Written by: Peter Van Gucht
Illustrations: Luc Morjaeu
Publisher: Standaard Uitgeverij
Suske en Wiske #335 Het Lederen Monster – Comic Book Review
The European Football Championship has only just begun, and there’s no way you could have missed it. Flags, stickers and commercials are flooding the streets and TV screens, so it doesn’t come as a surprise that Suske and Wiske’s new issue is also dedicated to this popular sport. A top footballer develops a fear for football after being involved in some shifty business. Somehow it doesn’t sound all that strange.
In this issue our friends are not their usual unemployed selves, but they work at a psychiatric clinic. Suske and Wiske do the housekeeping, Lambik and Jerom take care of the security, and aunt Sidonia is the shrink. From now on, the security is upped, as a famous football player, Cedric Catenaccio, will go into therapy in Sidonia’s practice. Cedric used to be a star player, but he suddenly froze on the field, causing his team to lose the cup. Since then, he is scared of every ball, and even the white lines on the road give him a fright.
Cedric took a music box with him, which he is desperate to keep to himself. Nonetheless, Wiske often hears him listen to it, and becomes curious as to what it might contain. There are other issues to handle though, as Ben De Leyder tries to get proof of Cedric’s stay at the clinic to the press, to then blackmail him into signing a killer contract. This doesn’t go as planned, thus he tries to involve aunt Sidonia as well. But Sidonia isn’t so easy to bend around, certainly now that Cedric is finally showing signs of improvement. Nonetheless, it seems Cedric’s past continues to haunt him.
Peter Van Gucht chose to make an album about a football player, which was probably a very good marketing strategy. Besides that, the story has a nice flow, without too many characters. It is a bit straightforward, yet the mystery around the music box is quite an interesting element. Next to that, it’s also fun to see the well-known friends in a different context than usual, especially seeing aunt Sidonia as a psychiatrist. To tie everything in with what we are used to, we do get treated to some of professor Barabas’ inventions, which help Cedric to heal faster.
The illustrations by Luc Morjaeu have the same recognizable look as we are used to, yet all characters do look a tad different, since they are not wearing their usual, typical, costumes. A nice touch that suits the story well, as everything is in a different setting anyway.
Conclusion
Suske en Wiske #335 Het Lederen Monster is a nice move from Standaard Uitgeverij, with the European Championship going on right now. The story itself is different than usual due to the setting in the psychiatric clinic, yet there are enough elements to still make all characters very recognizable. The storyline is a bit straightforward, but that doesn’t really spoil the fun. In these important times for European football, it’s a nice change from the many hours you might spend, cheering in front of your TV.
Suske en Wiske #335 Het Lederen Monster - Comic Book Review,
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