TinTin Books discussion

The Broken Ear opens in Tintin's native Brussels, where a South American idol is stolen from a museum and then mysteriously returned the following day. Tintin, suspicious, investigates the case, discovering an array of fake idols (including the one that was "returned"), ultimately tracking his suspects to the republic of San Theodoros where political unrest, guns-for-hire, and a foreign oil war threaten to devestate the nation.

For his sixth "Tintin" work, Hergé continued his character's trips to far-flung societies, in this case South America. As with Tintin in America and The Blue Lotus, Herge sought to incorporate thinly-veiled political tensions. As such, San Theodoros is at war partly due to the machinations of big oil companies from superpower nations.

The story remains picaresque, leading Tintin through several smaller episodes which are tied together by an overarching plot, but is much more controlled and tightly plotted than anything Herge had done previously. The treasure hunt plot, beginning with an item whose significance is far from obvious, echoes that which will be used in later stories such as The Secret of the Unicorn. Although the atmosphere wasn't as praised as that of "The Blue Lotus", "The Broken Ear" is a fun and exhilirating adventure.

Making their first appearance in the series are the warring would-be leaders of San Theodoros: General Alcazar and General Tapioca, whose story would continue right through until the final completed "Tintin" story, Tintin and the Picaros.

"The Broken Ear" was published by Methuen in its English debut in 1975. The story has been adapted twice: first, in 1957 as a semi-animated feature that aired on French and Belgian television. In the early '90s, it was then adapted as part of the Canadian animated series, in a two-part episode.


Links:

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Brok...

Tintinologist: http://www.tintinologist.org/guides/b...

24 Days of Tintin: http://tintinblog.com/2009/11/23/24-d...

I always enjoyed this as a kid watching the TV series, because of the atmospheric museum scenes, and the humorous final shot of the idol. Looking back now, I never really thought about the political implications.

Places visited and mentioned in "The Broken Ear" (courtesy Wikipedia):

* Brussels, Belgium
* Le Havre, France
* San Theodoros, South America
** capital: Los Dopicos / Tapiocapolis
* Nuevo Rico, South America
** capital: Sanfacion
* El Chapo region, South America


(Tintin's first trip to South America)

Isn't that cool? After just six books, Tintin had already visited five continents. A wonderfully global view.

Wasn't he called "the globe trotter"??

Isabelle, that's really interesting - I had never heard of this nickname before, but I think it's perfect! I was in Thailand a couple of years ago, and a lot of young Western tourists were wearing Tintin T-Shirts. I guess that is why?

Some thoughts and facts on this album, (with thanks to the ever-amazing Michael Farr and his "Tintin: The Complete Companion":

* On a personal level, I find a lot to love in this album, with its speedy feel which doesn't sacrifice plot. A lot of the native culture, and Herge's grim satire on big oil, and Western countries exploiting second-world combats for their gain, is quite mature. However, there are some negative elements: for instance, Tintin still finds himself in a lot of situations (several firing squads, for instance) where he is saved by blind chance rather than through innovation, wilfulness or anything more clever. (It's the difference between "Buffy" and "Veronica Mars", too, if you want my opinion...)

* This is the last "Tintin" work that focusses on Tintin's job as a reporter, seeing him actually jet off in search of a story. (In future editions, his job plays a smaller part, and is never really the reason he gets involved)

* This is the first album to explore Tintin's home life in Brussels, at 26 Labrador Road.

* Herge was under pressure both in the original writing of the strip (where he was still forced to work at a weekly pace), and again a decade later when he was hurriedly trying to colour and edit all the previously drawn albums for re-release. As a result, Farr notes that the last few pages lack the jungle detail seen early on.

* The original Pre-Colombian statue, on which the album's eponymous fetish was based, does not have a broken ear, but it does have a broken foot and hand.

* The fate of Ramon and Alonso at the end of the album - being dragged by devils to Hell! - is a surprising and unexpectedly mythological touch in the otherwise terrestrial "Tintin" ouevre.