Spike and Suzy
Encyclopedia
Spike and Suzy, the British
title for Suske en Wiske in Dutch
, is a comics
series created by the Belgian
comics author
Willy Vandersteen
. The strip is known as Bob et Bobette in French and Willy and Wanda in the U.S.
It was first published in De Nieuwe Standaard
in 1945 and soon became popular. Although not in its earlier form, the strip adapted to the Ligne claire
style pioneered by Hergé
, a change taking place when the strip became serialised in Hergé's comics magazine
Tintin
from 1948 to 1959.
The books revolve around the adventures of the eponymous Spike and Suzy, two children (pre-adolescent or adolescent depending on the album), along with their friends and family. The stories combine elements of comedy
, fantasy
and science fiction
, such as talking animals, time travel and ghosts. The strip still runs daily in De Standaard, and new books continue to be published: as of 2008, 300 books have been published. While they remain popular among readers from the Netherlands, their popularity in Belgium has plummeted since the mid 1990s.
. Ambrose and Jethro change significantly: in the beginning, Ambrose was just an amusing fool
, in the Blue Series he appears more sophisticated and heroic, evolving towards a cynical and sceptical man in the current stories. In early stories, Jethro was initially portrayed as an ignorant strong man
, who evolved into a sophisticated and quiet man in later works. In most stories Muffin is only a doll, but one very special to Suzy, and they are inseparable. In some stories Muffin comes to life and plays an important role.
Most of the current adventures of Spike and Suzy happen in real countries all over the world, with Belgium
(their home country) and the Netherlands
as main focus for many stories.
While in the early stories large distances were usually traveled using the fictitious Gyronef, an experimental helicopter devised by professor Barabas, starting from the 1960s all air travel is provided by the non-fictional Dutch national airline KLM, making it an early and prominent example of product placement in European comics. Vandersteen chose KLM over the former Belgian national airline SABENA
because of his friendship with Ron Winderink, PR manager at KLM.
, intent to improve sales of the Dutch language Kuifje, who wanted Suske and Wiske for his publications rebuilt in the Ligne claire
style. Vandersteen made the adaptation and Suske en Wiske first appeared in Kuifje and Belgian Tintin on September 16, 1948 with the story titled Het Spaanse spook and Le Fantôme Espagnol in the two languages. In all 8 stories ran until it ended in April 1959, making up the material collected in The Blue Series
.
Vandersteen established Studio Vandersteen in 1952 to manage his expanded activities. To have time for other series such as De Rode Ridder
(The Red Knight) and Tijl Uilenspiegel, he gave Paul Geerts
the job of creating new albums of Suske en Wiske in 1968. Geerts did this until 2001, when he gave this task to Marc Verhaegen. From 2005 on, a team of writers and cartoonists makes the new series, led by Luc Morjeau. These authors are helped by Studio Vandersteen.
English translations have been published in three incarnations. The first was in the U.S., under the name of Willy and Wanda. It was then published in the U.K. in the 1990s named Bob and Bobette, a copy of the French title. The final print run was in the U.K. by the title Spike and Suzy.
The series is known in the following languages as:
Footnotes
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
title for Suske en Wiske in Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
, is a comics
Comics
Comics denotes a hybrid medium having verbal side of its vocabulary tightly tied to its visual side in order to convey narrative or information only, the latter in case of non-fiction comics, seeking synergy by using both visual and verbal side in...
series created by the Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
comics author
Comic book creator
A comic book creator is someone who creates a comic book or graphic novel.The production of a comic book by one of the major comic book companies in the U.S...
Willy Vandersteen
Willy Vandersteen
Willy Vandersteen was a Belgian creator of comic books. In a career spanning 50 years, he created a large studio and published more than 1,000 comic albums in over 25 series, selling more than 200 million copies worldwide....
. The strip is known as Bob et Bobette in French and Willy and Wanda in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
It was first published in De Nieuwe Standaard
De Standaard
De Standaard is a Flemish daily newspaper published in Belgium by Corelio . Circulation was about 102.280 in 2007. It was traditionally a Christian-Democratic paper, associated with the Christian-Democratic and Flemish Party, and in opposition to the Socialist Flemish daily De Morgen...
in 1945 and soon became popular. Although not in its earlier form, the strip adapted to the Ligne claire
Ligne claire
Ligne claire is a style of drawing pioneered by Hergé, the Belgian creator of The Adventures of Tintin. It uses clear strong lines of uniform importance. Artists working in it do not use hatching, while contrast is downplayed as well...
style pioneered by Hergé
Hergé
Georges Prosper Remi , better known by the pen name Hergé, was a Belgian comics writer and artist. His best known and most substantial work is the 23 completed comic books in The Adventures of Tintin series, which he wrote and illustrated from 1929 until his death in 1983, although he was also...
