It seems the people over at Éditions Delcourt-Soleil Comics really liked my first batch of reviews from the French based publishing house. It is due time to give a second round look at how Delcourt’s line-up is coming along.
Delcourt titles have been getting consistently stronger and stronger as the months go by. With month two well over and into the next chapters of many of the books, we learn the French way of how they tell comic book story arcs. It seems the French comic writers like to break their stories into two-part arcs that keep the pace of the tale moving forward. Unlike many American comics today that just give us filler issues to get a superhero past another few months, the upstart of Delcourt comics is very refreshing. As you would expect from the French, with sophisticated storytelling mixed in with a good amount of sex and nudity. C’est la vie! No?!
In the first round of reviews we gave high marks to books like Hauteville House, Iron Squad and Spin Angels. Along with other Delcourt books that we spotlighted with very high praise; Elves and Josephine. Now we take a look back at these favorites again and also dive deep into the newest batch of offerings from the very exciting crop from Edition Delcourt.
ComiXology Edition Delcourt Link
Marie of the Dragons #1: Armance 1/2
Written by
Ange
Translated By
Studio Charon
Art by
Thierry Démarez
Colored by
Nicolas Bastide
Marie is 12 years old when she finds her village has been destroyed, her parents murdered, and her brothers and sisters reduced to slavery. She swears that, one day, she will take revenge for this…
Fifteen years later, Marie has become a fighter who sells her skills to the highest bidder. With her friend and blood-brother, William, she fights the ‘Dragons’ – strange creatures that hover on the borderline of reality. Marie is the only person who can see them and confront them.
PopCultHQ Review: Marie of the Dragons #1
Not quite what I expected at all. The story begins with Marie being sent into the forest in the village tradition to endure her night in the coming of age blood ceremony. While most kids her age kill small harmless animals Marie the very imaginative young girl fights a wolf or demons in her mind. When she wakes the next morning she gets her prize of the animals heart to take back to show her village, but when Marie gets back her entire town has been massacred. Many years later and Marie is now a warrior woman who acts just like any hired male mercenary. With her partner William they set out to do battle and put on gladiator type shows to earn a living. This is just the set-up first issue that only hints at the “dragons” yet to come. If this is a Game of Thrones style fantasy tale, that is what we will have to explore in the upcoming issues.
3.5 out of 5 baguettes
Forever B%*#h
Written by
Diglee
Translated By
Christina Cox-De Ravel
Art by
Diglee
Louise is pushing thirty, she’s in a relationship, and shares her biggest dramas with her two best friends and BGF. But her two friends are complete opposites – Maud has become a kind of “Mother Teresa” of the one-night-stand, ever since she broke up with the ex-potential perfect man; and Audrey, who has hooked up with her Prince Charming… Much to the chagrin of Maud, who is deeply and secretly jealous of such appalling, sweet happiness.
A bittersweet chronicle of an entire generation of thirty-something hipsters, who are both endearing and a little lost.
FOREVER B%*#H is a complete story.
PopCultHQ Review: 3 out of 5 baguettes
Alice Matheson #1
THEY SAY THAT HELL IS ON EARTH, BUT FOR ALICE IT’S A KIND OF PARADISE…
Alice Matheson is a professional and brilliant nurse. But she is also an angel of Death; a cold, calculating psychopath who kills her victims chosen from amongst the hospital patients. However, things become complicated when one of her victims gets up despite the lethal dose she has just administered…
PopCultHQ Review: Alice Matheson #1
Yet another zombie tale. Though this time Alice Matheson is the most comprehensive and realistic take on a zombie outbreak I have seen. From a disturbing macabre look at our main character Alice in the beginning, then taking the reader through a story layered in suspense. Alice Matheson doesn’t fool around with unintelligent storytelling as characters and situations play out as they should in the real world. Only this time the bit of suspended reality is handled precisely like real people would react to these situations of zombie outbreak. We also get to see how the outbreak begins in a clear real world scenario without having the reader “pretend” we don’t know what a zombie is. This comic does not patronize the reader and I love that. The emotional grab of the artwork intertwined with fabulous writing will make Alice Matheson one of the best comics to keep up with from Delcourt’s line! We get murder, sex, zombie outbreak and solid storytelling with crisp clean artwork in this comic! That is a winner for me!
