Written by: Michael Delbosco, Daniel Duhand
Illustrations: Félix Brune
Coloring: Albertine Ralenti
Publisher: Casterman
14-18 Missie Alaska Melun, Lente 1915 – Comic Book Review
We often see the global image of what war does to people, especially those who are not able to protect themselves. Due to this we tend to forget that the soldiers fighting at the front are ordinary people too, who often have no other choice but to follow orders, fight for their lives or simply try to protect those they love and care for. 14-18 Missie Alaska gives us a glimpse of the lives of several different soldiers, who are not only trying their best to end a horrible war but have a lot of conflicts among themselves as well. Let’s dive into the trenches for this second part of the series.
Henri Melun gets called to his commanding officer, as a case has appeared against Melun, for his gambling addiction and the overall chance of him being a liability for the military, because of some shady practices. This immediately gets confirmed when Melun walks out of the office and gets called to go for a ‘ride’ by a shady man in an even more shady looking car. Melun happens to be reluctant to join those in the car, and luckily a young soldier calls for him, granting a valid excuse to decline the not-so-friendly offer.
On the other side we have Louis Moufflot, another soldier who really wants to get rid of all Germans, and his wife Jane, one of the first feminists. Louis is a hothead who, even though his heart is in the right place, often looks as if he might be a loose cannon that only wants to reach his goal. Nonetheless, he tries to do his best to help his fellow soldiers survive the horrible war, especially those deep in the trenches. Not that long ago he filed a plan where Alaskan Malamute dogs would help to supply all soldiers on the front, as they are fast and are able to pull forth heavy slays filled with items. For some reason the higher chain of command ignored the proposal as they deemed it ‘too expensive’, whilst they agreed on another plan with a factory, which was even a lot more expensive. Not only this will be the key item of the story, but also a confusing bond between Louis and Melun, who were once brothers in arms. Add in a woman that makes all of the above even more confusing, and you will have the plot of this serious drama.
Overall the story progresses at a steady, but confusing pace. As the story works with flashbacks and a scarce amount of information, you will have to take your time to let things sink in thoroughly. The overall plot, written by Michael Delbosco and Daniel Duhand is a fairly complicated one, but even though this war might be already 100 years old, they still manage to move the reader, especially at the end of this second issue.
A fun detail is the fact that the story is actually based on a true secret mission. The plot is built around the (originally sealed) archives of the French army, thus making it even more realistic.
As far as illustrations go, it’s easy to say that you either like them, or you don’t. Everything looks very rough around the edges, it’s sometimes even hard to recognize certain characters, because some look alike and some readers might find that there’s a lack of detail. Nonetheless, there are many details to be found, be it in a rudimentary form. Some fun touches the illustrator Félix Brune and colorist Albertine Ralenti provided are the original highlights of characters. Important characters, when they perform certain actions, they will be fully colored in red or blue, emphasizing their actions or just making them stand out. This is a very fun way of adding a bit more punch to some pictures.
Conclusion
14-18 Missie Alaska Melun, lente 1915 is a successful addition to the 14-18 series. The plot makes you think about what will happen next and about the overall mission these soldiers had to complete, in order to be of service to their fellow soldiers and those they wished to protect. That being said, this series is certainly not for all casual readers, or those that have no interest in a historical topic. Those who have interest in true stories, revolving around the first World War, will certainly enjoy getting in the line of fire of this one.
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