Written by: Pierre Veys
Illustrations: Carlos Puerta
Coloring: Carlos Puerta
Publisher: Dupuis
De Rode Baron #1 Tussen de Kogels Door – Comic Book Review
At this time of the year, everywhere in the world the fallen soldiers of the First World War are being honored. This war is still a very common background in books and films, and also in the new comic book series De Rode Baron, it has a prominent role. The main character is German, which gives a different point of view from what we are used to, so we were quite curious to see what this issue had in store.
It’s the early 1900s when Manfred and his friends are on their way to school. At the military school of Berlin they have their physical test today, and Manfred feels in perfect shape. His test goes extremely well, but later in the changing rooms, his classmates are picking a fight, jealous of his achievements. Though very outnumbered, Manfred easily wins the fight, and realizes that, just before his opponents attacked, he could hear what they were thinking, giving him the greater advantage.
Thinking about what happened there, Manfred realizes that he has a special gift, and that this gift gives him a feeling of power. In the following days, he tries everything to experience this feeling again. As the boys don’t want to pick a fight with him anymore after what happened in the changing rooms, Manfred decides to head to the most dangerous part of town, and picks a fight with some men on the street. And again, the same feeling of power and domination drives him, when he hears the men’s thoughts. A few years later, World War I is raging through Europe and Manfred joins the air force. Here too, his gift will come in handy.
This first issue of De Rode Baron is very noticeably an introduction to the series, as it basically shows how Manfred von Richthofen, the Red Baron, came to be. Pierre Veys and Carlos Puerta opted for a very filmic approach, where there is not a lot of text, yet the illustrations speak for themselves, an idea we enjoyed very well. The only issue we have with this comic book is that it is based on the life of the real Red Baron, yet doesn’t tell his life properly. We’d much rather Pierre Veys came up with a completely fictional character, maybe based on von Richthofen, instead of ‘making up’ von Richthofen’s life.
Every single one of Carlos Puerta’s illustrations almost looks like a little painting. They are definitely proof of his talent, even though they do look quite outdated and static at times, which blocks the action scenes a bit. Other than that, they look beautiful with their complex color scheme and painted feel.
Conclusion
De Rode Baron #1 Tussen de Kogels Door is an introduction to an undoubtedly action packed series. This issue solely revolves around getting to know Manfred, the lead character with the special gift, yet it forms a good base for what’s to come. The illustrations are very unique and almost look like little paintings, giving the series an extra touch. If you can look past the fact that the character is only very loosely based on the original Red Baron, this comic book is one that might be worth keeping an eye out for.
De Rode Baron #1 Tussen de Kogels Door - Comic Book Review,
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