4.5 out of 5 baguettes
Spin Angels #2:
Written by
Jean-Luc Sala
Translated By
Christina Cox-De Ravel
Art by
Pierre-Mony Chan
Jerusalem. Cardinal Marchesi’s unit is about to extract a heretical document that could upset the foundations of the Roman Catholic Church. But the mission turns into a slaughter! The young investigator, Sofia d’Agostino, and her bodyguard Angelo Costanza, a former killer of the mafia, are confronted with a commando squad connected to an occult branch of the Vatican. Without knowing it, they took part in a thousand-year-old fight for the protection of the Faith, which has remained unsettled since the disappearance of the order of the Temple…
PopCultHQ Review: Spin Angels #2
If you’re schooled in the history of the bible and its testaments you can thank the Spin Angles for what you know. If there is any sort of discrepancy from what has been authorized by the church then the Spin Angels are there to investigate and eradicate anything that might disrupt the Catholic faith in man. So what happens when the oldest papyrus has been presumed to have been found but this testament from one of Jesus followers is not from someone the church wants. The script of Judus is the prize and everyone in the church good or bad wants it. Will the Spin Angels consisted of super sexy but super religious Sofia d’Agostino and the newest hired gun Angelo Costanza on loan from the mafia be able to work together long enough to stay alive. Spin Angels has a bit of a manga feel to its artwork and character facial emotions are pretty damn funny. The overall story is very intriguing and the mix of church, mob and special forces has a bit of everything for the action comic fan. A truly fun read thus far.
4 out of 5 baguettes
Josephine #2
Written by
Pénélope Bagieu
Translated By
Christina Cox-De Ravel
Art by
Pénélope Bagieu
Josephine is plagued by misfortunes, but she is often her own worst enemy; she manages her professional relations and work poorly, struggles to be understood, is prone to blunders, and her love life is a succession of faux pas…
Fortunately, Josephine is divine… And divinely funny!
PopCultHQ Review: Josephine #2
Still a fantastically fun comic strip style read for all ages of women. This issue Josephine is dealing with finally having a man In her life. As much as she’s been dying to have a boyfriend once again, Josephine is just like any other female still insecure about herself. We follow along as she is dealing with love and the people around her who make Josephine’s life the wacky fun adventure that it is. My MUST READ title from Delcourt Comics for all female fans!
5 out of 5 baguettes
Hauteville House #2: Zelda 2/2
Written by
Fred Duval
Translated By
Studio Charon
Art by
Thierry Gioux
Christophe Quet
Colored by
Carole Beau
1864, under an imaginary Second Empire, Napoléon III uses his army and his secret service to study certain phenomena relating to the occult and to popular legends. His goal is quite simple: achieving world supremacy.
In Guernesey, in the depths of Hauteville House, Victor Hugo’s home in exile, a small group of Republican special agents attempt to thwart the Imperial projects. For his first mission, Agent Gavroche is sent to Mexico to help the Resistance to organize against Maximilian’s troops. Maximilian, a puppet Emperor set in place by Napoléon III, is doing some rather strange research in the Maya temples for his master…
PopCultHQ Review: Hautiville House #2
The tides of history have been changed in this make-believe storyline where Napoleon is still in power during the civil war era. There have been giant leaps forward in the advancements of steampunk technology in this time shift tale. The nations of the world are at risk as plans are being made behind the scenes to have Napoleon invade another country. Who will come out on top as a comic book version of spy vs spy and killer robots takes place in this issue.
4 out of 5 baguettes
Iron Squad #2: Red Commando 2/2
Written by
Jean-Luc Sala
Translated By
Studio Charon
Art by
Ronan Toulhoat
On the Eastern front, as the last resistance of the Red Army falters, General Joukov gathers together the Red Commandos in order to save Moscow from the approaching Nazi threat.
In their mechanized armor, the greatest heroes of the Red Army participate in a last chance operation, to take hold of the greatest Nazi Mekapanzer and turn it against the German army!
But within the Red Commando members, Joukov has made an error by including Nia, a passionate and idealist pilot, and a fanatical political Komissar with a rough approach to leadership. They are going to have to learn to fight side by side or… die!
PopCultHQ Review: Iron Squad #2
The German army is decimating all its European foes one by one leaving this rag-tag group of Soviet soldiers in their iron suits as the last line of defense. While the first issue was pretty much a set-up issue there was not much to hold my interest in this book other than the crisp clean updated looking Robotech-type artwork. The second issue begins with the same type of getting to know the bunker-mates story with a graphic sex scene (this is the French you know) involving our main lady hero and her beloved. Action really gets hot and heavy as the Russians plan to infiltrate the Nazi army’s base and steal their secret weapon. Shit really gets out of control when Nia’s mission takes a turn for the worse as plans don’t go as expected. Finally the really big bomb is dropped……no literally! The BIG one is dropped in this time twisted tale of World War II, but who it’s dropped on is what makes Iron Squad a promising future read. The first arc is over and hopefully they continue with Nia’s thrilling epic. Iron Squad has improved on my ranking from last issue.
