Blake and Mortimer

The Adventures of Blake & Mortimer
The cover of the English translation of the first book of the series, The Yellow 'M'
Publication information
Publisher	Tintin magazine Editions du Lombard Editions Blake et Mortimer Cinebook Ltd (in English)
Genre	Science fiction Adventure
Publication date	1946 – present
Main character(s)	Blake Mortimer Olrik
Creative team
Created by	Edgar P. Jacobs
Written by	Edgar P. Jacobs Jean Van Hamme Yves Sente
Artist(s)	Edgar P. Jacobs Bob de Moor Ted Benoît André Juillard

The Adventures of Blake & Mortimer is a Belgian comics series created by writer and comics artist Edgar P. Jacobs. It was one of the first book series to appear in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine Tintin in 1946, and was subsequently published in book form by Belgian comic book publisher Le Lombard.

The main protagonists of the adventures are Philip Mortimer, a leading British scientist, and his friend Captain Francis Blake, of MI5. The books' recurring antagonist is the sworn enemy of the heroes, Colonel Olrik, who appears in very frequently throughout the series, in almost every book. Their confrontations take them into the realms of detective investigation and science fiction, dealing with themes of time travel, historical events, and espionage.

Since Jacobs' death, many new titles of the series have been published by other authors, mainly two separate teams of artists and writers, with the amount of these new editions significantly dwarfing Jacobs' contributions. A television series based upon the series was produced in 1997, entitled Blake and Mortimer.

The books by Jacobs himself are generally set in the period of their writing, but those authored by others after his death are set mostly in the 1950s and 1960s.

Main characters

The presence of the basis of the series' three main characters (looks, personality, attitudes) is apparent in Jacobs' unrelated, first full-length graphic novel, The U-Ray (1943), which predates the inception of this series. Here, their origins are left unspecified, and they are portrayed only as two proud Britons serving HM's Government.

They debut in the first books of the series' Francophone releases, the three-part story The Secret of the Swordfish, although the English language version of the series lists these titles as being books 15 to 17. They instead suggest, by designating this book as the first in the series, that they first appear in The Yellow 'M', although captions within the book contradict this.

The later, post-Jacobs title The Sarcophagi of the Sixth Continent provides insight into their early lives, and shows them making acquaintance - then beginning their friendship - during the time of the British Raj,

Overviews of the main characters are as follows:

• Professor Philip Angus Mortimer – a seemingly archetypical British gentlemanly scholar, he is a leading physicist of Scottish descent, having grown up in colonial India and moved England to attend university. His character is based upon a friend and occasional collaborator of Jacobs, Jacques Van Melkebeke, with the addition of a beard.
• Captain Francis Percy Blake – a Welsh-born officer in His Majesty's armed forces, he studied at Oxford University^[1] and later became head of the British Security Service MI5, and is currently still very active in the field. He is a master of disguise, even managing to fool Mortimer on occasion. Blake is modelled on another friend and occasional collaborator of Jacobs, Jacques Laudy, with the addition of a mustache.^[2]
• Lieutenant Ahmed Nasir – Nasir is the faithful friend and ally of the two heroes, and has Indian ancestry. His first appearance is in part one of The Secret of the Swordfish, where he prevents the two heroes from being captured by Olrik in Iran. He is a sergeant of the 5th Battalion of the "Makran Levy Corps", who previously served under Blake. Following his intervention, Nasir subsequently helps the two heroes in Egypt, then in London, ultimately becoming the butler of Professor Philip Mortimer. Nasir appears only in Jacobs' first books: The Secret of the Swordfish, The Mystery of the Great Pyramid, and The Yellow 'M'. His disappearance (corresponding to that of the British Empire) remains unexplained in later publications, however he eventually reappears many years later in The Sarcophagi of the Sixth Continent, created by Yves Sente and André Juillard. It is explained that following his resignation from the military, and his retirement from butler duties, he returned to India, where he joined their intelligence service.
• Colonel Olrik – the long-time, recurring villain from the first instalment onwards. Of the original series, only The Time Trap (Le Piège Diabolique) did not feature him in any capacity. Olrik's first appearance is in The Secret of the Swordfish, as the head of intelligence for Oriental dictator Basam Damdu. His roles have since ranged from mercenary, spy, smuggler and general criminal adventurer. He is characterised as a Western, but details such as his real name, birthplace and exact nationality are left unknown. In a recent book of the series (not penned by Jacobs), Olrik is portrayed as a specialist in Slavic languages, and it is explained that he once fled Hungary, suggesting this as his country of origin. Olrik's appearance resembles that of Jacobs.
• Basam Damdu – Olrik's commander-in-chief and the absolute dictator of the Yellow Empire. A megalomaniac based on Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin, he is obsessed with ruling the world and is willing to destroy it rather than lose control of it.
• Professor Jonathan Septimus – An eccentric physician and parapsychologist, he discovered Olrik in a trance after The Mystery of the Great Pyramid and used him as a test subject in his experiments into telepathy and telekinesis, turning Olrik into "The Yellow M".

