dissenting voice is Professor Beauregard Applejack<\/em> who thinks it\u2019s all humbug and the cure for crime comes out of a gun. As tempers flare, Bratwurst gets his way and is sent west to test his notions on truly bad men…<\/p>\n

Weeks later in Nothing Gulch, Texas, Lucky meets a train full of cheering passengers who have all enjoyed an emotional breakthrough. As the doctor casually – almost obsessively – cures drunks and bums of their painful pasts with little chats, the cowboy escorts the savant to a certain penitentiary where the worst of the worst western malefactors are contained…<\/p>\n

This penitentiary\u2019s clientele include Slaughterhouse Sam<\/em>, Killer Katowski<\/em> and Bloody Butch<\/em>, but Von Bratwurst needs to prove himself against the most intractable specimens of humanity. Happily for him, the institution is second home to the appalling Dalton Brothers<\/em>. Averell<\/em>, Jack<\/em>, William <\/em>and especially devious, slyly psychotic, dominant diminutive brother Joe <\/em>are the most vicious and feared outlaws in numerous states and territories and regularly escape to make trouble.<\/p>\n

Of course the prison is primarily staffed by shiftless idiots – and guard dog Rin Tin Can<\/em>: a pathetic pooch with delusions of grandeur and a mutt vain, lazy, overly-friendly, exceedingly dim and utterly loyal to absolutely everybody. The one thing he ain\u2019t is good at his job. As Rantanplan<\/em> – \u201cdumbest dog in the West\u201d and a wicked parody of pioneering cinema canine Rin-Tin-Tin<\/strong> – the pestilential pooch became an irregular co-star before eventually landing his own spin-off series…<\/p>\n

Here, Luke\u2019s arrival triggers a terrifying outburst in Joe and piques the head shrinker\u2019s interest. He sees a challenge and huge potential regards and acclaim, whilst Joe sees a chance to get free, get rich and get Lucky Luke…<\/p>\n

As talking therapy commences, Herr Doktor can\u2019t help but spread dissent and destabilise everyone he speaks with – including Lucky – but his apparent success goes a step too far after convincing the warden to release the Daltons into his custody. Taking them out of the pen, Von Bratwurst\u2019s treatment and testing of his subjects intensifies on an isolated farm, with our hero increasingly suspicious and agonising over what might happen. One unanticipated surprise is how eavesdropping affects pathetic pooch Rin Tin Can and helps sort his own daddy issues…<\/em>
\n\"\"
\nEven he isn\u2019t prepared for the turnabout and transformation inspired by the candid confessions of the dastardly Daltons as a sudden epidemic of lawlessness explodes from Nothing Gulch to Patos Puddle, with Luke caught off guard and desperately seeking to sort out an unprecedented crisis. Thankfully he has a true wonder dog at his side…<\/p>\n

Wry, savvy and cruelly sardonic, this potent poke at pop psychology and cod life-coaching blends straightforward slapstick with smart satire in another wildly entertaining all-ages confection by unparalleled comics masters. A Cure For The Daltons<\/strong> offers another enticing glimpse into a unique genre for readers who might have missed the romantic allure of the pervasive Wild West that never was\u2026
\n\u00a9 Dargaud Editeur Paris 1975 by Goscinny & Morris. \u00a9 Lucky Comics. English translation \u00a9 2010 Cinebook Ltd.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Morris & Goscinny (Cinebook) ISBN: 978-1-84918-034-4 (Album PB\/Digital edition) This book includes Discriminatory Content produced during less enlightened times. Doughty, dashing and dependable cowboy \u201cgood guy\u201d Lucky Luke is a rangy, implacably even-tempered do-gooder able to \u201cdraw faster than his own shadow\u201d. He amiably ambles around the mythic Old West, having light-hearted adventures on … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Lucky Luke volume 23 – A Cure For The Daltons”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[113,63,122,125,97,192,111,99],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-comedy","category-european-classics","category-historical","category-humour","category-kids-all-ages","category-lucky-luke","category-satirepolitics","category-westerns"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-7QT","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30187"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30187\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30192,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30187\/revisions\/30192"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}