HERGÉ

HERGÉ TOTOR Original strip, consisting of three panels, published in Le Boy-Scout belge on May 10, 1929. India ink on paper 55.2 × 19.5 cm (21.73 × 7.68 in.) Anyone who loves Tintin is bound to know Totor. Totor is rightly regarded as "Tintin's ancestor", or rather as his forerunner, as the resemblance is so striking. Totor is a scout, as was Hergé. He's even a patrol leader, as was his author. Totor began his career in 1926 in the monthly Le Boy-Scout, the official organ of the Belgian Catholic Scouts (B.C.S.). The Totor strip presented here is taken from the story's last two issues in Le Boy-Scout belge, dated May 10 and June 10, 1929. It is therefore contemporary with Tintin's first steps in the land of the Soviets. It shows the daring Totor approaching the place where the bandit is bivouacking in the company of Save Hatt, the scout's aunt, whom he has captured. If words are superfluous, Hergé's drawing is faithful to the principles he is known for. Already in 1929, Hergé's drawings were sparing, to promote clarity of presentation. Nothing is superfluous. There's the smoke from the wood fire, the sunlight descending from one image to the next, the bandit's weapon and that of the hero, the post stuck in the middle of the rocks, the ties, the half-opened tin can and even the question mark marking the aunt's bewilderment at what she sees coming. Attitudes are supple, positions hieratic. White, black, squared or dotted, the different zones bring out the incipient beard of the bad guy, or the structure of the two protagonists' clothing.