Descriptions of more minor characters from the series are below:

• Professor Akira Sato – a Japanese scientist, a cybernetician working at the Japanese Institute of Space and Astronautical Science
• Commissioner Pradier – a character created by E.P. Jacobs, whose physique was greatly inspired by the actor Jean Gabin. Divisional Commissioner to the Paris Branch of Territorial Surveillance (DST), Pradier helps Blake and Mortimer during their adventures taking place during their stay in France.
• Nastasia Wardynska – a female friend and ally of Blake and Mortimer. She is from Russia. She hasn't appeared in any of Jacobs books, but features several times in subsequent works by other authors.
• Sarah Summertown is a novelist-archaeologist, a friend of Blake and Mortimer. It is strongly implied that she and Mortimer were romantically involved during Mortimer's youth.
• Elizabeth McKenzie is a student in Cambridge, daughter of Sarah Summertown (and, it is slightly implied, Mortimer).
• Admiral Sir William Gray is the prime minister of the United Kingdom and first sea lord and chairman of the chiefs of staffs committee.
• Jeronimo Ramirez is a Mexican-American who works for the Los Alamos Nuclear Centre.
• Jessie Wingo is a half-Cheyenne FBI agent.
• Sharkey is an American henchman of Olrik.
• Razul is a Bizenjo (known as Bezendjas) henchman of Olrik.
• Jack is the glasses-wearing henchman of Olrik.
• Freddy is Sharkey's partner-in-crime.
• David Honeychurch is deputy chief of MI5 under work for Blake.
• Glenn Kendall is a Scotland Yard officer.
• Professor Labrousse is an ally of Blake and Mortimer and meteorologist from Paris, France.
• Commander William Steele is chief of MI6.
• Mrs. Benson is Blake and Mortimer's landlady, a widow of Blake's former CO.
• Kim is a Korean scientist who is an assistant of Prof. Akira Sato and an informant for Olrik.

Story characteristics

Although the series' title suggests a balance in appearance of the two characters, Mortimer is often the main protagonist, seen more frequently than Blake. In the original series, it is mainly he who, through his impulsive character, gets entangled in their adventures. In comparison, Blake is depicted as a serious, formal army officer who comes Mortimer's aid when necessary. Colonel Olrik, the main antagonist, displays a combination of the characteristics and personalities of both heroes, but his exploits are typically negative, ending with disastrous consequences.

Blake and Mortimer adventures are characterised by a quest, often involving undercover, secretive operations, ending with a heroic, liberated, or publicised ending. Furthermore, the structure of the books' storylines are often similar: in the beginning, certain unseen and significant events have already taken place - in The Yellow 'M', for instance, the antagonist of the story, 'Guinea Pig', has already committed various daring acts of theft on a grand scale, and readers only learn about this upon seeing Mortimer reading a newspaper. Also, the books often share comparable endings, with the protagonists reflecting on the wisdom they have acquired from their experiences: after returning from his time travel in The Time Trap, Mortimer concludes that rather than dwell on the 'good old days' or look forward to a 'brighter future', one should be content with the present.

Blake and Mortimer are frequently shown to be residing in a shared home, in adjacent apartments, the same manner as Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson. Many francophone comics share this basis of confirmed bachelors who live together, including Tintin and Captain Haddock, Asterix & Obelix, Spirou & Fantasio, and Tif & Tondu. These series were all first published during a time when the censorship of youth publications was very heavily enforced and stringent, and male/female segregation was rigorously policed.

