THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN

If one were to name the most influential comics, 'The Adventures of Tintin' ('Les Aventures de Tintin') would most certainly qualify. Created by Belgian artist Hergè in 1929, the intrepid boy reporter Tintin and his faithful dog Snowy embarked on a remarkable series of international adventures over 24 beloved comic albums. Even now, nearly a century later, nothing quite compares: carefully constructed stories enriched with vivid characters and a deep fascination with foreign lands and cultures, rendered in a beautifully simple and deeply evocative visual style. They're funny, scary, thrilling, and surprising, striking that distinct balance of appealing to both adults and children equally. For those of us who grew up reading the stories of Tintin, Snowy, the rambunctious drunkard Captain Haddock, the bumbling scientist Professor Calculus and the hapless detectives Thomson and Thompson, these great works of popular art are practically sacred.

Despite the clarity of their construction, Tintin has been surprisingly tricky to adapt to other mediums, despite many attempts including theatre, radio, cinema and television. The tricky part is that, despite the cinematic qualities of Hergé's work, the stories are intrinsically linked to his art style, and his slight exaggeration of the characters makes their transition out of the graphic form difficult. The more successful attempts have turned to animation, whether the hand-drawn French attempts for film and television in the 1950s, 60s and 70s, or Steven Spielberg's spectacular motion-capture adaptation in 2011.

Arguably the most successful, though, came with 'The Adventures of Tintin', an ambitious co-production between French studio Ellipse and Canadian studio Nelvana adapting almost all of Hergé's then-published albums for television. First aired between 1991 and 1992, the 39-episode series devoted often two half-hour episodes to 21 of the Tintin albums, with voice performances recorded in both French and English.

When the series first aired in Australia in 1992, 'The Adventures of Tintin' was a major event in our household, as it was for many people my age. The albums were a staple of every school library, and the series captured much of the magic of Tintin's adventures, remaining relatively faithful to their narratives, looks, and tone. Take the opening titles, for example: a rollicking adventure theme not that far removed from 'Indiana Jones', making it clear from the beginning that we were in for a mix of excitement and danger.

It's no surprise that Tintin's adventures should lend themselves to a serialised TV format, especially one aimed at children. Most Tintin albums began as serialised newspaper comics, so the rise and fall of dramatic action mirrors that of a children's television program. There's also the unusual nature of Tintin himself - despite his clear qualities of bravery and ingenuity, we know essentially nothing about him, certainly far less than the many supporting characters around him. We have no notion of his parentage, his eduction, even his age. He's a blank page on which we can project ourselves, a fantastic quality of the comics, and while the series does make some changes from the albums, Tintin's ambiguity is fully preserved. For a child watching, it allows for greater emotional investment, particularly in the more complex adventures. Tintin becomes the eyes through which we explore the world and see such wondrous and terrible things. The international nature of the Tintin stories is also a major appeal, and the series maintains Hergè's curiosity for the places Tintin visits.

The series also stays faithful to Hergé's art style, with relatively simple animation bringing the images to life. That isn't to say the series simply uses the albums as a storyboard; instead, the episodes consider the movement and tone of each volume, with the motion in each sequence reminiscent of what the comic panels suggest. Looking at the series now decades later, its limitations are clear and at times, it has a rudimentary quality, but it's also surprising how inventive and cinematic it looks. There's some really clever stuff in this series, at times reminiscent of the incredible work that would be done with 'Batman: The Animated Series' a year later.

The quality of any set of episodes does depend on the volume being adapted. Bangers such as 'The Secret of the Unicorn' or 'The Blue Lotus' really stand out, while more meandering stories such as 'The Broken Ear' aren't as strong. A little of the bite has also been removed at points, such as Captain Haddock's alcoholism, which often drove his anger and his redemption within the comics themselves. Thankfully, this occasional sanitisation doesn't sap the series of its drama or danger. You still get the drug cartels, the undead mummies, the surreal dreams, the thrilling chases and death-defying stunts, along with the slapstick gags and the cracking wit.

One could dismiss 'The Adventures of Tintin' as a stilted relic from the history of children's television, but I was genuinely surprised at how quickly it drew me in, just as it had when I was a child. Revisiting it for this review has been such a pleasure, and left me all the more appreciative of the efforts of Ellipse and Nelvana to bring the (almost) full series of Tintin adventures to the screen in their modest yet spirited way. Maybe it's just misplaced optimism, but I like to think that children today would be just as enthralled.

PICTURE & SOUND
There's a lot to unpack with Via Vision's release of 'The Adventures of Tintin' as part of their Imprint Television label, particularly with the video presentation. The series first came out on Blu-ray in Australia as a 5-disc edition from Madman in 2011, though I don't have that set to compare it with. I do, however, have the 75th anniversary DVD box set (also from Madman), released in 2004. While the 2004 release presented the episodes in the order of the books themselves, each double episode edited together, this Imprint release presents the series in its original three-season broadcast order and episode length.

The most controversial aspect of this release is that the episodes are not presented in their original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. Instead, we have the 1.77:1 versions "matted" for widescreen, likely the same versions released on the 2011 set. It's a real disappointment not to have the original versions (the opening and closing titles have also been reconstructed to work in the new aspect ratio), though blame probably shouldn't be levelled at Via Vision for this. This is likely the only high-definition version of the series publicly available, and the label is working with the best they have. For the most part it isn't too noticeable, but there are definitely moments where the cropping doesn't work.

