Donjon (comic)

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Donjon is a French comic series published since 1998 by Lewis Trondheim , Joann Sfar , Christophe Blain , Manu Larcenet and other artists, many of them with ties to the independent publisher L'Association . The original is still published by the major Delcourt publishing house and is divided into several main and secondary series. The German translation was first published by Carlsen Verlag in 1999 , and is currently being published by Reprodukt . Donjon is a parody of other works of the fantasy genre , which also often cover a large number of volumes .

Content and concept

The name of the comic is derived from the French term for the main tower of a medieval fortification, as well as from the morphologically related English expression dungeon , which stands for the dungeon of a castle. Joann Sfar conceived the series as a parody of role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons . While in this game principle "groups of heroes" climb into dungeons and caves to kill monsters and acquire treasures guarded by them, this undertaking is countered by a commercial concept in Donjon . The donjon is, according to the French meaning of the word, a monumental tower complex. In this monsters are recruited to kill invading heroes, as well as other personnel to maintain traps. The business is financed by selling the weapons and other equipment of the heroes who invade the fortress in search of gold and experience.

The series

The Donjon album series consists of three main and three (in German so far only two) sub-series. So-called "levels" are specified as the timeline, which in the case of the main series correspond to the band numbering and should not be confused with the experience levels from role-playing games. In the French original, the titles of each row rhyme.

Donjon Dawn tells of the youth of Hyazinth de Cavallère, who later became the manager of the donjon. The timeline extends from level −99 theoretically to 0, whereby the transition is fluid and a sub-band at level −4 is thematically more related to the following epoch.

Donjon Zenit begins in the main series with level 1 and is about the heyday of the donjon. Here Herbert and Marvin are established as the actual main characters of the series, while Hyazinth, now called "Warden", is an important supporting character.

Donjon Abendrot , formally beginning with level 101, tells an apocalyptic story in which Terra Amata , the world of the donjon, falls apart. Life continues on flying islands held together by gravity and with the “red Marvin” a new and young main character joins the aged heroes.

Donjon Parade , Monster and Bonus are the three subsidiary series. In Parade Herbert and Marvin experience shorter, self-contained adventures, all of which are between level 1 and 2. While this series is the only one that has been implemented exclusively by one draftsman, Manu Larcenet , in Monster the draftsmen alternate with each volume. This series illuminates secondary aspects of the main series or supplements them with the point of view of other characters. Bonus, on the other hand, so far contains a secondary work and some albums in black and white reproduction and has not been released in German. In 2020 a new series started, Antipodes - which plays 10,000 levels before the other volumes, while a second new series, Antipodes + , which plays 10,000 levels after the others, has only been announced so far.

Drawing implementation

Most of the figures are designed as anthropomorphic animals , with the exception of mythical creatures such as trolls and vampires . In addition, in the painting of Terra Amata there is a style of depicting people as people, which alienates the young Marvin in The Son of the Dragon Woman. He finds Hyacinth's wife much prettier in her real form as a bird. Hyacinth, on the other hand, appreciates this style very much, this is not only stated by the painter, you can also see it in a portrait of Hyacinth's lover, the snake woman Alexandra.

While Sfar and Trondheim are solely responsible for the stories of the series and have written all the albums that have appeared so far in pairs, the graphic implementation is in the hands of many artists, who often handle the template very individually, so that their contribution to Donjon is on reminiscent of the rest of her oeuvre. Even the German comic artist Andreas , who never works with anthropomorphic animals in his other works, remains easily recognizable thanks to the extremely high-format panels that he typically uses , which sometimes stretch across a whole page like a column. Nevertheless, the characters involved always remain easily recognizable.

characters

Herbert von Vaucanson / The Great Khan (French Herbert de Vaucanson alias le Grand Khân)

The duck from the land where the birds are free and Duke of Vaucanson (duc de Vaucanson) has had a difficult, formative childhood. The fact that Herbert killed one of his teachers emotionally during school and then had to fight his father in a duel, he hides from his friends. Apart from these unpleasant childhood experiences, which have not yet been examined in more detail in Donjon, Herbert is a carefree, somewhat naive good-for-nothing, who likes to avoid work and always tries with all means to stay away from difficulties. However, this goes horribly wrong when he, in his capacity of the messenger boys and plaster man in Donjon is to bring the barbarians Ababakar Oktopuss, who stirs up with his sandal royal tombs, the keeper of the keep. Octopuss dies on the way at the hand of the dumb Zongo - whereupon Herbert knows nothing better than to pass himself off as Ababakar Oktopuss.

