The Shooting Star (1942)

The Shooting Star Review

The Shooting Star is the 10th volume of The Adventures of Tintin comics series by Belgian cartoonist Herge. It was published in 1942 and it is one of the strangest installments in the series.

Tintin travels with his dog Snowy and his friend Captain Haddock aboard a scientific expedition to the Arctic Ocean on an international race to find a meteorite that has fallen to the Earth. This comic is very underrated. It deserves more praise for just how unique it is. When I began reading it, I was taken aback by how different it is tonally from the rest of the series, but ultimately I realized that this was done for the better as it gave this story more edge.

First off, we have the fantastical elements. The final third of the story is famous for introducing those huge mushrooms, one of which is depicted in the instantly iconic front page of the book. Everything on the island becoming bigger was definitely silly, but undeniably entertaining in terms of action. Scientifically speaking, Herge got a lot of things wrong, but at least he tried, which I appreciated.

Yes, there is a meteorite heading toward Earth in this insane story that is unlike anything else in the series. The first third is the definite highlight. This is where the tone and atmosphere are best handled as we see Tintin panicking and fearing that the end of the world is approaching. The sense of dread, paranoia and utter doom is palpable throughout this section of the story and the illustrations further complemented that effect as Tintin would sweat profusely and the meteorite would be closer in each panel.

Herge was truly a masterful visual storyteller in the aforementioned panels, but it’s a shame that the second half of the story came off as a bit of a disappointment. It’s still quite good, but never as outstanding as that opening. The professor character felt eerily similar to the one in ‘Journey to the Center of the Earth’, which is why he appealed to me so much.

Tintin is also quite memorable and proactive while Snowy fearing water and dangerous creatures produced many amusing moments. Haddock was sidelined here, which led to fewer humorous moments, but he was more capable as a captain, which was important for his arc. The villain was forgettable and him being Jewish was too diabolically convenient given the year this book was published. The ending is also a bit rushed, but the dialogue, action and adventurous elements were superb throughout.

The Shooting Star is the most unique and fantastical entry in the Tintin series up to this point in its history. It has its obvious flaws, but it mostly works. Its setting is interesting, the characterization is excellent throughout and the first third was genuinely suspenseful in its tone.

My Rating – 4.4