{"id":32653,"date":"2025-04-18T08:00:51","date_gmt":"2025-04-18T08:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=32653"},"modified":"2025-04-16T17:43:51","modified_gmt":"2025-04-16T17:43:51","slug":"the-scorpion-volume-1-the-devils-mark-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2025\/04\/18\/the-scorpion-volume-1-the-devils-mark-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The Scorpion volume 1: The Devil\u2019s Mark"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\" \"\"
\nBy Stephen Desberg<\/strong> & Enrico Marini<\/strong>, translated by Jerome Saincantin<\/strong> (Cinebook)
\nISBN: 978-1-905460-62-5 (Album PB)<\/p>\n

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

It\u2019s Easter. Fancy a bit of biblical epic-ness doused with saucy irreverance?<\/p>\n

We in the English-speaking world will have to work long and hard to come anywhere near the astonishing breadth of genres present in European comics. Both in scenario and narrative content, our continental cousins have seemingly explored every aspect of time and place to tell tales ranging from comedy to tragedy, drama to farce and most especially encompassing the broad, treasure-laden churches of adventure and romance. Le Scorpion<\/em><\/strong> is a graphic series which embraces and accommodates all of these and more…<\/p>\n

Belgian writer Stephen Desberg is one of the most popular and bestselling comics authors in the business. Born in Brussels, he is the son of an American lawyer (European distribution agent for Metro-Goldwyn Mayer) who married a French woman. He began studying law at Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles, but dropped out to follow a winding path into the bande dessin\u00e9e biz.<\/p>\n

It began with plots – and eventually scripts – for Willy Maltaite – AKA \u201cWill\u201d – on Tif et Tondu<\/em><\/strong> in Le Journal de Spirou<\/em><\/strong>, as he grew into a reliable jobbing creator on established strips for younger readers. He ultimately launched his own with Billy the Cat<\/em><\/strong> (a funny-animal strip drawn by St\u00e9phane Colman, not DC Thomson\u2019s be-whiskered boy superhero). In quick succession came 421<\/em> <\/strong>with Eric Maltaite, Arkel<\/em> <\/strong>(with Marc Hardy), Jimmy Tousseul<\/em><\/strong> (Daniel Desorgher) and many, many more. Throughout the 1980s, Desberg gradually redirected his efforts into material for older readerships (like The Garden of Desire<\/a><\/strong> and, in 1999 he originated contemporary thriller IR$<\/em><\/strong>, with today\u2019s historical fantasy joining his catalogue of major hits one year later.<\/p>\n

Enrico Marini attended the School of Fine Arts in Basle before starting his creative career. Drawn since childhood to comics and manga, he began selling his artistic skills as the 1980s ended. A stint on junior adventure strip Oliver Var\u00e8se<\/em><\/strong> led to Gypsy<\/em> <\/strong>(1993-1996), after which he began collaborating with Desberg on western L\u2019Etoile du Desert<\/em><\/strong>. Contiguously crafting detective serial Rapaces<\/em><\/strong> with Jean Dufaux, Marini teamed again with Desberg in 2000 on Le Scorpion<\/em><\/strong>. In 2007, the illustrator added writing to his repertoire with historical drama\u00a0Les Aigles de Rome<\/em><\/strong> and latterly Batman<\/strong> saga Dark Prince Charming<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

A complex historical romp in the movie style of Robin Hood<\/strong>, The Three Musketeers<\/strong> and – if you squint right – Dangerous Liaisons<\/strong> and Pirates of the Caribbean<\/strong>, The Scorpion<\/strong> is a devious rollercoaster of sumptuous epic intrigue laced together with cunning factual underpinnings fuelling the frantic fantasy and chilling conspiracy. This first expansive English-language Cinebook translation is available in album-sized paperback and eBook formats, bundling together the first two European tomes – La marque du diable<\/em><\/strong> and Le secret du pape<\/em><\/strong> as released in October 2000 and October 2001 – into one grand bulging behemoth of literary and pictorial gold.<\/p>\n

The fun starts in The Devil\u2019s Mark<\/strong>, opening with a fulsome flashback to the most critical moment in the mighty Roman Empire\u2019s long and bloody history. At a place and time when nine families secretly own and rule everything, a pact is made placing all their resources – if not actual Faith – in the coming thing: an intriguing new religion to be called Christianity. The families will remain in charge and in control, but now the official face and might of Rome will not be short-lived Caesars, but rather divinely guided Popes…
\n\"\"
\nTumbling forward to the early 18th<\/sup> century, we see roguish conman, historian, tomb-robber and relic retailer Armando Catalano<\/em> – and capable but constantly carping assistant Hussard<\/em> – deftly swiping the bones of long-lost Saint Alastor<\/em>. These affable scoundrels are blithely unaware that elsewhere, malign forces within the Church are mobilising to change the way the world runs, with especial significance for freewheeling faith-exploiting entrepreneurs like themselves…<\/p>\n