This new role also requires the octopus to wear the sword. Herbert does not know that this weapon is the sword of fate, which is only at the service of its bearer after he has performed three great deeds with his bare hands. No other weapon can be wielded by the sword bearer for so long. When his false identity is revealed, he should prove himself as a warrior or die for the donjon .

Marvin, the proud dragonist / The Dust King (French Marvin alias le Roi-poussière)

Marvin is a friend of Herbert. At the beginning of the series, Marvin is still a red, flying dragonist with a loincloth and a lot of skull jewelry. But he already loses his wings in the first Zenit album and when he turns away from his master, he also takes off his skull and puts on armor for himself. Marvin's most impressive attack technique is the Tong Deum, in which he spits a fiery broth, which is made up of his gastric juices and is extremely caustic.

Marvin, who belongs to the race of the Dragonists, an intelligent, two-legged subgroup of the dragons, is bound by a strict code of honor: He must not kill anyone who offends him. Marvin therefore hates the people of the city of rabbits and has vowed to burn the city down in twenty years. He is also a vegetarian and believes in the honor of a warrior.

His love is for fat Sonja, a thieving giantess, and nothing makes him more nervous than the presence of small children. He is also very good at baking cookies.

The keeper / Hyacinth de Cavallère (French Gardien du Donjon / Hyacinthe de Cavallère alias la Chemise de la nuit)

The cranky, sullen little bird always smokes a pipe, which is why the floor of his workroom is covered in thick smoke. He runs the donjon and maintains the monsters that live there. Because after the death of his wife he has nothing left but the dark walls, he puts the security of the Donjon before everything else. With a pursuit of profit, he hoards his treasures in a hall deep within the walls of the fortress, which also houses the huge donjon dragon. The keeper avoids the name hyacinth.

The behavior of the young Hyacinth differs fundamentally from his later character: He is kind, generous, idealistic, naive, lovable and constantly exposed to the adverse circumstances of his environment. As a young man he left his father's country estate and came to the city of Antipolis to study there. As a fellow student, he met his future closest confidante Alcibiades, the gnomonist, and Horus, the necromancer. Here he also falls in love with the assassin Alexandra.

When Hyacinth realizes that the whole city is corrupt and unjust, he decides to fight the crime and takes on a second identity: "The shirt of the night". Unfortunately, Hyacinth's deeds, which his uncle and foreman Jean-Michel instruct him to do, are all too often in stark contrast to what Hyacinth does as the shirt of the night for justice.

Hyacinth receives God's pipe from little goblins out of gratitude for saving them. With various magical tobacco sorts, he has since acquired amazing abilities through constant smoking: He can see his fellow human beings naked or even without skin, walk through walls and much more.

Princess Isis of Zephalonia (French Isis de Céphalonie, princesse barbare)

In order to compensate for the dwindling number of visitors to the donjon , Herbert quickly invents the mysterious Princess Isis, who is held hostage in the dungeon and who - to everyone's great surprise - turns out to be by no means invented and very much alive. In fact, Herbert and Isis know each other fleetingly from their childhood, as the drake of Vaucanson was supposed to marry the princess of the cat-shaped Crosaks of Zephalonia to end the conflict between the two peoples. Involuntarily he chooses her name for an alleged cry for help, whereupon the princess sees her chance and flees to the donjon. She is not ready to marry the great, mindless mountains of muscle that her father, the leader of the Krosaken, wants to put by her side. Instead, she longs for a feeble, intelligent, poetic husband who seems to have also been found in the shape of Herbert. Her father sees it differently and promises Isis to the keeper of the donjon . Reluctantly, in order to avoid further complications, he agrees - only to be betrayed by Isis with Herbert a short time later.

