introduction
I calmed down and thought carefully, if I could only recommend one comic, which one would I recommend?
Soon there was an answer.
Because since I saw this comic, I have loved it and read it more than once, and it can be said that it has opened another door to my comic book world
— The War of Alain, by French cartoonist Emmanuel Gibert.
This comic is very long, although every detail is very attractive, but I think that here, I don't have to start from scratch in a flat and straightforward way, I will use the form of reading notes + comic reviews to record the parts that attract me and affect me.
Hope my article will be helpful to some people.
To say one more thing, if you become interested in this comic through my text, you can buy one and go back, lie down on the couch, and read it carefully.
Believe me, the reading experience of traditional paper books with a little ink fragrance is definitely a very wonderful feeling.
And listen to the story.
First, the storytellers, Emmanuel Gibel and Alain Popular
The comic strip "The War of Alain", the author is Emmanuel Gibert, a Frenchman, the only child, because he likes comics, went to the National School of Decorative Arts in Paris to learn to draw, and then debuted at the age of 28.
At the age of 30, Gibel met the comic's protagonist, Alain Ingram Kop, a 69-year-old former U.S. World War II veteran in Paris, France.
Alain likes to tell stories, And Gibber listens carefully, and when he talks about it, it is almost half a day, and When He gets the treasure, he records Alain's story and organizes it into text.
In this way, after collecting for 5 years, in 2000, based on the recorded manuscript of Alain, he created "The War of Alain".
When I watched "Alain's War", I had the luxury that if Alain kept telling Gibert, then the "Alain" series would keep coming out, because I personally liked Alain's story.
However, in 1999, Alain Kop died at the age of 74.
He could no longer tell stories.
The place where Alain Kop, a 69-year-old World War II veteran, told a story to 30-year-old cartoonist Emmanuel Gibel was a log cabin built by Alain himself, and the outside of the wooden house was painted red and white.
Two people spending time together and both have fun.
The log cabin, destroyed by a storm in December 1999, was then razed to the ground by a rebuilt bulldozer.
Fortunately, Alain Kop died long before his beloved cabin and did not see the disaster that his cabin had experienced.
Just like he managed to avoid the disasters of his life.
2. Recruits
In 1941, when the 18-year-old delivered a newspaper in Pasadena, California, Alan received a conscription order, the day before he had delivered a headline that read, "Pearl Harbor Bombed by the Japanese."
As a newly enlisted recruit, Alain was put on a train to Fort Knox, Kentucky.
It may be that after watching too many World War II dramas such as "Company of Brothers", when it comes to the life of a recruit, it is inseparable from the devil instructor who hates everything, and the recruit egg of the coconut silk three button silk.
But Alain said that the life of a recruit in Fort Knox, Kentucky, in 1942 was completely different.
Their recruit life, like all people who have a beautiful vision of life and explore the future, is full of endless fun.
1. Deserting recruits
In March 1942, the recruit train stopped in Chicago, and while everyone was waiting for the transit train, someone was hungry and suggested that everyone go to the neighborhood to fight the tooth sacrifice.
The soldiers took obedience to orders as their duty, and after a brief ideological struggle, the Alains were finally overwhelmed by impulse and ran to a nearby food street, bought bread, peanut butter, small cakes and fruits, and prepared to return to the army to eat a big meal.
Back on the tracks, the brothers were dumbfounded: the train drove away.
The brothers were in a hurry, the punishment for deserters could be big or small, and the worst had to eat a few years of prison meals, and everyone ran to the stationmaster's room with the speed of lightning and could not cover their ears and steal the bell, and quickly sent a telegram to the next station.
The call back from the military column is also very interesting: comrades, the organization trusts you, and now that the time has come for the organization to test you, please go to the Fort Knox Barracks yourself to report.
Aranco a few of them are relieved, hey, since it's out, don't do two without stopping, come to a new York day trip.
Several of them discussed and like-minded people had this intention, so they went to New York's Central Station, climbed the 102nd floor of the Empire State Building to see the mountains, listened to jazz music at Rockefeller Center, ate a Michelin dinner, and finally arrived at the barracks.
2. "Hobbit" pit
After Alain became a soldier, the biggest threat to his life was generally from our side, and the first time was unforgettable, it was an experience of being "dug into a pit".
It's not a broad digging pit, it's a real pit.
On this day, the new barracks teaches everyone how to dodge the tank with bare hands, you don't panic, in fact, as long as there is a pit, you nest in, the pit is higher than you, the tank can't crush you.
Hey, don't panic, come and line up one by one and feel it.
Listening to the instructor's command, Alain also jumped into a pit dug in advance 5 seconds before the tank rushed over.