, a change taking place when the strip became serialised in Hergé's comics magazine
Franco-Belgian comics magazines
Belgium and France have a long tradition in comics. They have a common history for comics and magazines.In the early years of its history, magazines had a large place on the comics market and were often the only place where comics were published. Most of them were kids-targeted.In the 1970s,...
Tintin
Tintin (magazine)
Le journal de Tintin or Kuifje , was a weekly Belgian comics magazine of the second half of the 20th century...
from 1948 to 1959.
The books revolve around the adventures of the eponymous Spike and Suzy, two children (pre-adolescent or adolescent depending on the album), along with their friends and family. The stories combine elements of comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
, fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
and science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
, such as talking animals, time travel and ghosts. The strip still runs daily in De Standaard, and new books continue to be published: as of 2008, 300 books have been published. While they remain popular among readers from the Netherlands, their popularity in Belgium has plummeted since the mid 1990s.
Main characters
The main characters are a group of friends. In the first regular comic, Suzy and her Aunt Sidonia meet the orphan Spike and unrelated Professor Barabas. In the next comic, they also meet Ambrose. Later, in De dolle musketiers (book #18, 1953), Jerom (called Jethro in the UK version), the self-proclaimed "strongest man in the western hemisphere", was introduced. Apart from Suzy and Aunt Sidonia, none of them are related, and other family is only introduced occasionally to drive a particular story.- Spike: originally Suske (Flemish diminutive of Francis), also known as Willy or Bob, is a young orphan who becomes friends with Suzy and Aunt Sidonia. This happens only in the second album, Het Eiland Amoras from 1946, which would become the first in the regular series. For the first album, the publisher had pushed Vandersteen to go with the name and character "Rikki", but the author soon worked around this and found a way to introduce "Suske", in part because he thought Rikki resembled TintinTintin (character)Tintin is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the series of classic Belgian comic books written and illustrated by Hergé. Tintin is the protagonist of the series, a reporter and adventurer who travels around the world with his dog Snowy....
too much.
- Spike has black hair with a small trademark spike. He started out as a hyperactive and headlong fighter, not unlike many a young male adolescent in the "Seefhoek", the Antwerp neighborhood where Vandersteen grew up. Only in the first album, Spike would get totally out of control when he heard the battle cry "Seefhoek vooruit!" ("Seefhoek Forward!"), replaced by "Antigoon vooruit" in later reprints. But as soon as his outfit evolved from mere duds towards a more tidy red polo shirt and black trousers, he became a well-behaved and obedient boy. He is smart, brave, idealistic and has few downsides, and as such ends up being less easy to identify with than the more human Suzy. In many ways, he is her opposite. Where she gets emotional, Spike remains rational. Where she gets in trouble with Sidonia or Ambrose, he acts as go-between to restore peace.
- Suzy: originally Wiske (Flemish diminutive of Louise), also known as Wanda or Bobette, is the young heroine, and a more interesting character than Spike. She debutes in the very first out-of-series prequel Rikki en Wiske in Chocowakije from 1945, where she has an older brother Rikki, but he disappears after that story to be replaced by Spike.
- Suzy lives together with him and her aunt Sidonia, and is typically (certainly in the older stories) dressed in a white skirt with a red stripe, and a red ribbon in her fair hair. In the first stories, she looks like a preschooler of about 6 years old, but soon afterwards she evolves into a young teenager of about 12-13. Vandersteen seems to have modelled her after his oldest daughter Leen, of similar age at the time.