Nubbel (French Grogro)

Marvin and Herbert's best friend is a clumsy, fat, hairy donjon monster. Nubbel's favorite hobby is food - everything that does not get to safety quickly enough or has been expressly forbidden by the guard. He has a particular fondness for rabbits.

Horus (French Horus alias Horous, nécromant)

Horus is a necromancer and has mastered a wide variety of techniques to remove intestines or extremities from his fellow human beings and to use them again. He can also summon undead donkeys and leads the skeleton soccer team in the donjon .

Alkibiades (French Alcibiade, magicien)

The gnomonist can prophesy through the eyes of giants or through crystal balls and serves as a scientific advisor in the donjon .

Red Marvin (French Marvin Rouge)

The red Marvin comes from Lispelamm, the city of rabbits. There, a red fur has been a bad omen since the dragonist Marvin took revenge for his insult by the rabbits. That is why every rabbit born with red fur is baptized Marvin and chased away. Marvin is living in the wild as a lone warrior when he meets the ancient dragonist Marvin, who at this point is blind and wingless. He becomes his constant companion and calls him master. Red Marvin is full of energy and zest for action and bristling with self-confidence, but at the same time, due to his youth, is impetuous, cheeky and often clumsy. He has constantly changing relationships with girls that he can hardly reconcile.

Zongo

The wild boar with purple fur is actually called Tristan Chambon and is the retarded son of the head of the morgue of the necromancers in Antipolis, Victor Chambon. He wants his son to study necromancy, but Zongo soon finds refuge in the Cavallères castle. In "Zenit" he is one of the strongest monsters in the Donjon. The only word he seems to have mastered is “Zongo,” and his only ability to speak of is to club living things and objects into lumps.

Professor Hippolytus

The zoologist Hippolytus fled Antipolis to the castle of the Cavallères at the very beginning of “Dawn”. In the dungeons there, which are getting bigger and bigger, he keeps various monsters for research purposes. He is the father of Alcibiades.

Alexandra

The beautiful snake woman Alexandra is an unscrupulous assassin who works for all those in power in Antipolis. In “Dawn” she is the leader of the killers' guild and falls in love with Hyacinth de Cavallère. Blain designed them on the model of film divas of the 1960s such as Brigitte Bardot or Jane Fonda .

Kadmiom

Kadmiom is an important stooge of the Killer Guild in “Dawn”. In "Zenit" he is the chief jailer of the Donjon.

Guillaume de la Cour

The noble Gockel de la Cour is a sneaky lawyer and arch enemy of the Donjon. He can neither fight nor do magic, but he robs his environment through dubious contracts, decrees and other bureaucratic nasties. De la Cour owes his business acumen to his calculating and stingy mother.

Orlondow

The drachistic shaman lives in a hollow in a stone hill that can only be entered through a hole on the top. He speaks to distant people through the fire and seems to be one of the few who can still see through the chaotic situation of "dusk".

Gilberto

Gilberto is Orlondow's right hand man. He is a somewhat weird bird with a great knowledge of magical plants and substances, but has a little drug problem.

Gork

Görk is a lizard and loyal devotee of the great Khan. Together with his brother Krag, he guards a secret entrance to the black fortress.

places

The castle de Cavallère is the ancestral seat of the noble family of Cavallères at dawn . Through the work of numerous goblins, it was expanded to become a donjon populated by numerous monsters, the tallest towers of which can be seen from ten days' distance. In "Zenit" the business model of the donjon is already fully developed: curious adventurers are lured by the treasures of the donjon, in most cases perish in the battles with the monsters and multiply the donjon treasure with their own belongings. Every now and then you let an adventurer run with a few treasures and use them to advertise the Donjon. In "Dusk" the donjon has become a refuge for evil, the black fortress in which Gehenna rules.

Antipolis is a confusing metropolis, not far from the Cavallères castle. It has a large university and is surrounded by a wide moat. Many people ask for money to use their bridges, jetties or ferries. The city's government is corrupt and corruptible. The entire city collapses at dawn due to a risky project to build a subway .