5！
Nima nested a big grass, which was a pit dug by the hobbits! Alain sat inside, shoulders and head still exposed, not to be alarmed!
4！
Alain, who was full of grief, used the bone reduction skill, inhaled and closed his abdomen, and walked you, his head was still higher than the hobbit pit.
3！
If you want to run out, it is too late, and if you go out now, you will definitely die a terrible death.
2！
The brain is blank
1！
I'm a little bit, there's a play, the slit in the middle of this tank is really big!
0！
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Watching the tank fade away, Alain, who was lucky to survive, came out of the hobbit pit and roared at the instructor, trying to pick up the gun and suddenly attack the instructor, only to find that the gun had been crushed into two burning sticks by the tank.
The instructor sighed at Alain's courage and gave 25 consecutive praises to the recruit boy.
3. Dancing man
In the recruit company, one man gave Alain the nickname "California."
Alain liked the nickname, so the two formed a little friendship, that is, Alain met this person, the person shouted at him "Hey California", and Alain spit in respect.
When Alain later recalled the nickname man, he affectionately referred to him as "earth turtle".
At the end of the war in 1945, Alain, who was in Czechoslovakia, received a letter from the man nicknamed the turtle, saying, Hello California, see the letter, my job after retiring from the army is to dance, thief Hala Shuang, and fight with me for the dance career for the rest of my life.
Alain's reply was also very crisp: Don't talk to me about this calf! You play a few levels, Don't be a laozi.
A few years later, when Alan was watching TV at home and saw the American star Gene Kelly's classic drama "Song in the Rain", he found that the male number two in it was the turtle nickname man, Donner O'Connor.
4. Crying fork
In 1942, at the age of 18, Alain received tank training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, USA.
Of course, without exception, this is yet another pit adventure.
Tanks, which looked very advanced at the time, had a steering wheel, which was actually two sticks on the left and right, much like the shape of a slingshot.
On this day, the instructor was very serious about teaching Alain how to drive a tank.
You look guy, driving a tank is very simple, turn left, you pull the left stick, turn right, just pull the right stick, stop, you pull the two sticks together and pull backwards.
Do you understand? OK, Gude!
Little ones, get up the drill!
The first lesson of tank driving is hitting a tree.
That's right, you read that right, it's driving a tank straight up to a tree and knocking it off.
As the saying goes, the outer training of muscles and bones, maybe this is the grinding of tanks, right? Alain didn't dare to say, and Alain didn't dare to ask.
Anyway, the training ground in front of Alan's eyes is that tanks, straight to the trees, and then cry forks!
The coach is not idle, the coach is in the tank lookout, that is, the position of the signal soldier, giving orders, what orders?
Rush aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Although Alain was driving for the first time, it was not difficult at all.
Tanks sail by sticks, and the instructor's teachings are remembered!
Turn left to pull the left stick, turn right to pull the right stick, stop to pull the double stick, the tank that Alain controls is driving straight, basically nothing is dry, the eyes are dazed and looking ahead, and then crying fork, the coach shouted: qualified.
Then there was a substitution, and Alain, who had successfully piloted, was still immersed in the joy of just now, sitting on the tank tower of the tank, admiring the driving skills of his teammates.
With another cry, an accident occurred, and the angry tree that was broken, with a straight upper half, fell directly into the tank tower, and if the half of the tree moved a few inches to the right, the Alan family would directly receive the pension.
However, this time the coach's slogan has also changed.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
5. Red Haired Monster
Just before the training of the recruits was about to end and he went to the battlefield, the commander of the new battalion discovered that Alain had the talent of a signal soldier, so he strongly retained him for the signal soldier training.
During this last career as a recruit, Alain met a strange man.
Once, Alain was imprisoned in violation of the regulations, and then he jumped out of the window to find fun, and before leaving, he did not forget to recite the Eight Character Sutra to the gendarmes.
At the Soldiers' House Club near the base, he inadvertently broke into a small room for a music party, where a man sat on a couch listening to music.
To alleviate the embarrassment, he said to the sitting person, hey buddy, your head is so dirty that you haven't washed it in a few days.
Unexpectedly, this brother replied very calmly, and the brother did not wash his hair.
This friend who always does not wash his hair has red hair, so let's call him "Red Haired Monster".
The "Ginger" became friends with Alain, often explaining music theory to him, and taking him to drink and play tennis.
In 1954, the "Red Haired Monster" and Alain met again in La Rochelle, when the unemployed youth of Alain was a poor jingle, and the "Red Haired Monster" took the initiative to take on the role of breeder and fed Alain every day.
The righteous "ginger" later became the president of the American University of Paris in France, his name was Emile Tesla, and he had a very good buddy, the philosopher Tran Russell.
