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"Rork" by Andreas

Colonel Kadmon

21:29 / 09.09.04

I picked up a translated French comic paperback called "Rork: The Graveyard of Cathederals / Starlight" by Andreas. The edition dates from '96, but appears to have been translated for Dark Horse in 1992. It's published by NBM, and there appear to be two other volumes available.

It's quite good, if a little aimless. It's a sort of Indiana Jones / Rex Mundi / Luther Arkwright sort of thing in monochrome. It has some great images - particularly the cathederals in the jungle and the markings on the floor. I think he'd lost his memory at some point before the story started, so it was kind of hard to catch up.

Anyone know anything about it?

sleazenation

11:50 / 10.09.04

Not very helpful this but yes I read an extract of Roak in an old issue of Cheval Noir...

But it does seem like NBM, Ibooks and Active Images are doing a fine job bringing some ripping good reads from the 90s back into print...

Colonel Kadmon

20:29 / 10.09.04

So who are NBM, and where are they based? Where do they sell these books. I got this in a charity shop in Dunblaine or somewhere for a pound fifty.

I really want to know how he lost his memory... Come on, Barbelites.

Panic

20:37 / 10.09.04

Rork is about a magician slowly regaining his memories and powers as he travels between worlds. The first two volumes, FRAGMENTS and PASSAGES are both in color from NBM, but are long out of print. Like a great many Franco-Belgian comics (i'm not cool enough to call them bande-desinee, sorry), the art is fantastic, but the stories take their sweet time in getting to a point. I still enjoy them a great deal, though. If'n I had the money to start up my own comics publisher, all of Andreas work would be readily available en anglais.

I believe CAPRICORNE was the last story translated in Cheval Noir, but not collected in an NBM album. Shame, as it features Andreas' other series character, a Doc Savage/Shadow type of astrologist/adventurer.

Panic

20:42 / 10.09.04

This link should provide a little more info. Great site all around.

Ganesh

08:30 / 11.09.04

Ooh, nice. I remember reading a couple of these in Cheval Noir (one in particular stayed with me, about how every sphere has a particular point at which, with the slightest pressure, it disintegrates) and being interested enough in the character to want to know more. Not exactly action-packed, but some haunting imagery.

sleazenation

09:15 / 11.09.04

Just for the information of those who are unaware, Cheval Noir was Dark Horse's anthology title for european comics (cheval noir- dark horse -geddit)

Here is NBM's website. It might well be an idea to get in contact with them to see about avilability of any Rork GNs that they published that you don't have, outside that it might be time to hit the back issue bins for some old cheval noir...

Colonel Kadmon

10:52 / 19.09.04

Thanks guys. I now really want those paperbacks...

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