The town of Schweinsfuhl , surrounded by a high wooden palisade, is a place of refuge for all persecuted magicians. Only magicians are allowed to enter the city. All dwellings are either built under green hills or look like balls of moss with windows and doors. The city's main meeting point is an underground pub where guests sit between large tree roots.

Lispelamm , the city of rabbits, is extremely provincial and petty-bourgeois. Without exception, its residents treat every foreigner with an almost natural xenophobia. However, the city is famous for its delicious beer.

Vaucanson is the home of birds and Herbert's home. The name goes back to the French inventor Jacques de Vaucanson , who became famous in the 18th century for the construction of mechanical automatons, especially his mechanical duck.

In Köterburg , the city of dogs, all birds live like slaves and in a ghetto. They are not allowed to wear clothes or weapons, talk to the dogs or look at them. Once a year, numerous birds are killed by the dogs, stuffed with chestnuts and eaten.

The great Pupulu is the fortress of the Olfen and is surrounded by a great wall. Olfen are small, spherical creatures that look very harmless, but are actually dangerous and belligerent warriors. In the large Pupulu there is a botanical library, a huge archive of herbs and drugs.

The Divinascopus less city as a giant observatory with several telescopes. The astrologers here know the exact course of the future.

Development history

Sfar suggested to Trondheim for a long time that they work on a comic project together. Originally the series was limited to Donjon Zenit . In 1996 the first part appeared: Les Insoumis (dt. The rebels ) of the comic series Troll , the first three parts of which Sfar developed together with co- scenarist Jean-David Morvan and illustrator Olivier Boiscommun . In 1998, in the same year as The Heart of a Duck , the second Le dragon du donjon (Eng. Der Drachenhort , appeared in a volume with Die Rebellen ), which commercialized the same basic idea of pen & paper role-playing games with the means of a commercialized Parodying “dungeons” without using anthropomorphic characters. Donjon development began in 1997 after Trondheim left L'Association. It is therefore unclear for which of the two series the idea was developed first.

Donjon Dusk was created because Sfar wanted to draw for the series. Trondheim declined because he was busy with other work, but was convinced by the draft of the first three pages to take part. Without taking it seriously, Trondheim then suggested expanding the concept with a history. Donjon Dawn was born and was first implemented by Blain. Then Sfar and Trondheim wrote 20 to 30 smaller episodes that they wanted to have produced as an animated series. This project failed, but stories from it were later adapted for Donjon Parade .