- She is strong-headed, impulsive, curious and slightly foolish. Aspects of her character that come naturally with a young teenager who enters puberty, and a great plot device since her repeated stubbornness and inobedience is the source of many an adventure. Since her emotions and human shortcomings often overpower her rationality, she is sensitive to paranormal and mystical happenings that are routinely dismissed by the others. Her relationship with Spike (both are considered orphans) is mostly one between siblings, although at times it looks like there are more feelings under the surface, as she can get quite jealous and querulous when Spike gets female attention. Suzy is also a brave girl, especially when it comes to defending her doll Muffin, for whom she shows unconditional motherly love. Despite her difficult character at times, she appears contrite and righteous. She carries her heart in the right place and won't hesitate to battle injustice.
- Suzy ends most of the albums by winking to the reader from within the very last panel.
- Muffin, originally Schalulleke, later renamed to Schanulleke (sometimes Schabolleke), also known as Molly or Sawdust, is Suzy's doll. A small human (probably female) figure, she is inanimate. She has a major role in a few stories when she gets stolen (album 6, "Prinses Zagemeel"), brought to life, or is turned into a mindless giant. The original name Schalulleke, a Flemish dialect word for a scallionScallionScallions , are the edible plants of various Allium species, all of which are "onion-like", having hollow green leaves and lacking a fully developed root bulb.-Etymology:The words...
, was not acceptable in the Netherlands since lul is a Dutch slang word for penis.
- Aunt Sidonia, originally called tante Sidonie, later renamed to tante Sidonia, and also once known as Agatha, appears as Suzy's aunt, right from the first album. Sidonia was Vandersteen’s way of providing a caring authority figure for Spike and Suzy without introducing actual parents, who would constrain their adventurous tendencies too much.
- Sidonia is portrayed as a (1950’s) housewife (cooking and cleaning, doing the dishes, complaining when Spike and Suzy don’t show proper respect for her household work), and would nowadays even be called a bit of an anachronism. Nevertheless she also often joins the heroes on their adventures, and occasionally shows unexpected qualities as pilot of the Gyronef.
- Long and extremely thin with gigantic feet (routinely referred to as “ferries”), with a large protruding chin and fair hair, she’s hardly blessed with physical beauty. As such, her looks are often the target of offensive remarks, in particular by a less than subtle Ambrose. On the other hand, her thinness enables her to pull off tricks like hiding herself in a split second from the bad guys behind nearby streetlights and telephone poles.
- Sidonia is also known for her hysterical nervous breakdowns, where she can often no longer utter words while her body ends up as stiff as a wooden plank, and for her (unanswered and unreachable) crush on Ambrose.
- Professor Barabas, is a long-time friend of Suzy and Aunt Sidonia, first met in Het Eiland Amoras (An Island called Hoboken). He starts off as a jungle explorer with topee, but later becomes the archetypical comics professor: glasses, a white laboratory coat, often absent-minded because he is thinking deeply about some scientific question. Although he is not a mad scientistMad scientistA mad scientist is a stock character of popular fiction, specifically science fiction. The mad scientist may be villainous or antagonistic, benign or neutral, and whether insane, eccentric, or simply bumbling, mad scientists often work with fictional technology in order to forward their schemes, if...
, and entirely benevolent, his inventions regularly cause trouble when they end up in the wrong hands. Which happens more than once because of his lack of streetwiseness in dealing with criminals. His main inventions are the Teletime machine (which enables them to travel through time and space), the Gyronef (a helicopter well ahead of its time), the Terranef (a subterranean vehicle), and the Klankentapper, which enables you to talk with plants and inanimate objects. Contrary to most other main characters, he does not appear in all comics.
- Ambrose, originally called Lambik and once known as Orville, is a bald man (apart from six hairs, three on either side) of about fifty. The original FlemishFlemishFlemish can refer to anything related to Flanders, and may refer directly to the following articles:*Flemish, an informal, though linguistically incorrect, name of any kind of the Dutch language as spoken in Belgium....
name was inspired by a local Belgian beer (lambicLambicLambic is a very distinctive type of beer brewed only in the Pajottenland region of Belgium and in Brussels itself at the Cantillon Brewery and museum...
) that is brewed in Pajottenland, where Vandersteen lived for a short time. He is first encountered in album 3, The Zincshrinker, as a rather stupid plumber, although Vandersteen already created the standalone personage the year before (1945) as "Pukkel" ("pimple" in English).
