Written by: Peter Van Gucht
Illustrations: Luc Morjaeu
Publisher: Standaard Uitgeverij
Suske en Wiske #336 Het Omgekeerde Land – Comic Book Review
The Suske and Wiske comic books include many different stories, yet with a few recurrent features. There are the stories where they chase bad guys here and now, but also professor Barabas’ time machine often comes in handy. Sometimes, the duo even teach us something about history when they visit a famous person with the professor’s machine. Every now and then, they also end up in a world that isn’t the present or the past, or even the future, but a total fantasy world where monsters come to life and everything seems possible. This time, they end up in a fairy tale world, be it a very unusual one.
Wiske is bored to death now that Suske found a new friend, Robin, with whom he hangs out quite often. She is moaning the whole time, up to the moment when aunt Sidonia sends her out for a walk, to have some peace in the house. Wiske walks into the woods, where she suddenly sees a direction sign to Zevenbeek. It immediately reminds her of the adventure she and her friends once embarked upon in the issue called ‘De Schone Slaper’, quite a long time ago. The sign points in the direction in which Fairy Tale Land used to be back then, and thus Wiske decides to head that way. All of a sudden, she hears a voice behind her, but when she turns around, the only living creature she can see is a bat hanging from a branch. He introduces himself as Battie, and tells her that he is looking for a friend for his mistress princess Elisa. Since he saw that Wiske is looking for a friend too, he figured they might as well keep each other company. Wiske at first doesn’t believe her ears, but is willing to come along, since she won’t get much friendship from Suske anyway these days.
Battie takes her to Fairy Tale Land, but as soon as they arrive, the world turns upside down and Wiske turns into a boy. Instead of Fairy Tale Land, the land is now called Upside-down Land, and looks gray and dull instead of the bold colors it used to be filled with. Battie takes Wiske to princess Elisa’s castle, hanging upside-down from the sky. Princess Elisa seems a good companion, but when the night falls, she makes clear that there is no turning back. Once you are in Upside-down Land, you’ll have to stay forever. This thought is quite hard on Wiske, but luckily her friends have already started to worry and will soon come to look for her.
This comic book takes you away into the magical world of fairy tales, be it upside-down, or rather, the other way around. How about the dwarf and the seven Snow Whites, or a giant Tom Thumb? It has to be said, the idea is rather interesting and well thought of. The story takes enough time to dwell on these fun adaptations of very known fairy tales, yet it doesn’t hold back the pace too much. The story doesn’t move that fast, but doesn’t bore either. It’s a nice in-between.
As usual, the illustrations look quite decent and recognizable. Nothing too fancy about them, but that’s what we’re used to and that’s what a Suske and Wiske album should look like. Every now and then, the surroundings have been given a bit more attention, which results in larger pictures with a nice looking color palette.
Conclusion
Suske en Wiske #336 Het Omgekeerde Land is another fun addition to the Suske and Wiske collection that will probably please both young and old. It is one of those newer stories that still hold what we love the most about Suske and Wiske: a mix of reality and fantasy, to end up with a magical story where our friends will have to make sure that everything ends well.
Suske en Wiske #336 Het Omgekeerde Land - Comic Book Review,
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