Saturday, July 13, 2019

BOOK REVIEW - Graphic Novel - Tramp: The Trap by Jean-Charles Kraehn and Patrick Jusseaume


1. Tramp:The Trap
by Script by Jean-Charles Kraehn / Art by Patrick Jusseaume
Pub Date 18 Oct 2017   |

The Tramp graphic novel is an adults only comic with some pretty violent themes and scenes set in 1949
The storyline is about a shipping tycoon, De Trichere, who has lost wife in the recent war and is dying of cancer. He is concerned about the future of his pianist daughter has lost her legs and is wheelchair bound. The unscrupulous businessman is said to have an almost incestuous passion for his daughter even though he never showed her anything but distant fatherly authority.

As a result of the war, De Trichere’s business is in severe financial difficulties and he makes some rather terrible decisions that set the theme for the rest of the story. He buys a decrepit shipping boat, tries to bribe an inspector and that’s just the start of his poor decisions. Unfortunately for De Trichere, his secretary has a good moral compass.

The story is slow to start but has some great visual effects with the colouring to emphasis the mood and feeling of the scenes. The colourist does a great job with changing the use of dull and bright colours to add to the atmosphere as appropriate to the story.

I will say that there is a rather violent torture, rape and murder scene that, while in character of the villain of the story, could have been left out as it seemed a bit gratuitous.

Overall, the story was interesting and after a slow start, well-paced and drawn. 

I’d give it a 3 out of 5 stars.

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