Written by: Jean-Yves Delitte
Illustrations: Jean-Yves Delitte
Coloring: Jean-Yves Delitte, Douchka Delitte
Publisher: Glénat
Black Crow #6 Eldorado – Comic Book Review
Eldorado is a mythical land in Southern America, full of gold, which even up to this day hasn’t lost its mystery. In the sixteenth century this was no different, as many prospectors went there in search of the gold. Black Crow is one of them, but he soon finds out that this adventure is not without any danger.
In the summer of 1778, Black Crow and his men are wandering through the Amazonian Rainforest. They are headed for Eldorado in search of a treasure they read about in a manuscript. The journey is starting to get tedious when all of a sudden they spot a big fire in the distance. When they come closer they realize that it is a whole village that has been torched, leaving the inhabitants either crucified or shot dead. This makes Black Crow very suspicious, as he knows that the ‘inlanders’ don’t have any firearms. He fears that the Spanish conquistadors have even come to this part of the world, although probably not only to serve God. He and his men decide to build a raft out of the wood and sails they found in the village, and two days later they sail down the river, back on track to Eldorado. Not long after they leave, they see a fire once again. Black Crow goes exploring on his own, while the others tie the raft. This time he sees the men who burnt down the other village in action, but he is spotted and shoots his two opponents in an attempt to escape. Nonetheless, the others heard the gun shots and go after him. He can only get rid of his attackers by jumping down the waterfall, making them believe he is dead. Unfortunately his men aren’t as lucky, as they are captured and crucified. Black Crow didn’t forget about them though, and he comes to rescue them at night, after killing their guards. Once again they set off for Eldorado and after sailing for quite a while, they might just have found it.
The story doesn’t move at a very fast pace, yet there is still quite some action going on in order for it to stay interesting. The storyline is not too complicated, as the goal of Black Crow and his men is quite clear from the start. The action is always based on the same thing, namely the men encountering their opponents, who burnt down the villages. Nonetheless these encounters are always in different settings, which makes sure the story doesn’t get dull.
Where the story might be lacking just a little bit of depth, the illustrations make up in a fantastic way. They are all very detailed and drawn with great care. Overall the colors look quite muted, which suits the story well. The skies are beautifully colored, in the evening showing an orange glow, while during the day the white clouds almost look painted.
A nice touch is that, when the story is set at daytime, the pages look white around the panels, while at nighttime they are black. This adds an extra layer of darkness, making everything look more mysterious. Every now and then we also get treated to beautiful two page wide illustrations, which really show off Jean-Yves Delitte’s craftsmanship and add a welcome change of pace.
Conclusion
Black Crow #6 Eldorado tells an adventurous story about men trying to find treasures of gold in Eldorado. The story is rather straightforward, but there is quite some action to make up for it. The illustrations really lift the story to a higher level as they are wonderfully drawn and sometimes even spread out over two pages. Scenario, illustrations and coloring, Jean-Yves Delitte proves that he can do it all.
Black Crow #6 Eldorado - Comic Book Review,
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