{"id":33148,"date":"2025-06-20T16:47:06","date_gmt":"2025-06-20T16:47:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=33148"},"modified":"2025-06-20T16:47:06","modified_gmt":"2025-06-20T16:47:06","slug":"yoko-tsuno-volume-18-the-rhine-gold","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2025\/06\/20\/yoko-tsuno-volume-18-the-rhine-gold\/","title":{"rendered":"Yoko Tsuno volume 18: The Rhine Gold"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
\nBy Roger Leloup<\/strong>, coloured by Studio Leonardo<\/strong> & translated by Jerome Saincantin<\/strong> (Cinebook)
\nISBN: 978-1-80044-093-7 (Album PB)<\/p>\n

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

On September 24th<\/sup> 1970, \u201celectronics engineer\u201d Yoko Tsuno<\/strong> began a career as an indomitable intellectual adventurer in Le Journal de Spirou<\/em><\/strong> in \u201cMarcinelle style\u201d cartoonish 8 page short \u2018Hold-up en hi-fi\u2019<\/em>. She is still delighting readers and making new fans to this day, in action-packed, astonishing, astoundingly accessible adventures numbering amongst the most intoxicating, absorbing and broad-ranging comics thrillers ever created.<\/p>\n

Her globe-girdling mysteries and space-&-time-spanning epics are the brainchild of Belgian maestro Roger Leloup who properly started his own solo career in 1953 after working as studio assistant\/technical artist on Herg\u00e9\u2019s Adventures of Tintin<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Compellingly told, sublimely imaginative and – no matter how implausible the premise of an individual yarn – always firmly grounded in hyper-realistic settings underpinned by authentic, unshakably believable technology and scientific principles, Leloup\u2019s illustrated escapades were at the vanguard of a wave of strips revolutionising European comics. Very early in the process, he switched from loose illustration to a mesmerising nigh-photo realistic style that is a series signature. That long-overdue sea-change in gender roles and stereotyping heralded a wave of clever, competent, brave and formidably capable female protagonists taking their rightful places as heroic ideals and not romantic lures; elevating Continental comics in the process. Such endeavours are as engaging and empowering now as they ever were, none more so than the travails of Miss Tsuno.<\/p>\n

Her first outings (the aforementioned but STILL unavailable Hold-up en hi-fi<\/em><\/strong>, and co-sequels La belle et la b\u00eate<\/strong><\/em> and Cap 351<\/em><\/strong>) were mere introductory vignettes before epic authenticism took hold in 1971 when the unflappable troubleshooter met valiant but lesser (male) pals Pol Paris<\/em> and Vic Van Steen<\/em>. Instantly hitting her stride in premier full-length saga Le trio de l\u2019\u00e9trange<\/em><\/strong> (starting in LJdS<\/em><\/strong>\u2019s May 13th<\/sup> edition), from that point on, Yoko\u2019s cases encompassed explosive exploits in exotic corners of our world, sinister deep-space sagas and even time-travelling jaunts. There are 31 European bande dessin\u00e9e albums to date, with 19 translated into English thus far, albeit – and ironically – none of them available in digital formats\u2026<\/p>\n

Initially serialised in LJdS<\/em><\/strong> #2841 to 2861and spanning September 23rd<\/sup> 1992 – 10th<\/sup> February 1993 as L’Or du Rhin<\/em><\/strong>, The<\/strong> Rhine Gold<\/strong> chronologically follows deep space saga The Exiles of Kifa<\/a><\/strong>, with our tireless troubleshooter planting her feet firmly back on terra firma in familiar territory.
\n\"\"
\nRevisiting Germany and old friend\/occasional partner in crimefighting Ingrid Hallberg<\/em> (The Devil\u2019s Organ<\/strong>, On the Edge of Life<\/strong>, Wotan\u2019s Fire<\/strong>) Yoko\u2019s scheduled meeting in Cologne Cathedral abruptly catapults her headlong into industrial chicanery, political intrigue and murder, as well as a return engagement with devious billionaire war criminal\/arch enemy Ito Kazuki<\/em> (Daughter of the Wind<\/strong>).<\/p>\n

When a woman is drugged and assaulted in the crypt, her last words before unconsciousness are \u201cno police\u201d, \u201cBahnhof\u201d and \u201cRheingold\u201d. Yoko and Ingrid instantly assist, and after getting her anonymously into hospital, discover Minako Yasuda<\/em> is a Japanese interpreter… who came to the cathedral with burglary tools, handguns and plastic explosives!<\/p>\n

