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benjiprickett's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
while Herge definitely does a decent job critiquing imperialism and the worst kinds of racism, i think some of the art still verges on racist caricatures, especially of the japanese characters. i enjoy the adventure and the critiques of fascism that it offers, as well as international complicity and cooperation in fascist happenings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Colonisation
Minor: War
goodjobrammy's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I saved this one for the weekend because I understand it's known as the first big leap Hergé's storytelling makes. I'm quite glad I did!
Quickly: the plot of this one hangs together much more nicely than in previous volumes, the comedy is on point, and Chang and Tintin's friendship adds a nice human touch.
It's such a huge relief to have a book that's not dominated by racist caricature (which is not to say that none exists, but hold that thought). This is Hergé's second time writing a plot that isn't totally handed down from the top, and he's known to have done a lot of research for this one. (Now that I've said that, perhaps it should be considered the bare minimum to research your subject, but after these last few volumes, the bare minimum feels like it's been missing for a while.)
I find the notion that good stories always punch up too simplistic – I like plenty of stories that have politics I dislike, even hate – but nevertheless it's a virtue, and Hergé taking the side of the occupied Chinese here is what really makes this story sing. It humanizes the Chinese characters (much-needed!) and points the finger both at the occupying Japanese forces and at the Western powers benefiting from it. It's kind of amazing how much of a big deal that is.
All the same, we're not too far out from Tintin in the Congo. When Hergé points out that the Japanese occupation is bad for China, the underlying principle seems to be "they don't have the right to do it." And when it comes to Congo, that was missing completely. Certainly, Hergé wasn't completely uncritical of his contemporary attitude then, but I get the feeling that he just wasn't ready to afford the humanity to the Congolese as well as the Chinese. On top of that, while the Chinese are treated nicely here, it's not quite the same for the Japanese, who are mostly depicted as grotesque.
Quickly: the plot of this one hangs together much more nicely than in previous volumes, the comedy is on point, and Chang and Tintin's friendship adds a nice human touch.
It's such a huge relief to have a book that's not dominated by racist caricature (which is not to say that none exists, but hold that thought). This is Hergé's second time writing a plot that isn't totally handed down from the top, and he's known to have done a lot of research for this one. (Now that I've said that, perhaps it should be considered the bare minimum to research your subject, but after these last few volumes, the bare minimum feels like it's been missing for a while.)
I find the notion that good stories always punch up too simplistic – I like plenty of stories that have politics I dislike, even hate – but nevertheless it's a virtue, and Hergé taking the side of the occupied Chinese here is what really makes this story sing. It humanizes the Chinese characters (much-needed!) and points the finger both at the occupying Japanese forces and at the Western powers benefiting from it. It's kind of amazing how much of a big deal that is.
All the same, we're not too far out from Tintin in the Congo. When Hergé points out that the Japanese occupation is bad for China, the underlying principle seems to be "they don't have the right to do it." And when it comes to Congo, that was missing completely. Certainly, Hergé wasn't completely uncritical of his contemporary attitude then, but I get the feeling that he just wasn't ready to afford the humanity to the Congolese as well as the Chinese. On top of that, while the Chinese are treated nicely here, it's not quite the same for the Japanese, who are mostly depicted as grotesque.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Colonisation
jacob_dion's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and Classism