4 out of 5 baguettes
Elves #2: The Honor of the Sylvan Elves 1/2
Written by
Jarry
Translated By
Christina Cox-De Ravel
Art by
Gianluca Maconi
Colored by
Saito
The Sylvan Elves have hidden themselves away from the world, jealously preserving their independence and sacred grounds. Anyone who dares enter their territory soon becomes their prey.
Eysine, City-State of the East, has always observed respect for the ancient laws between Elf and Man. And yet, when a powerful army of Ork mercenaries lay siege to the kingdom, Llali, the daughter of the King of the city, decides to remind the Elves of the treaty that previously linked their two peoples.
This tale is that of two races who have forgotten their shared past. It is also that of an Elf and a Human who carry with them the power to reawaken this bond.
PopCultHQ Review: Elves #2
What a fantastic story! Too bad this first arc was condensed into just two quick issues. Fans of fantasy are well aware of the criteria needed for the run-of-the-mill fantasy story. Toss in some humans, elves, orks and magic stir them all into a high tension setting to watch them kill each other over some relic. Well not to say that Elves doesn’t also use those same ingredients, but writer – and artist – take us on such an unexpected journey so enriched with such beautifully vivid artwork it’s mesmerizing. The factions of elves and man are trust into a war with each other but an unlikely duo of a man and elf warrior woman must hurry to find out who or what is behind it all. With the help of the intelligent orks and their necromancer, the duo discover secrets long forgotten. Though it may be too late to stop the war from escalating.
Still one of the strongest titles from the Delcourt line
4.5 out of 5 baguettes
Husk #2: Monkey Brain 2/2
Written by
Frédéric L’Homme
Translated By
Stéphanie Logan
Art by
Arnaud Boudoiron
Colored by
Kness
Arnaud Boudoiron
In the near future, the Arnold company makes “Husks”, biomechanical entities five meters high that provide an anatomical continuation of the body of their pilot.
The new biomeca “M5” Husk is the result of the exceptional efforts deployed by the engineers of Arnold to satisfy all requirements; on all grounds, for military operations, maintenance of law and order, extreme rescue, or for space exploration, the new Arnold “M5” excels in all situations!
PopCultHQ Review: 2.5 out of 5 baguettes
The Curse of the Wendigo: Collected Edition (#1+2)
Written by
Mathieu Missoffe
Translated By
Edward Gauvin
Art by
Charlie Adlard
Colored by
Aurore Folny
The Great War, July 1917. At an isolated stretch of the Front, French and German soldiers kill each other in an endless carnage…
The night air is rent by sentries’ screams. Everyone in the French camp thinks it’s a trap laid by the enemy, but soon they hear screams from the German lines… With both factions being hunted, they are obliged to declare an uneasy truce and send a team of men to solve the mystery. With them goes Wohati, a Cree Warrior, one of the 12,000 Indians in the U.S. Army, and the only man who knows what’s waiting out there…
PopCultHQ Review: 2 out of 5 baguettes
Coming soon from Éditions Delcourt-Soleil in English;
Charly 9
Written by
Richard Guérineau
Translated By
Edward Gauvin
Art by
Richard Guérineau
Charles IX was the unluckiest King of all the monarchs of France.
At the age of 22, to please his mother Catherine de’ Medici, he orders the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, which horrified all Europe.
Later, appalled by the enormity of his crime, he lapsed into insanity. Bleeding profusely, reduced to mere skin and bones, by the end of his life he was hated by all of Europe… Although, at one time he did have a good heart.
Charly 9 is a complete story.
What if? #1: Russians on the Moon!
Written by
Fred Blanchard
Fred Duval
Jean-Pierre Pécau
Translated By
Christina Cox-De Ravel
What would have happened if the USSR had made it to the moon before the Americans did?
In September 1969, after the embarrassing failure of Apollo 11, the USSR is the first to have a manned landing on the moon – winning the highly symbolic space race with the USA. In the wake of this achievement, President Nixon furiously demands that NASA send up and install a permanent base on the moon…
Wunderwaffen #1: The Devil’s Pilot
Written by
Richard D. Nolans
Translated By
Christina Cox-De Ravel
Art by
Maza
In the summer of 1946, the Japanese have been beaten but World War II continues in Europe after the Normandy landings failed on June 6th, 1944.
Completely revolutionary jet planes, the Wunderwaffen, or Wonder Weapons, now efficiently defend Germany. Major Walter Murnau, a man of honor and talented Wunderwaffen pilot, finds himself decorated by Adolf Hitler. Nicknamed The Devil’s Pilot, he becomes the icon of something he despises.
All pictures and official synopsis courtesy of ComiXology
