Blueberry (comic)
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Blueberry is a French comic strip created by Jean-Michel Charlier and Jean "Mœbius" Giraud. It chronicles the adventures of Mike Blueberry on his travels through the American Old West.
Blueberry has its roots in Giraud's earlier Western-themed works such as Frank et Jeremie, which was drawn for Far West magazine when he was only 18, and Jerry Spring, a 1961 strip that appeared in five issues of Spirou. Charlier and Giraud have also collaborated on another Western strip, Jim Cutlass.
The story follows Michael Steven Donovan, nicknamed "Blueberry", starting with his adventures as a Lieutenant in the United States Cavalry shortly after the American Civil War. He is accompanied in many tales by his hard-drinking deputy, Jimmy.
Blueberry began in the 31 October, 1963 issue of Pilote magazine. That first serial, "Fort Navaho", grew into 46 pages over the next few issues. Charlier and Giraud continued to add to the legend of Mike Blueberry in Pilote and other titles even into the 1990s. During that time the artistic style has varied greatly, much as with Giraud's other works. In the same volume, sweeping landscapes will contrast sharply with hard-edged action scenes and the art matches the changing mood of the story quite well. Like much of the Western genre, Blueberry touches on the constant conflict between violence and tranquility, nature and civilization, and the obligation of the strong to protect the weak. In addition to the comic strips, Blueberry and his fellow characters can be found on posters, clothing, and other items.
A "prequel" series, Young Blueberry, has been published as well.
A few companies, particularly Epic Comics and Mojo Press, have released collections of English translations of the Blueberry strips and stories. Opinions are mixed on these, as sometimes the artwork is shrunk to fit smaller book formats, and in the case of the first Mojo Press collection Blueberry: Confederate Gold (ISBN 1885418086), printed in black and white. The hardbound collections by Graphitti Designs are generally considered to be the best available to English-speaking fans, especially as they feature additional material and commentary by Giraud, but are difficult to find due to limited print runs.
A 2004 film adaptation, Blueberry (U.S. release title is Renegade), was directed by Jan Kounen and starred Vincent Cassel in the lead role.de:Leutnant Blueberry fr:Blueberry