The settings of many of Jacobs' stories are contemporary, based on real-world events and environments, and as such the first few titles of the series present a look and feel reminiscent of the 1950s, while later instalments showcase a political climate comparable to the 1970s. One exception to this rule is, once again, The Time Trap, starring in the present (i.e. early 1960s) but with its action, caused by a sabotaged time machine, largely takes place in the 51st century - a brief venture in medieval times and a stopover in the Jurassic period also take place. Post-Jacobs stories are, so far, integrated into the chronology of the earlier books, or precede it, taking place in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s.

Jacobs' art style, although typical of the Belgian comics drawings (known as 'clear line' or 'ligne claire'), is notable for its extensive use of light colours and its containment of scenes similar to those found in film production (the panoramic view over night-time London featured as the opening scene in The Yellow 'M' being a good example of this).

Conversely, the series' writing is noted for its high verbosity, such as in the The Yellow 'M', which contains a page sporting over 900 words. Captions and word balloons also appear frequently, describing action being depicted visually.

Publication history

Under Edgar P. Jacobs

With the launch of the Tintin magazine, which showcased books from The Adventures of Tintin series, it included the story The Secret of the Swordfish, introducing the characters of Blake, Mortimer, and Olrik to wider audiences.

The production of these instalments of the series ended in 1949, but the publication of further stories concerning the characters' exploits continued for many years, only ending with the death of the series' creator. Books penned and illustrated by him saw the two heroes go on adventures ranging from the lost city of Atlantis to the catacombs of Paris.

After Jacobs' death in 1987, Bob de Moor completed his last story, left unfinished following the incident.

Following Jacobs' death

From 1987, the Jacobs estate, centred on the still operational Jacobs Studios, republished all of Jacobs' works.

In the 1990s, after much debate about stories' authenticity, Dargaud got permission to revive the series, including the creation and publication of new stories by a newly recruited team of writers and illustrators, published as further instalments in the series. These books are still firmly set in the middle-to-late 20th century, and include many new regular supporting characters, most notably Blake's colleagues in the security services. Much of the new additions are of the creation of two separate teams of authors, Van Hamme/Benoit and Sente/Juillard.

The first of these, The Francis Blake Affair, was published in 1996. Its storyline was provided by famous scenarist Jean Van Hamme, and specialist draughtsman Ted Benoit (whose Ligne claire drawing style resembles that of the late Jacobs') was contracted for the artwork. Purists, partial to the original plotlines of those penned by Jacobs, immediately objected to the choice of Van Hamme and, upon publication, went on to discover the feature of some of his typically trademark plot twists, taking an instant dislike to his contribution. The elements of science fiction, prominent in earlier books by Jacobs', were noticeably absent from this new addition, which contained a strong focus on espionage. Despite the negative reception and criticism it faced, the book was a relative success, and the publisher decided to continue the line. During this time, both Benoit and Van Hamme became engaged on other projects, and their commitments caused a delay in the production of the series' next instalment.

As an interim solution, writer Yves Sente and artist André Juillard were contracted to publish another adventure, The Voronov Plot (1998) containing prevalent themes of the Cold War.

Later on, Van Hamme and Benoit completed work on their book, The Strange Encounter, which appeared in 2001, and concerns the heroes' confrontation of mysterious alien creatures.

This was followed by the publication of Sente and Juillard's two-part adventure The Sarcophagi of the Sixth Continent (Part 1: The Global Threat, in 2003; Part 2: Battle of the Spirits, in 2004) which deals with Blake and Mortimer's youth, and the beginning of their friendship upon their first meeting in pre-independence India.

In 2008, Sente and Juillard also released another book in the series, The Gondwana Shrine, chronologically following the events of the previous two volumes, The Sarcophagi of the Sixth Continent parts 1 and 2.

