Last word on Franquin and defense of Fethry

[Frank Bubacz]

Hi!

After 30+ off-topic mails about Franquin, Marsu and Belgian comics in 
general (what is the current off-topic record?), I hopefully can add the 
very last word on it, as I feel slightly(!) responsible for starting
it all...

Teemu wrote:

>this whole discussion might have bothered me until end of time
>´cause I didn´t know what people where talking about.


To avoid exactly that, here is, IMO, the best introduction to Andre Franquin 
and his work that you'll find online:

http://membres.lycos.fr/pif/index2.html

It is still under construction, though, but at least you have the choice
between a French and an English version (Note: The French one is already
one step further!) All other sites I know about this topic are in French
only, and also for hardcore fans only.

In case anybody is still interested in the Disney version of Marsu, you 
should check out this page in HooZoo:

http://mathstar.net/xephyr/rich/dzone/hoozoo/marsu.html

Trying to end the discussion let me also try a nice circular structure by 
mentioning Don Rosa again: When I asked if he was influenced by the man 
whose name we won't mention here again, I actually had totally forgotten 
about the regrettable American situation concerning European comics! Well, 
as Cord pointed out, it's the same here in Europe with many American 
classics. However, having just read in the archive that Don considers Fethry 
Duck an "idiot" and doesn't like him, because he never (or very seldom) 
appeared in American publications, I now am rather sure that he never would 
have liked the comics of Franquin as well (and thus would never have been 
influenced by them!), even if he had had the opportunity of reading them. 
Maybe Franquin's best-known creation is the Marsupilami, but the man himself 
cared much more for his other baby, Gaston Lagaffe. And this guy, at least 
in the beginning of his "career", certainly was what some people would call 
an "idiot". (The "idiot" element, however, has always been a tradition in 
European Funnies: Remember Averell Dalton, Obelix, Capitaine Haddock when he 
was drunk, etc.)
To put it all in a nutshell: Don is the biggest Barks fan of 'em all, and 
Barks certainly always used "idiots" as unappealing or at least
"flat" characters (correct me, if I'm wrong). Thus I assume Don will have 
problems appreaciating the humour of MOST Francobelgian comics!

To defend Fethry let me add that I can't easily understand people whose 
motto seems to be: "I don't like it 'cos I never tried it!" (I don't know if 
this is the exact wording of the famous (beer?) ad, but coincidentally, 
there's a Fethry story built around that one!)

'nuff said today,

Frank



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