Le nuage pourpre (The Purple Cloud) is the 22nd and last in the Biggles Artima/Aredit comics series. It was published in Jan 1968 and was drawn by Roger Melliès.
Synopsis[]
This comic strip album contains 4 adaptations of Biggles short stories:
- Le nuage pourpre - adaptation of The Adventure of the Purple Cloud
- La crique hantée - adaptation of The Adventure of the Haunted Creek
- La grotte oxydée - adaptation of The Adventure of the Oxidized Grotto
- Mission en Macédoine - adaptation of The Case of the Wounded Agent
Also included are two short stories which are not adaptations of the works of Johns:
- Passage interdit
- La grande révolte
The cover artwork depicts a scene from Le nuage pourpre.
Plot[]
(Click on expand to read)
The album comprises 6 short stories over 130 pages.
Story 1 - Le nuage pourpre[]
This title story is a reasonably faithful adaptation of The Adventure of the Purple Cloud from Biggles - Charter Pilot with some simplification. The preliminary discussion in the 666 Sqn mess is omitted. Biggles is bringing Duck to a conference in the United States in this adaptation. There is no government committee investigating the purple cloud and the character of Silas Welman does not appear. After they find the cloud, the insecticide is provided by the authorities for use against it. There is no mention that it comes from the United States. There are also some embellishments. In the comic, Biggles is bringing Duck to a conference in the United States. At the end of the story, Ginger asks Duck about the conference which Duck had missed because of their stop in Nicaragua. Duck replies that ridding the country of the deadly pestilence was a greater service than making some speeches. There is the occasional touch of humour absent from the original. When they follow the cloud to a lake, someone in the aircraft remarks that they also need a good bath.
Story 2 - La crique hantée[]
This is a fairly faithful adaptation of The Adventure of the Haunted Creek. The drought which hit Cooper Creek and how it came to be abandoned is covered only briefly. All of Ginger's description of the skeletons of dead cattle strewn all over the landscape is not mentioned at all. Indeed there is no drawing of a single skeleton in the story. When investigating a house, Biggles takes a snapshot at the source of a ghostly voice. But Dr Duck also attempts to take a flash photograph at the same time. This latter action is not in the original story. The episode with the dead rat is covered accurately as is the final explanation for the mystery of the ghostly voices. The type of aircraft used is not mentioned in the original but was probably the Wanderer that was employed in the other adventures with Dr Duck. In the adaptation, Biggles and co. use a Douglas DC-3.
Story 3 - La grotte oxydée[]
This is a fairly faithful adaptation of The Adventure of the Oxidized Grotto. Duck reads "Tuan" Sommers' article in a magazine entitled "L'hote de la familie", which is a rough translation of the original "The Family Entertainer". The wildlife which Biggles and co. encounter on the way to the cave is described. In the original, Ginger describes how touching a pitcher plant resulted in being splashed with a load of foul smelling liquid. In the adaptation, this actually happens to Dr Duck. The events at the cave and the aftermath are all described accurately. The only deviation is with what happens to Ulu. In the original, he had fled in fear, leaving Biggles and co. to make their way back to Sommers' house on their own. In the adaptation he is waiting for them. The story ends with the party recovering at Sommers' house. Biggles mentions that they will make a report to the Royal Society on their return to England. The epilogue in the original, where a subsequent expedition by the Society fails to find the cave, is not mentioned in the adaptation.
Story 4 - Mission en Macédoine[]
This is a fairly faithful adaptation of The Case of the Wounded Agent. All major events are depicted. The dialogue follows the lines of the original text but is abbreviated to keep the speech bubbles short. There is, for example, no extended speech from Raymond about him disliking the idea of lending Biggles to other departments. Biggles does declare he will use the long-range Auster, as in the original, but the drawing of the aircraft shows a single engine low wing monoplane which looks nothing like one. At the end of the mission, Ginger isn't sent off to London immediately. He stays to help Biggles unload Maxos from the aircraft. The character of Doctor Spanelli is depicted. Even Biggles' parting shot with the doctor, that he needs to get some breakfast, is depicted except that the doctor here wishes him "bon appetit"!