Le Petit Noël
Encyclopedia
Noël, or Le Petit Noël, is the main character of an eponymous Belgian comics
series, and a secondary character of Spirou et Fantasio
. His name means "Christmas
" in French
. The series Noël was created in 1957 by André Franquin
and Jidéhem
and published in the comics magazine
Spirou
, while Franquin created the following work alone or together with Will
.
. As Christmas Day approaches, he is more sad and unhappy than ever because he has no friends and his parents are poor and can't afford gifts for him. However, each year, Noël lives a good Christmas, either thanks to the Marsupilami
or the Elaoin Sdrétu.
The atmosphere of the series was sometimes melancholic, as in some other of Franquin's work. The same atmosphere is also present in the Gaston Lagaffe
series at the times of Christmas: the "miraculous" and idealized period of Christmas and New year is a recurring theme in Franquin's series.
Some of Noël's stories were more humorous: in one story he and the Marsupilami go to a sports stadium to watch a tennis match — only for the creature to ruin a wonderful game by catching the ball in mid-air.
Belgian comics
Belgian comics are a distinct subgroup in the comics history, and played a major role in the development of European comics, alongside France with whom they share a long common history...
series, and a secondary character of Spirou et Fantasio
Spirou et Fantasio
Spirou et Fantasio is one of the most popular classic Franco-Belgian comic strips. The series, which has been running since 1938, shares many characteristics with other European humorous adventure comics like Tintin and Asterix...
. His name means "Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
" in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
. The series Noël was created in 1957 by André Franquin
André Franquin
André Franquin was an influential Belgian comics artist, whose best known comic strip creations are Gaston and Marsupilami, created while he worked on the Spirou et Fantasio comic strip from 1947 to 1969, during a period seen by many as the series' golden age.-Franquin's beginnings:Franquin was...
and Jidéhem
Jidéhem
Jean De Mesmaeker known by the pseudonym Jidéhem, is a Belgian comics artist in the Marcinelle school tradition. A creator of his own series Sophie, and Ginger, and noted for his work with Starter and Uhu-man, he is perhaps best known for his collaborations and assistance to the work of André...
and published in the comics magazine
Franco-Belgian comics magazines
Belgium and France have a long tradition in comics. They have a common history for comics and magazines.In the early years of its history, magazines had a large place on the comics market and were often the only place where comics were published. Most of them were kids-targeted.In the 1970s,...
Spirou
Spirou (magazine)
Spirou magazine is a weekly Belgian comics magazine published by the Dupuis company...
, while Franquin created the following work alone or together with Will
Will (comics)
Willy Maltaite known by the pseudonym Will, was a comics creator and comics artist in the Franco-Belgian tradition...
.
Synopsis
Noël lives in the little village of ChampignacChampignac
Champignac, or specifically Champignac-en-Cambrousse, is a fictional village frequently featured in the adventures of Spirou et Fantasio by André Franquin and the successive authors. The initial idea of Champignac is attributed to Henri Gillain...
. As Christmas Day approaches, he is more sad and unhappy than ever because he has no friends and his parents are poor and can't afford gifts for him. However, each year, Noël lives a good Christmas, either thanks to the Marsupilami
Marsupilami
Marsupilami is a fictional comic book species created by André Franquin, first published on 31 January 1952 in the magazine Spirou. Since then it appeared regularly in the popular Belgian comic book series Spirou et Fantasio until Franquin stopped working on the series in 1968 and the character...
or the Elaoin Sdrétu.
The atmosphere of the series was sometimes melancholic, as in some other of Franquin's work. The same atmosphere is also present in the Gaston Lagaffe
Gaston Lagaffe
Gaston is a comic strip created in 1957 by the Belgian cartoonist André Franquin in the comic strip magazine, Spirou. The series focuses on the every-day life of Gaston Lagaffe, a lazy and accident-prone office junior...
series at the times of Christmas: the "miraculous" and idealized period of Christmas and New year is a recurring theme in Franquin's series.
Some of Noël's stories were more humorous: in one story he and the Marsupilami go to a sports stadium to watch a tennis match — only for the creature to ruin a wonderful game by catching the ball in mid-air.
Characters
- Noël is a small, shy, introverted, quite unhappy and unlucky boy. His schoolmates make fun of him.
- The Elaoin Sdrétu is an automatonAutomatonAn automaton is a self-operating machine. The word is sometimes used to describe a robot, more specifically an autonomous robot. An alternative spelling, now obsolete, is automation.-Etymology:...
, a resourceful machine able to guess and provide what a human needs to be happy. - Marsupilami is a friendly animal whose extremely long and agile tail provides many possibilities.
Publications in Spirou
- 1957 N.1027 (2 strips) La bûche de Noël by Franquin and Jidéhem
- 1958 N.1078 (2 strips) Les étranges amis de Noël by Franquin
- 1959 N.1131 (short story) Noël et l’Elaoin by Franquin
- 1964 N.1354 (4 strips) Joyeuses paques pour mon p’tit Noël by Franquin
Albums
- Le prisonnier du bouddhaLe prisonnier du BouddhaLe prisonnier du Bouddha, written by Franquin and Greg, drawn by Franquin with assistance by Jidéhem, is the fourteenth album of the Spirou et Fantasio series...
and Panade à ChampignacPanade à ChampignacPanade à Champignac is the nineteenth album of the Spirou et Fantasio series. The story, written and drawn by Franquin, was serialised along with Bravo les Brothers in Spirou, before publication as a hardcover album in 1969.-Story:...
, two albums of the Spirou et Fantasio series drawn by Franquin, feature Noël. - Noël et l'élaoin was published in black and white by the Yann Rudler editions in 1978. It was reedited in colours in 1982 by Bédérama editions.
- Crontch, crontch, was published by Durango editions in 1986.
- Capturez un MarsupilamiCapturez un MarsupilamiCapturez un Marsupilami!, written and drawn by André Franquin, is a comic album containing adventures and short gags of the Marsupilami. Although not collected in one album until 2002, the contents are the earliest works of the original artist, from publications in Risque Tout and Spirou, and...
, the seminal Marsupilami album contains a few stories with Noël, published 2002 by Marsu ProductionsMarsu ProductionsMarsu Productions, or simply Marsu, is a publishing house and licensing and merchandising company located in Monaco, managing Franco-Belgian comics characters and copyright concerns, chiefly from the comics universe of André Franquin...
editions. - Les Noëls de Franquin, published by Marsu-Productions in 2006, groups all the stories drawn by Franquin and pre-published in Spirou in the 1950s and 1960s in relation with the Christmas period: covers, calendars, illustrations and some Noël strips.
- Retrouvailles, an album made under Franquin's supervision, with script by Serdu and artwork by Stibane, published in 1990 by Marsu Productions.
Sources
- Noël publications in Le Journal de Spirou BDoubliées
- Noël et L'Elaoin Franquin.com
External links
- Official website
- Le Petit Noël on MarsuProductions.com