As for picture quality, it's also a bit of a mixed bag. For the most part, the 1080p image is a significant, even startling, upgrade from the DVD release. It's clear that a general clean-up has been done to tidy up the image, with the colours now popping beautifully, and even the dirt and scratches in the images give the episodes a lovely texture, suggesting that the image has been taken from a film negative. There are moments though (particularly with earlier episodes) where the quality drops significantly, possibly from a VHS source. The quality shift is pretty startling but jumps back and forth constantly when this occurs, which perhaps indicates that less-than-ideal elements had to be used to make up for a damaged or missing original negative.

Could 'The Adventures of Tintin' have looked better on Blu-ray? Perhaps with a full ground-up restoration and certainly with the original aspect ratio preserved. It's important to remember that this is, relatively speaking, a niche animated series from the early 90s, and the same efforts afforded 'Batman: The Animated Series' (a major series from a major studio) were never likely to be afforded this series. This is likely the best we're going to get, and at the very least, Via Vision are working with the best they likely have, presenting the series as close to its original format as possible.

Where the set distinguishes itself is the audio options. The default is the English dub, presented in LPCM 2.0 audio, and for the most part it is functional and clear. I would imagine this is the same track used for the 2011 release. What the Imprint release adds, though, is the original French audio presented in a LPCM 2.0 track with optional English subtitles. Again, it's a functional and clear track, but there are some distinct differences between the two tracks apart from the language difference. The score, for example, is a different recording of the same compositions, distinguishing the audio further from the English dub. The latter is relatively well-done and the series was likely built to accommodate for it, but though most will prefer the English dub as a standard, it's very exciting to finally have the series with its original audio. While this doesn't make up for the video issues, it's certainly a welcome addition.

SPECIAL FEATURES
None of the special features on this set have anything to do with the series itself, which again may have been to do with accessible material. A retrospective on the series or even a short featurette on its restoration would have been a nice addition. Luckily, Via Vision have pulled together material from Tintin's other on-screen adventures. Most of them will likely be no more than curios, but they do add extra value to the set.

THE CALCULUS AFFAIR (1963) [59:32]
This adaptation of the 18th Tintin album was produced for the comic's first television serial, which ran on French television from 1957 to 1963 as 103 five-minute episodes by Belvision. 'The Calculus Affair' was later cobbled together into a feature film and is considered the first animated feature adaptation. Compared to the 1991-1992 series, this is clunkier and less engaging, though its simple animation and score have real charm. Presented with 1.77:1 1080p video and LPCM 2.0 audio, the image is nowhere near to the standard of the series. Given its odd production, it's likely there isn't much capacity for a full restoration. Unfortunately, we're only given the English dub rather than the French original.

TINTIN AND THE TEMPLE OF THE SUN (1969) [1:17:54]
Produced by the same team at Belvision who produced the first television serial of Tintin, this adaptation of 'The Seven Crystal Balls' and 'Prisoners of the Sun' is a sturdier film than 'The Calculus Affair', mostly because it's actually constructed as a film rather than five-minute segments. It has visual ambition that creates some effective moments, but it never matches the original albums' unsettling tone. The 1.77:1 1080p transfer is also stronger than 'The Calculus Affair' (again likely because it's an actual film), but once again, we have only the English dub in a LPCM 2.0 track with no original audio. Of the three animated feature films on this set, this is the one I most wish it had its original audio, mostly because of the film's overall strength.

TINTIN AND THE LAKE OF SHARKS (1972) [1:16:15]
Of all the Tintin animated features (including the 2011 film), 'Lake of Sharks' is the only one not based on a Hergè album, and it shows. The storytelling is very clunky, and none of the characters behaves in any way that feels familiar. The 177:1 1080p transfer is the strongest of the three, but the English dub on this one (offered in LPCM 2.0 audio) is by far the worst. Definitely more interesting as a curiosity.

I, TINTIN (1976) [53:42]
This nifty little documentary, a French-Belgian co-production, was produced partly by the same team behind the French animated features and combines an interview with Hergè himself with historical footage and frames from the albums. What works really nicely is that it explores the albums one by one, providing commentary on Hergè's historical and cultural influences. This includes the early controversial albums on the Soviet Union and the Congo. The film also explores Hergè's artistic touchstones, placing them side by side with his artwork. Presented in 1.6:1 standard definition, the image quality is definitely to be desired, but at least it includes the original French audio in LPCM 2.0 with automatic subtitles.

TINTIN AND I (2003) [1:17:04]
Of all the additional films included on this set, 'Tintin and I' is certainly the best. Directed by Anders Høgsbro Østergaard, the documentary makes use of the audio from an interview between Hergè and French filmmaker Numa Sadoul in the 1970's, which was intended to be a standard interview but evolved into a surprisingly honest and moving meditation from Hergè about his life and work. At the heart of the conversation is 'Tintin in Tibet', Hergè's masterpiece from the late 1950's, and the core artistic relationship that influenced it. 'Tintin and I' is a careful and gentle portrait of the artist, as well as a fascinating discussion on the wider cultural importance of the Tintin albums. Easily the highlight of the set, the film is presented in widescreen standard definition with the original audio in LPCM 2.0 and automatic subtitles.

As for the packaging, this is one of Imprint's hardbox releases, with Tintin in various poses and outfits on a blue background that is consistent across the outer box and the four Blu-ray cases inside. The six discs are split up across four cases, with two discs for each of the three seasons and two discs for the additional films. As handsome as the set is, there are quite a few errors on the covers and the disc art regarding what is on what disc.

Overall, Imprint Television have done an admirable job of bringing this wonderful series back to Blu-ray in Australia. The set shows the limits these boutique labels face in terms of accessible material, but they should be commended for pulling together as much of the best material possible to make the set a worthy event.