GIRAUD

JEAN GIRAUD BLUEBERRY L'Homme qui valait 500 000 dollars (T.14), Dargaud 1973 Original plate no. 5, prepublished in Pilote no. 607 June 24, 1971. India ink on paper 38.7 × 49.8 cm (15.24 × 19.61 in.) L'Homme qui valait 500 000 dollars" (The Man Worth $500,000) is a former colonel who knows the location of the Confederate treasure, the money that was to finance his side in the American Civil War. But the man who knows where the loot is is locked up in the prison-fortress of Corvado, in the Mexican town of Chihuahua. Everyone - gobernador Lopez, Chihuahua Pearl, commander Vigo, jayhawkers Kimball and Finley - is on the hunt for the pile of gold. Blueberry, on the other hand, knows where to look, which is why everyone is chasing him. He tries to link up with his friends McClure and Red Neck, with whom he has a rendezvous in the town. But the governor's spies are watching... What's incredible about Blueberry is the density of the action and the perfect characterization of the characters. Added to this is Gir's drawing, which is at its best here. His ability to change shot, sequence and point of view in a single panel is simply dazzling. It's a masterpiece of storytelling! Not to mention a graphic tempo that looks so easy... yet is so sophisticated and elegant.