…………………………………………………

Top Ten Tintin Characters

The Adventures of Tintin is an iconic Franco-Belgian comic book series for a variety of reason with one of the prime ones being its great roster of memorable characters. Whether main or more supporting ones, these characters defined this series and made it as enjoyable as it is. Here are ten best Tintin characters.

10. Nestor

Nestor gets the last spot on this list as the butler of Captain Haddock’s. He wasn’t present all too much throughout the series, but he still did make an impact as his dynamic with the captain was fun and that staircase gag was particularly funny.

9. Rastapopoulos

The criminal mastermind that was a real pain in the ass for Tintin and the crew, Rastapopoulos is probably the big baddie of the series. He was a memorable, effective villain that got for himself more than a couple of stories.

8. Dr. Muller

I always gravitate toward great villains in any story, but The Adventures of Tintin mostly lacked in that area. Some, however, did make an impression on me. Dr. Muller wasn’t used too often, but this German bad guy was genuinely competent and dangerous.

7. Chang Chong-Chen

Tintin and his friends have met many great people during their decade-spanning adventures, but none of them was ever as impactful as Chang. This Chinese guy is so sympathetic and kind that it’s easy to root for him. Tintin would eventually even go to Tibet to save him.

6. Bianca Castafiore

The only female character on this list, Bianca Castafiore is an opera singer who is totally unaware of how she comes across and how shrill her voice is. She is a wonderful comic relief who wasn’t used nearly enough as she should have, but she did get one terrific comic in ‘The Castafiore Emerald’, where her interactions with Haddock were truly priceless.

5. Professor Calculus

An absent-minded professor, Calculus was inspired by similar characters in Jules Verne novels, but he stood on his own due to his deaf and confused personality. He is a hilarious comic relief. He would constantly misunderstand what others are trying to say to him, which would result in broken dialogue that was always very funny. But he is also a competent scientist and that dual role of his was quite interesting.

4. Thompson and Thompson

Thompson and Thompson are, as Captain Haddock would bluntly put it, bumbling idiots. These two policemen looked the same and acted the same, but a lot of the humor surrounding them came from their stupidity, clumsiness and extreme incompetence. They would arrest people just for the sake of it. These goofballs were always a welcome form of respite in every volume.

3. Tintin

Tintin gets the third spot because he is the protagonist of the series, but frankly he has never been interesting to me in any shape or form. Yes, the idea here was that he acts as the readers themselves, so he wasn’t given enough personality to stand on his own. His intrepid spirit, bravery and good heart made him ideally suited for these adventures and his relationship with the captain was so moving, but on his own he was far from memorable. His finest moment came in ‘Tintin in Tibet’, where he received his best and deepest arc.

2. Snowy

Yes, I would actually put Snowy above Tintin because this dog was just adorable and hilarious. He was an even better and more memorable dog than Asterix’s Dogmatix. Snowy got in danger so many times throughout the series’ run and it was always easy to root for his rescue. He is a loyal, wonderful companion to Tintin and his crew, but he could be a fool when he would get drunk for instance. Those moments were always hilarious and so were all the scenes when his love with bones conflicted with his mission.

1. Captain Haddock

And the best Tintin character has to be Captain Haddock. There is no question about this placement whatsoever. He is the heart and soul of the entire series. His angry expressions were always amusing and so was his drunkenness as he would go out of his way to reach that precious bottle. His sarcasm amusingly contrasted Tintin’s optimism. Haddock isn’t just a funny guy as the series humanized him through his deep, moving friendship with Tintin as he helped him so many times, especially with his alcohol addiction. He’s such a wonderful, crucial character, in fact, that the series only gained momentum when he was brought onto the scene.