Overview of the albums

Bd./Level (Donjon Antipodes -) ( 1 ) Illustrator Colorist Release date ( 2 )
−10000 The army of skulls (L'Armée du crâne) ( 5 ) Grégory Panaccione Walter - (01/2020)
Bd./Level Donjon dawn (Donjon Potron-Minet) ( 1 ) Illustrator Colorist Release date ( 2 )
−99 The shirt of the night (La chemise de la nuit) Christophe Blain Walter 2001 (11/1999)
−98 An avenger in distress (Un justicier dans l'ennui) Christophe Blain Walter 2002 (04/2001)
−97 The end of a youth (Une jeunesse qui s'enfuit) Christophe Blain Walter 2006 (05/2003)
−84 After the rain (après la pluie) Christophe Blain Walter 2007 (05/2006)
−83 The last knight (Sans un bruit) Christophe Gaultier Walter 2010 (09/2008)
Bd./Level Donjon Zenit (Donjon Zénith) ( 1 ) Illustrator Colorist Release date ( 2 )
1 The heart of a duck (Cœur de canard) Lewis Trondheim Walter 1999 (03/1998)
2 The King of Warriors (Le roi de la bagarre) Lewis Trondheim Walter 2000 (10/1998)
3 The princess of the barbarians (La princesse des barbaren) Lewis Trondheim Walter 2000 (02/2000)
4th Failed spell (Sortilège et avatar) Lewis Trondheim Brigitte Findakly & Lewis Trondheim 2002 (02/2002)
5 Wedding with obstacles (Un mariage à part) Boulet Boulet 2007 (06/2006)
6th The prodigal son (Retour en fanfare) Boulet Boulet & Lucie Albion 2009 (11/2007)
7th Beyond the Walls (Hors des remparts) ( 5 ) Boulet Boulet - (01/2020)
Bd./Level Donjon Dusk (Donjon Crépuscule) ( 1 ) Illustrator Colorist Release date ( 2 )
101 The dragon cemetery (Le cimetière des dragons) Joann Sfar Walter 2001 (04/1999)
102 The Vaucanson volcano (Le volcan des Vaucanson) Joann Sfar Walter 2002 (03/2001)
103 Armaggedon Joann Sfar Walter 2007 (04/2002)
104 The flying sea (Le dojo du lagon) Kerascoet Walter 2010 (06/2005)
105 The new centurions (Les nouveaux centurions) Kerascoet Walter 2011 (10/2006)
106 Bear services (Révolutions) Obion Walter 2011 (06/2009)
110 High septentrion (skin septentrion) Alfred Walter 2014 (03/2014)
111 The end of the donjon (La Fin du Donjon) Mazan Walter 2015 (04/2015)
Bd./Level Donjon Parade ( 1 ) Illustrator Colorist Release date ( 2 )
1 / 1-2 Another dungeon (Carlsen) / Another donjon (reproduction) (Un donjon de trop) Manu Larcenet Walter 2004, 2010 (09/2000)
2 / 1-2 The wise man from the ghetto (Le say du ghetto) Manu Larcenet Walter 2004 (09/2001)
3 / 1-2 The day of the frogs (Le jour des crapauds) Manu Larcenet Walter 2005 (04/2002)
4 / 1-2 Brats, greens and pests (Des fleurs et des marmots) Manu Larcenet Walter 2005 (11/2004)
5 / 1-2 Nubbeltechnik (Technique Grogro) Manu Larcenet Walter 2008 (06/2007)
Vol. ( 3 ) / Level Donjon Monster (Donjon Monsters) ( 1 ) Illustrator Colorist Release date ( 2 )
1 / -4 Hans-Hans the Terrible (Jean-Jean la terreur) Mazan Walter 2006 (05/2001)
2 (12) / 3-4 The eye of the giant (Le géant qui pleure) Jean-Christophe Menu Walter 2012 (10/2001)
3/103 The main menu (La carte majeure) Andreas Walter 2007 (12/2002)
4 (6) / 103 The black prince (Le noir seigneur) Blanquet Blanquet 2008 (06/2003)
5 (8) / - 97 The great heartbreaker (La nuit du tombeur) Jean-Emmanuel Vermot-Desroches Walter 2010 (02/2003)
6 (4) / 40 Barley juice is a secret (you ramdam chez les brasseurs) Yoann Yoann 2008 (04/2003)
7 / -90 The Dragon Woman's Son (Mon fils le tueur) Blutch Walter 2009 (09/2003)
8 (11) / - 85 The beautiful murderess (Crève-cœur) Carlos Nine Carlos Nine 2010 (01/2004)
9 (2) / 75 The armies of the deep (les profondeurs) Patrice Killoffer Walter & Patrice Killoffer 2006 (08/2004)
10 (5) / 95 The honor of the soldiers (Des soldats d'honneur) Bézian Walter 2008 (01/2006)
11 (10) / - 400 The master of the automatons (Le grand animateur) Stanislas Dominique Thomas ( 4 ) 2010 (09/2007)
12 (9) / 7 The inventor's book (Le grimoire de l'inventeur) Nicolas Kéramidas Walter 2010 (01/2008)
Bd./Level Donjon Bonus ( 5 ) Illustrator Colorist Release date ( 2 )
1/? Clefs en main Joann Sfar & Lewis Trondheim - (black-and-white) (10/2001)
2 / -90 Mon fils le tueur Blutch - (black-and-white) (07/2004)
3/95 The soldier's d'honneur Bézian - (black-and-white) (05/2006)
4 / 1.5 fortissimo Manu Larcenet - (small-format anthology of the 4 first Donjon Parade) (09/2006)
5 / -84 Après la pluie Christophe Blain - (black-and-white) (12/2006)