Third, go to the battlefield
1. Patrol soldiers
After learning that there was such a recruit egg who had been mixed in the recruit camp for 1 year and 6 months, Alain was sent to the army by a paper transfer order.
This over-aged recruit not only achieved great success in driving a tank into a tree, but also served as a communications instructor for several months as a communications wizard, but it was strange that the last position assigned to it was a patrol infantry of an armored unit.
The armored unit was sent to the battlefield in February 1945, about four years after pearl harbor.
2. Landing in Normandy
Alain's armored unit swung by boat to Normandy, France, and just got off the ship, and everyone was collectively dumbfounded.
The commander of the armored forces had a meeting with everyone:
Comrades, logistics have lost some of our equipment, including our regiment's tanks, armored vehicles, rocket launchers, mortars, rifles, etc., and to put it simply, we have only the pistols worn by the officers.
Now ask for everyone's opinions, A, immediately go to the battlefield; B, repair and wait for equipment on the spot; C...
BBBBBBBBBBBB！
Everyone's rush to answer one after another, so Alain's armored unit took a 2-month holiday in Normandy, waiting for equipment.
As a soldier but unable to go to the battlefield, Alain and everyone are very sad, and they can only sing about wine and sing every day.
3. Purple Heart Medal
Friends who have seen "Company of Brothers" must be very familiar with the "Purple Heart Medal", and the brothers of the Airborne Division have only received this medal after nine deaths.
Of course, Alain also had it, and it was obtained in Normandy, France.
At that time, Alain was sleeping in the attic at night, and woke up in the morning with hazy eyes to come down for breakfast, not knowing who had removed the ladder, so he stepped on the air and fell straight to the ground, and his arm was bruised.
Soon after, the sergeant counted all the wounded soldiers, and Alain raised his hand, but he tried to explain, but the sergeant was desperate to award him the "Purple Heart Medal" - all soldiers wounded in wartime were eligible for this honor!
(9500 words omitted here) Friends who want to know can buy "Alain's War" to see it
interlude
Farewell before going to the battlefield
Before getting on the train from his hometown to the battlefield, his parents and family came to say goodbye, and a neighbor that Alain's parents did not like also came to see Alain, and when he saw this neighbor, his parents' faces were very long.
Alain's parents became angry with Alain and did not give him a final hug and farewell.
Alain is angry, your son may be dying on the battlefield, the neighbors come to see you off, what is wrong with this? Why would you refuse to give your son a final hug?
Soon, though, Alain forgot about it.
Affection
Alain's mother died when Alain was a few years old, and the relationship between mother and son was very good, he liked her very much, and he was also sad, and he remembered the scene when he was finally separated from his mother.
That time the mother was going to go to a small operation, the father drove, the little Alain stopped the car, dead or alive did not let the mother go, the mother and the father were in a hurry to go to the hospital, so they couldn't help but say that they got into the car.
Alain was so angry that when the car started, he said to his mother: I will never see you again!
The operation was unexpected and the mother died.
Alain was sad and regretted it.
Dad was going to work, and a girl from a neighbor's house who was less than 20 years old came over every three to five minutes to help with cooking and housework.
Soon, Alain's father and the girl developed a relationship and married again.
Alain was happy that his father was getting married again, and his relationship with his stepmother was not bad.
But Alain's grandmother did not like the stepmother, the two people did not deal with each other, when the grandmother was seriously ill, there was no way to live at home, had to go to the hospital.
About death
During his service in Alain, he visited his family twice, the last time visiting his grandmother, who was hospitalized.
Alain and Grandma had a good relationship, it was a big hospital in Los Angeles.
Alain was happy to see Grandma, but Grandma was sad again, knowing that this was the last meeting.
In order not to embarrass the scene, Grandma kept looking for something to talk about.
In the end, Grandma left her engagement ring to Alain.
postscript
That's the comic I'm going to recommend – The War of Alain, a European comic.
Thanks to Houlang Publishing House for introducing this excellent work.
After reading this comic, I learned about that war era from another perspective, and the most proud highlight moment of an ordinary person's life.
This comic also has a subdivision category - "image novel", that is, more words and few pictures, emphasis on the documentary of the story, the need to collect and organize interviews and observations for a long time to ensure the authenticity of the material.
I believe that even if you don't read the comic, you will love it and read it in one breath.
Everyone is unique.
Don't give up reading comics.
painted eggshell
On the eve of the victory, Alain was organized to take a picture with a general, and the newspaper reported a photo of "Patton and the soldier Alain", but Alain knew that the general was not Patton, and the soldier was not himself.
History is only for people to see, and those who have experienced history may tell another story.