- In the beginning, Ambrose was presented as a typical working class member of the time: rough and rather simple and uneducated. Prone to alcoholism and other scourges, he also had a somewhat tragic side. This largely came to an end when Vandersteen started to work for HergéHergéGeorges Prosper Remi , better known by the pen name Hergé, was a Belgian comics writer and artist. His best known and most substantial work is the 23 completed comic books in The Adventures of Tintin series, which he wrote and illustrated from 1929 until his death in 1983, although he was also...
, who didn't like the folksy component. In particular in the period of The Blue SeriesThe Blue SeriesThe Blue Series is the name of one of the series' of the Suske en Wiske books , written by Willy Vandersteen. The Blue Series is shorter than the other two series - The Red Series and the "specials" - but is possibly the most popular...
, Ambrose suddenly becomes sophisticated, bright and brave, even aristocratic (for example he teaches fencingFencingFencing, which is also known as modern fencing to distinguish it from historical fencing, is a family of combat sports using bladed weapons.Fencing is one of four sports which have been featured at every one of the modern Olympic Games...
) and is arguably truly the main character of the story in those albums. Later, the personage gets its definitive outfit (black trousers, white starched shirt and a black bow tie) and settles as a middle class part-time father figure for Spike and Suzy, who lives together with Jethro. - Ambrose is intended as the comic relief of the series. His baldness and pronounced nose inspire ridicule throughout the whole series. Another returning joke is how he brings up his World War 1 military gear (sandbags, barbed wire, helmet, rifle...) when a situation becomes critical. Generally presumptuous, vain and impulsive, he confronts the reader with his own shortcomings. Typically, he considers himself the main hero, and in particular the "brains", since he can't possibly overtrump Jethro when it comes to physical power (and as it frequently turns out, not in the intellectual department either!). His friends then usually play along, just to keep him happy. The relationship between Suzy and Ambrose, one even more stubborn than the other, makes for a great generation conflict that spices up many stories. In the end, Ambrose does have a noble nature, as illustrated by the many occasions that he sacrifices himself for the greater good. But it helps a great deal when he is first assured of recognition...
- Jethro, originally known as Jerom or Jerommeke and also known as Wilbur, is an extremely strong man, brought from prehistoryPrehistoryPrehistory is the span of time before recorded history. Prehistory can refer to the period of human existence before the availability of those written records with which recorded history begins. More broadly, it refers to all the time preceding human existence and the invention of writing...
to the Middle AgesMiddle AgesThe Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
by an alchemistAlchemyAlchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
in album 18, The merry musketeers, as a mindless weapon.
- Although he is introduced into the series as an opponent, he quickly turns around as he falls in love with Muffin and becomes a caring man instead of a wild beast. Initially he is dressed in a loincloth only (with an occasional cravat added in an amusing attempt to appear more civilized) and speaks in grunts and monosyllables. His prehistoric background causes him to observe the modern world and customs with the naivete (and often unimpeded insight) of a child. But soon afterwards he becomes a smart, sophisticated man, although he still speaks in a peculiar shorthand. He lives together with Ambrose, and his level-headedness is used to contrast with the latter’s foolishness.
- Apart from superhuman strength (used for exploits like squeezing water from rocks in the desert), his special powers include “flashlight eyes” and X-ray vision (at any other time his eyelids remain closed), running faster than sound and stopping bullets with his muscular chest. As such, his character is often used as a deus ex machinaDeus ex machinaA deus ex machina is a plot device whereby a seemingly inextricable problem is suddenly and abruptly solved with the contrived and unexpected intervention of some new event, character, ability, or object.-Linguistic considerations:...
solution for the troubles his friends and especially Ambrose get in. But when the scenarists are inspired, he is equally often drugged or away on a trip as to avoid the easy solution for the story.
Other recurring characters
- Krimson. A principal bad guy, Krimson was introduced in Het rijmende paard (#48, 1963). He survives a plane-crash and starts over as a petty criminal in De sissende sampan before serving a prison-sentence. In Amoris van Amoras (#200, 1984) Krimson seems to have changed his ways by becoming a project-developer on Hoboken (who even thanks Ambrose for saving his life). This appears to be a passing interest as De Kwaaie Kwieten (#209, 1987) marks his return to form by constructing a top-secret military base capable of fighting extraterrestrials. Growing stronger again, Krimson manages to overthrow the BelgianBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
government (De Krimson Crisis, #215, 1988). For reasons unknown he often suffers from mental breakdowns, throwing fits until his butler force feeds him a large quantity of pills. Despite his name there is no connection between him and the colour crimsonCrimsonCrimson is a strong, bright, deep red color. It is originally the color of the dye produced from a scale insect, Kermes vermilio, but the name is now also used as a generic term for those slightly bluish-red colors that are between red and rose; besides crimson itself, these colors include...