1 In brackets the original French title 2 In brackets the original publication date 3 In brackets the German numbering that differs from the original 4 With the support of Robin Doo 5 Not yet published in German

reception

Andreas Platthaus praises Donjon as "the most insane comic series in the world" . For him, the series combines “Japanese madness with French narrative hubris” . For him, Trondheim and Sfar are "equally perfect" as draftsmen and scenarioists and they can also fall back on a team of outstanding draftsmen and, in Walter, on a "fantastic colourist" . For Marc Degens, the cycle blends elements from computer games, fantasy literature, manga and superhero comics in an often parodic way. The result is comic fun that is unprecedented in terms of humor, madness, variety and ingenuity. "

Donjon Monsters in particular is received more critically by Stefan Pannor, according to him "of course always a little hit and miss" . In particular, Hans-Hans the Terrible and The Armies of the Deep can only convince him when it comes to the drawings; the stories remain insignificant and predictable. The Black Prince and especially The Dragon Woman's Son are, in Pannor's eyes, “very exorbitant entertainment comics . "[... The entire Donjon saga is ultimately based on the contrast between the absurd, excessive violence and poetic comedy."

While Platthaus 2003 Trondheim and Sfar still trusted the completion of the 300 albums of the main series, Pannor recognized this in 2007 as a self-deprecating means of satire on the “megalomania of fantasy” .

radio play

Levels 1-5 were produced as radio plays by SRF in 2017 , including a. with Hans-Georg Panczak as Herbert, Jörg Döring as Marvin and Jodoc Seidel as “warden”. Radio play adaptation and direction: Wolfram Höll and Johannes Mayr .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c d Kai-Steffen Schwarz, Volker Hamann: Lewis Trondheim . In: Reddition 57: L'Association , Edition Alfons , Barmstedt 2012, p. 19.
  2. ^ Günter Krenn: Joann Sfar . In: Reddition 57: L'Association , Edition Alfons, Barmstedt 2012, p. 40.
  3. The world of the Donjon. (PDF; 7.6 MB) Reprodukt, 2013, p. 3 , accessed on November 17, 2013 (advertising brochure for Donjon ).
  4. Trondheim & Sfar reviennent à leur "Donjon" on actuabd.com of 10 January 2020 Retrieved on May 4, 2020
  5. Blutch, Joann Sfar, Lewis Trondheim: Donjon Monster Vol. 7: The son of the dragon woman . Reprodukt, Berlin 2009, ISBN 978-3-941099-09-8 , p. 22.
  6. Joann Sfar, Lewis Trondheim: Donjon Zenit Vol. 1: The heart of a duck . Reprodukt, Berlin 2007, ISBN 978-3-938511-41-1 , p. 46.
  7. Andreas, Joann Sfar, Lewis Trondheim: Donjon Monster Vol. 3: The main map . Reprodukt, Berlin 2007, ISBN 978-3-938511-57-2 .
  8. a b Spiegelbilder: Architecture and character development in “Donjon Dawn” , on: yellowcomic.com .
  9. Marco Behringer: Blain . In: Reddition 57: L'Association , Edition Alfons, Barmstedt 2012, p. 60.
  10. Joann Sfar, Jean-David Morvan, Olivier Boiscommun: Troll Book 1 . Finix Comics, Hadamar 2013, ISBN 978-3-941236-80-6 , pp. 66-90.
  11. a b Andreas Platthaus: Andreas Platthaus' VENTIL No. July 3 , 2003, accessed November 19, 2013 .
  12. ^ Marc Degens: Donjon. March 2003, accessed November 18, 2017 .
  13. a b Stefan Pannor: In between - a little fantasy round-up. May 29, 2009. Retrieved November 19, 2013 .
  14. a b Stefan Pannor: Joann Sfar, Lewis Trondheim: Donjon Monster. January 2007, accessed on 19 November 2013 .
  15. ^ SRF