The series' next adventure, a two-parter titled The Curse of the 30 Pieces of Silver, was written by Jean Van Hamme. The first book, The Manuscript of Nicodemus, was illustrated by René Sterne, whose sudden death occurred on the 15th of November 2006, and which delayed the instalments' publication. Sterne's girlfriend, Chantal De Spiegeleer, eventually completed his work, which was published on the 20th of November 2009. Aubin Frechon illustrated the adventure's second volume, published on the 26th of November 2010.

List of titles

Additionally, the Jacobs' storyboard sketches of Book 12 (Part 2 of Professor Satō's Three Formulae), left incomplete following his death, have been re-issued in 1996 outside of the series as Dossier Mortimer contre Mortimer (ISBN 2-87097-022-6).

† The Secret of the Swordfish originally consisted of two parts. In 1984, it was republished in three.

Translations

English

Like many Franco-Belgian comics, English translation publications of Blake and Mortimer were initially limited.

Blake and Mortimer Editions

Les Editions Blake and Mortimer, aka The Blake and Mortimer Editions, published English translations of the three parts of The Secret of the Swordfish in 1986, both parts of The Mystery of the Great Pyramid in 1987, and The Yellow 'M' in 1988.^[3]

Comcat

Catalan Communications, under its 'Comcat' line of books, published two books in inexpensive trade paperback copies in the US. They released:

1. The Time Trap (Le Piège diabolique) (1989) ISBN 0-87416-066-9
2. Atlantis Mystery (L'Énigme de l'Atlantide) (1990) ISBN 0-87416-094-4

There were also plans to release both parts of The Mystery of the Great Pyramid, and The Yellow 'M', however Catalan collapsed financially before they could be realised.

Cinebook Ltd

Cinebook Ltd has been publishing English language translations of Blake and Mortimer since 2007. The following volumes have been released to date:^[4]

1. The Yellow 'M' (published January 2007) ISBN 978-1-905460-21-2
2. The Mystery of the Great Pyramid, Part 1: The Papyrus of Manethon (published November 2007) ISBN 978-1-905460-37-3
3. The Mystery of the Great Pyramid, Part 2: The Chamber of Horus (published January 2008) ISBN 978-1-905460-38-0
4. The Francis Blake Affair (published September 2008) ISBN 978-1-905460-63-2
5. The Strange Encounter (published January 2009) ISBN 978-1-905460-75-5
6. S.O.S. Meteors (published September 2009) ISBN 978-1-905460-97-7
7. The Affair of the Necklace (published January 2010) ISBN 978-1-84918-037-5
8. The Voronov Plot (published October 2010) ISBN 978-1-84918-048-1
9. The Sarcophagi of the Sixth Continent, Part 1: The Global Threat (published January 2011) ISBN 1-84918-067-9
10. The Sarcophagi of the Sixth Continent, Part 2: Battle of the Spirits (published April 2011) ISBN 978-1-84918-077-1
11. The Gondwana Shrine (published September 2011) ISBN 978-1-84918-094-8
12. Atlantis Mystery (published January 2012) ISBN 978-1-84918-107-5
13. The Curse of the 30 Pieces of Silver, Part 1: The Scroll of Nicodemus (published April 2012) ISBN 978-1-84918-125-9
14. The Curse of the 30 Pieces of Silver, Part 2: The Gate of Orpheus (published August 2012) ISBN 978-1-84918-130-3
15. The Secret of the Swordfish, Part 1: The Incredible Chase (published February 2013) ISBN 9781849181488
16. The Secret of the Swordfish, Part 2: Mortimer's Escape (published June 2013) ISBN 9781849181617
17. The Secret of the Swordfish, Part 3: SX1 Strikes Back (published October 2013) ISBN 9781849181747
18. The Oath of the Five Lords (published March 2014) ISBN 9781849181914
19. The Time Trap (published September 2014) ISBN 9781849182140
20. The Septimus Wave (published February 2015) ISBN 9781849182423
21. Plutarch's Staff (published September 2015) ISBN 9781849182645
22. Professor Satō's Three Formulae, Part 1: Mortimer in Tokyo (published February 2016) ISBN 9781849182928
23. Professor Satō's Three Formulae, Part 2: Mortimer versus Mortimer (published May 2016) ISBN 9781849183031
24. The Testament of William S. (published April 2017) ISBN 9781849183390
25. The Valley of Immortals, Part 1: Threat Over Hong Kong (published April 2019) ISBN 9781849184281
26. The Valley of Immortals, Part 2: The Thousandth Arm of the Mekong (published March 2020) ISBN 9781849184373
27. The Call of the Moloch (published March 2021) ISBN 9781849185974
28. The Last Swordfish (published May 2022) ISBN 9781800440494
29. Eight Hours in Berlin (published Dec 2022) ISBN 9781800440852
30. Before Blake & Mortimer: The U Ray (published Sept 2023) ISBN 9781800441057
31. Before Blake & Mortimer: The Fiery Arrow (forthcoming Feb 2024) ISBN 9781800440951

