Illustrations by John Augustus Knapp for ETIDORPHA; OR, THE END OF EARTH; THE STRANGE HISTORY OF A MYSTERIOUS BEING AND THE ACCOUNT OF A REMARKABLE JOURNEY (1895).
The Yellow ‘M’ (1956) by Belgian comics artist, Edgar P. Jacobs.
I read this one as a kid—my first foray into a more serious type of comic—and found it very intriguing: 1950s London, with its spires and chimneys against the mustard-colored night sky; the fantastic science elements; the tense, fearful atmosphere; and above all, that electric, mysterious menace known as ‘M’.
In Europe, the comic is considered a classic; its cover is famous enough to have been parodied many times.
Some sample images from Belgian comic SUSKE & WISKE, by Willy Vandersteen (1913-1990). I mentioned this comic the other day, but wanted to dive a little deeper.
SUSKE & WISKE, in its heyday from the 1940s to the 1990s, probably was the most popular comic in the Dutch-speaking countries, that is: Holland and Belgium (or Flanders). The albums were recognizable by their red bands (see for example image 7), and the “human tower” on the back cover, which depicted the main characters. The bumbling but heroic Lambik (the second character from below in the tower) probably was the series’ most beloved character, mine though were headstrong Wiske (at the top), and super-powered Jerom, my namesake. I loved the series: the shadowy characters spying in the background, the creepy extraterrestrials hovering above those flat, rainy Belgian landscapes, the ghosts, masked strangers, nightly visitors, hatching their nefarious plans…
The name Wiske is derived from Louise, Suske from François. But Louise and François were fancy names, whereas Suske and Wiske were the dimunitive, “common” versions, as SUSKE & WISKE was a comic mainly aimed at ordinary folk.
Sample pages (1970s-1990s) from Dutch detective/adventure comic, Franka, by Henk Kuijpers.
The series, which is still going strong, revolves around the titular heroine, who runs her own detective agency. It was set in a fictional version of Amsterdam, which greatly excited me as a kid. Amsterdam at night. Man.
In 2010, Franka was voted Greatest Dutch Comic Hero.
Box art for 1980s Sierra adventure games. Playing these games is pretty much how I learned English, or well, what passes for it. I still randomly ask for condoms when I can’t think of anything else to say.
(That’s a Leisure Suit Larry reference.)
Seriously though, I loved those games. I was never much of an FPS/platform/action gamer, but these I could dive into. I still remember all the locations and characters the way I remember old haunts or friends from days gone by.