The current Pope is a well-meaning, unconventional commoner set on a path of reform, but that doesn\u2019t matter to sinister advisor Monsignor Trebaldi<\/em>. Even though doctrine should make the Pope infallible – literally God\u2019s hand and word on Earth – the militant cleric gives his allegiance to an older belief than Christianity…<\/p>\n

\u201cCardinal Eagle\u201d has decided to reinstate the direct influence of the nine families using the papacy as his tool of statecraft. That means somehow first reuniting the varied clans who have drifted into isolation and bitter rivalry over centuries. The first step has already been accomplished. Cosmopolitan Rome is now heavily policed by the Order of the Knights of Christianity<\/em>: warrior monks who are the Eagle\u2019s own paramilitary zealots and a militant faction gaining in strength despite every effort of the incumbent Pontiff to reign them in…<\/p>\n

Devil-may-care Armando is the son of Magdalena Catalan<\/em>, an infamous witch burned after \u201cseducing a high-ranking priest away from the one true faith\u201d. As sign and proof of his ill-begotten origins, their son bears upon his shoulder a birthmark of the devil: a scorpion signalling his diabolical origins. The brand has not stopped him becoming well-known to every rich patron desperate to possess holy relics, but now, inexplicably, it makes him Trebaldi\u2019s personal obsession. However, after the Cardinal despatches seductive \u201cgypsy\u201d Mejai<\/em> to assassinate Armando, her repeated attempts all fail. It is as if her target has the luck of the devil on his side…<\/p>\n

Alerted and affronted, Armando retaliates, even breaking into an inviolable palace to have a discussion with the Pontiff, only to discover a previously-hidden connection between Trebaldi and his own long-dead mother, and that an even greater scandal and mystery have been draped around the circumstances of his birth! The war of wills escalates rapidly, and the Scorpion finally confronts the Cardinal… seemingly paying the ultimate price for his indiscretions…
\n\"\"
\nThe drama expands and tensions mount in The Pope\u2019s Secret<\/strong> with an hallucinogenic flashback offering even more clues into the astoundingly long-planned conspiracy, via a glimpse at Armando\u2019s early life following Magdalena\u2019s incendiary execution. This ends abruptly as faithful Hussard rouses him from the death-like coma caused by Mejai\u2019s latest attempt to kill them. With the Romi assassin their prisoner, our shabby heroes seek further information regarding which high-ranking churchman was Armando\u2019s debauched father by boldly infiltrating the Eagle\u2019s citadel. They instead discover the Cardinal has appropriated the Secret Files of the Vatican, and plans to kill the Pope and replace him…<\/p>\n

The outlaws are horrified at this travesty and assault on reality. They frantically race back to<\/p>\n

Rome to halt the abomination.
\n\"\"
\nThey almost make it…<\/p>\n

To Be Continued…<\/p>\n

Effortlessly blending devious plots and beguiling historical conspiracies with riotous swashbuckling adventure and non-stop, breathtaking action, this blistering, bombastic and exotically engaging period thriller gives Game of Thrones<\/strong>, The Name of the Rose<\/strong> and even frothier romps like Da Vinci\u2019s Demons<\/strong> a real run for their money. The twelfth and latest volume – Le Mauvais Augure<\/em> – <\/strong>arrived in 2019 after far too long a hiatus, so there\u2019s plenty for fans of the genre to catch-up to and adore…
\nLe Marque du diable & Le Secret du pape \u00a9 Dargaud Benelux (Dargaud-Lombard SA) 2000, 2001 by Desberg & Marini. All rights reserved. English translation \u00a9 2008 Cinebook.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Stephen Desberg & Enrico Marini, translated by Jerome Saincantin (Cinebook) ISBN: 978-1-905460-62-5 (Album PB) This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times It\u2019s Easter. Fancy a bit of biblical epic-ness doused with saucy irreverance? We in the English-speaking world will have to work long and hard to come anywhere near the astonishing … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “The Scorpion volume 1: The Devil\u2019s Mark”<\/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":[191,239,63,102,122,111],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adventure","category-drama","category-european-classics","category-fantasy","category-historical","category-satirepolitics"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-8uF","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32653","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=32653"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32653\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32659,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32653\/revisions\/32659"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}