Further volumes to be translated:

• The Last Pharaoh (TBC)
• Cornish Adventures (TBC)
• The Art of War (TBC)
• Ghosts of Doggerland (TBC)

Adaptations

Radio series

The Time Trap was adapted into a radio play in 1962.^[5]

Television series

In 1997, Ellipse animation studios made an animated series containing 26 episodes, making up 13 stories, four of which were entirely new and not based on existing books.

Film adaptations

Several attempts have been made to adapt The Yellow M to film, although none have been successful. Spanish director Álex de la Iglesia stated that he was working on an adaptation of the comic to be released around 2010, however this never came into fruition. At one point, surrounding rumours claimed that Hugh Laurie and Kiefer Sutherland were to play Blake and Mortimer respectively;^[6] Since then, however, nothing has come of this project.

Games

In 2014, French publisher Ystari Games released the deduction and social table top board game Blake & Mortimer: Witness.^[7]

In 2011, French publishers Dargaud and Anuman Interactive launched the first video game adaptation of the Blake and Mortimer series, titled Blake and Mortimer: The Curse of the Thirty Denarii, a hidden objects game featuring both 3D and comic-strip environments.^[8]

Popular culture

In 2005, as part of the Brussels' Comic Book Route, a wall was designed in the Rue du Houblon/Hopstraat in Brussels, a reproduction of the one featured on the cover of The Yellow 'M'. It was designed by G. Oreopoulos and D. Vandegeerde.

Parodies

The main characters of Blake and Mortimer have made cameo appearances in various comic series, particularly those series that are set in the same period of history, the twilight of the British Empire. They are often a tribute to their creator, Edgar P. Jacobs.

For example, they make a one-off appearance in the Valérian adventure On the False Earths when the hero visits a Victorian London club.

Another example is the popular Belgian comic series concerning the adventures of MI5 agent Colonel Clifton. Clifton once featured in a story entitled Jade, published in 2003. In it he meets two characters called Blake and Mortimer, though even as caricatures they bear little resemblance (perhaps deliberately) to Jacob's originals. The story includes elements from the original books, such as the entrance to the secret passage from S.O.S. Météores and the cave that doubles as a submarine base in L'Affaire Francis Blake.^[9]

In 2005, Dargaud published a parody entitled Menaces sur l'Empire ("The Empire Under Threat"). This was a humorous presentation of the adventures of Blake and Mortimer and was not part of the canon (in fact, the space reserved for the series' title reads "Les Aventures de Philip et Francis" as opposed to "Les Aventures de Blake et Mortimer"). The jokes contained include:

• Mortimer's attempts to break his diet, which his Indian manservant always thwarts, even from a long distance
• Confusion over whether they are working for MI5 or MI6
• The heroes catching Prime Minister Winston Churchill in bed, engaged in an affair with a young woman
• A send-up of Bruce Lee's Game of Death^[10]

Tigresse Blanche (White Tigress) by Yann and Conrad is another Belgian comic series featuring the adventures of a Chinese Communist woman spy in post-World War II China. It features a British agent, Sir Francis Flake, whose friend (based on Mortimer) gets drunk on the announcement of Indian independence.

See also

• Le Monde's 100 Books of the Century
• The Adventures of Tintin

References

Sources

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Blake et Mortimer.

• Official website (in French)
• Blake and Mortimer 's Blog (in French)
• Marque Jaune (Yellow Mark)  (in French)
• "Blake and Mortimer". English publisher. Cinebook Ltd.

This page was last edited on 14 April 2024, at 17:42