Written by: Pierre Veys
Illustrations: Carlos Puerta
Coloring: Carlos Puerta
Publisher: Dupuis
De Rode Baron #2 Bloedregen – Comic Book Review
World War One is raging on, and while many would rather flee this war than fight it, Manfred von Richthofen is keen to be up in the air, and shoot the enemy. Because of his gift, where he can hear what others think, he feels almost immortal, and loves to flirt with death. But won’t that drive him too far?
George and Manfred are being chased by two enemy airplanes, and the situation looks quite somber, as Manfred seems to have lost his gift. He doesn’t hear what the enemy is thinking, thus they’ll have to be very much in luck to survive this fight. Luck is on their side today, and they manage to get one enemy down. After his wounds are taken care of in the infirmary, Manfred inspects the plane. Even though George is a very experienced pilot, he would so much wish to be able to fly alone, be a pilot and a shooter at the same time. That way, he will never again depend on others, and his gift could be used to its best capacity.
Manfred’s relatively quiet position in Ostend soon makes place for combat in the Champagne region. There he experiences his gift again, be it with a different pilot than George, when he is firing at an enemy airplane. He feels the fear of the enemy pilot, and enjoys shooting him down. Even though he is satisfied with the result, Manfred keeps thinking about flying himself, and thus, he eventually decides to take lessons.
Just like in the previous album, the story is mainly told through the illustrations, rather than by using text. Certainly the action scenes lack text, which makes you go over them quickly, which in turn emphasizes the speed of the action. The story doesn’t progress very far though, but leaves space for a more in depth character sketch of Manfred, who becomes more and more egocentric, the more you get to know him.
Carlos Puerta’s illustrations go along the same path as in the previous issue, meaning they look like little paintings, with soft edges rather than harsh lines, and not always very sharp. Nonetheless, the style is very likeable and gives the series, and definitely the action scenes, just that little extra touch.
Conclusion
De Rode Baron #2 Bloedregen gradually shows more of Manfred’s character, while also alternating with action packed scenes, where the illustrations simply say it all. The story continues, and raises more questions, making us curious to see what the next issue will have in store. In any case, we could certainly appreciate this issue already.
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