HERMANN

HERMANN ◊ COMANCHE Le Ciel est rouge sur Laramie (T.4), Le Lombard 1975 Original plate no. 27, prepublished in Le Journal de Tintin Belge no. 42, October 16, 1973. Presence of superficial soiling and light adhesive residue adhesive residue on spine. India ink on paper 36 × 47.5 cm (14.17 × 18.7 in.) This scene shows the ignominy of Russ Dobbs' gang, who have managed to bring an entire town under their control. But Red Dust is on his trail. All he has to do is follow the collection of corpses the killer leaves behind. With this album, Hermann and Greg inaugurate a cycle of violence that will become their trademark, very different from the other westerns of their time. It didn't come about ex nihilo: Greg and Hermann witnessed at first hand the transition from the great classics of the Hollywood western (Howard Hawks released his last film, Rio Lobo, in 1970) to a new generation of more stylized action films by the likes of Sam Peckinpah (The Wild Bunch, 1969) and Sergio Leone (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, 1966). The Dirty Harry series (1971) also inaugurated a dynasty of unscrupulous vigilantes. While Greg was still struggling to create hard-boiled characters, in the conclusion of this episode, Hermann urged him to write a scene in which Red Dust mercilessly executes an unarmed, underpants-clad Russ Dobbs, rather than a classic Western final duel on the city's main street. This finale caused a scandal.