Trading handbags with the victim, and pinching her car, Ms. Tsuno rashly assumes her identity, and from obscure clues she and Ingrid retrace the victim\u2019s steps to the vast Haupt Bahnhof rail terminus… and finally deduce the incredible secret of code phrase Rheingold…<\/p>\n

In pursuit of justice and answers, Yoko stumbles into a top secret conclave of unsavoury types convened to ride a very special luxury train from Cologne to Koblenz and ultimately Pfalz Grafenstein castle. Behind the \u201cbusiness jolly\u201d is ruthless technocrat entrepreneur and family foe Ito Kazuki<\/em>, who long ago defamed Yoko\u2019s father Seiki<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The plutocrat is all apologies now: revealing he is merging his interests with German rivals, selling his newest world-changing super-weapon and retiring. However, many nefarious, potentially harmful details still need to be ironed out or erased. The clandestine rail conference is a way avoid press and government scrutiny whilst smoothing the transition and identifying pitfalls, but it also brings many opportunities for sabotage from foes and false friends.<\/p>\n

Seemingly repentant, Kazuki implores Yoko to formally replace Miss Yasuda. She grudgingly accepts, not for the small fortune he offers for 36 hours as his secretary\/translator, or his assurances that he has changed. Rather, she thinks how many innocents could be harmed by all the explosives she did not<\/em> find in the package she recovered, and is convinced that, despite his frankness, the billionaire is still hiding something…<\/p>\n

Thus, with overtones of Murder on the Orient Express<\/strong>, a story of betrayal, butchery and double cross unfolds. As Yoko, Kazujki\u2019s sketchy staff and his pride-&-joy – AI computer\/samurai robot Koshi<\/em> – all hunt a killer amongst an elite passenger list including two disbarred doctors with the same name, rogue CIA and KGB operatives and eager Euro-capitalists, there are also indications that one of Kazujki\u2019s inner circle is a Japanese agent. It\u2019s a good thing Yoko has maximised her advantages by getting Pol hired as a waiter\/attendant. It doesn\u2019t prevent her being attacked again, but his support is welcome after Yoko is mysteriously \u201crewarded\u201d with hidden files and documents giving fresh clues to what\u2019s actually going on…<\/p>\n

With the first attempt on her life spectacularly taking place even before the train leaves the station, and the utter conviction that Kazuki is playing his own game, the first murder inevitably occurs aboard the train and the terrors and tribulations continue all the way to Pfalz Grafenstein where the survivors cautiously gather.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not what anyone expected or anticipated, but Yoko now has all the answers. All she has to do is escape the castle and save the rest of the passengers – who have all sought to go their own ways – and foil the last trick of the cunning mastermind behind all the chaos and carnage…<\/p>\n

Blending high finance and wicked crimes with tecno-dread, killer robots, death rays, evil twins, deadly doppelgangers and humanity\u2019s fascination with precious metal, The Rhine Gold<\/strong> displays our valiant troubleshooter triumphant in a taut, tense thriller of cutthroat corporate espionage and relatively mundane real-world menace. Once more, malevolence proves inadequate in the face of Yoko Tsuno\u2019s passionate humanity, bold imagination and quick thinking\u2026<\/p>\n

Moodily-paced, deviously twisted and terrifying plausible, this tale reemphasises how smarts and combat savvy are pointless without compassion, and as ever, the most potent asset of these edgy exploits is astonishingly authentic settings, as ever benefitting from Leloup\u2019s diligent research and meticulous attention to detail. The Rhine Gold<\/strong> is a magnificently wide-screen thriller, utterly enthralling and surely appealing to any fan of blockbuster action, felonious fantasy and gobsmacking derring-do.
\n\"\"
\n…And Steam trains too, if that especially floats your boat…
\nOriginal edition \u00a9 Dupuis, 1991 by Roger Leloup. All rights reserved. English translation 2022 \u00a9 Cinebook Ltd.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Roger Leloup, coloured by Studio Leonardo & translated by Jerome Saincantin (Cinebook) ISBN: 978-1-80044-093-7 (Album PB) This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times. On September 24th 1970, \u201celectronics engineer\u201d Yoko Tsuno began a career as an indomitable intellectual adventurer in Le Journal de Spirou in \u201cMarcinelle style\u201d cartoonish 8 page short … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Yoko Tsuno volume 18: The Rhine Gold”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_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},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[191,75,239,63,225,107,169,229],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33148","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adventure","category-crime-comics","category-drama","category-european-classics","category-mystery","category-science-fiction","category-spy-stories","category-yoko-tsuno"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-8CE","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33148","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=33148"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33148\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33153,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33148\/revisions\/33153"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33148"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33148"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33148"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}