, other than that both often have sinister connotations.
- Arthur is Ambrose’s younger brother who grew up in the jungle and gained the ability to fly from the juice of a plant. He is more primitive than his brother, but substantially smarter. He dresses in animal skins and wears a beard, though it is unknown if he, unlike Ambrose, has much hair on his head as he always sports a bowler hatBowler hatThe bowler hat, also known as a coke hat, derby , billycock or bombin, is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown originally created in 1849 for the English soldier and politician Edward Coke, the younger brother of the 2nd Earl of Leicester...
. He spends more time in the air and in trees than on the ground, and therefore has acquired some bird characteristics, such as standing on his hands instead of his feet and chirping while speaking. His favorite food is birdseed. He has appeared in 5 albums so far.
- Sus Antigoon is an ancestor of Spike and discover of Amoras Island. He died of alcohol abuse and therefore always appears as a ghost with a bottle chained to his leg. Because of his drunkenness, Sus Antigoon often brings the protagonists in danger. He has appeared in 12 albums so far.
Character evolution
Over the course of the series, characters are added and changed, and stories become more didacticDidacticism
Didacticism is an artistic philosophy that emphasizes instructional and informative qualities in literature and other types of art. The term has its origin in the Ancient Greek word διδακτικός , "related to education/teaching." Originally, signifying learning in a fascinating and intriguing...
. Ambrose and Jethro change significantly: in the beginning, Ambrose was just an amusing fool
Comic relief
Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension.-Definition:...
, in the Blue Series he appears more sophisticated and heroic, evolving towards a cynical and sceptical man in the current stories. In early stories, Jethro was initially portrayed as an ignorant strong man
Strongman (strength athlete)
In the 19th century, the term strongman referred to an exhibitor of strength or circus performers of similar ilk who displayed feats of strength such as the bent press , supporting large amounts of...
, who evolved into a sophisticated and quiet man in later works. In most stories Muffin is only a doll, but one very special to Suzy, and they are inseparable. In some stories Muffin comes to life and plays an important role.
Settings
In the earliest stories, Willy Vandersteen used fictional countries like "Chokowakije" ("Chocolaslovakia") and "Amoras" (a tropical island, "Hoboken" in the English language version). He dropped the use of those after a few stories, although some later stories revisit Amoras.Most of the current adventures of Spike and Suzy happen in real countries all over the world, with Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
(their home country) and the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
as main focus for many stories.
While in the early stories large distances were usually traveled using the fictitious Gyronef, an experimental helicopter devised by professor Barabas, starting from the 1960s all air travel is provided by the non-fictional Dutch national airline KLM, making it an early and prominent example of product placement in European comics. Vandersteen chose KLM over the former Belgian national airline SABENA
Sabena
SABENA was the national airline of Belgium from 1923 to 2001, with its base at Brussels National Airport. After its bankruptcy in 2001, the newly formed SN Brussels Airlines took over part of SABENA's assets in February 2002, which then became Brussels Airlines...
because of his friendship with Ron Winderink, PR manager at KLM.
Publication history
Willy Vandersteen created Suske en Wiske, beginning publication in De Nieuwe Standaard on March 30, 1945. To Vandersteen's disappointment the editor had renamed the strip's first chapter Rikki en Wiske. The following story was titled De avonturen van Suske en Wiske - Op het eiland Amoras and no longer featured Rikki. Ater a few years of publication in several newspapers, Vandersteen was approached by HergéHergé
Georges Prosper Remi , better known by the pen name Hergé, was a Belgian comics writer and artist. His best known and most substantial work is the 23 completed comic books in The Adventures of Tintin series, which he wrote and illustrated from 1929 until his death in 1983, although he was also...
, intent to improve sales of the Dutch language Kuifje, who wanted Suske and Wiske for his publications rebuilt in the Ligne claire
Ligne claire
Ligne claire is a style of drawing pioneered by Hergé, the Belgian creator of The Adventures of Tintin. It uses clear strong lines of uniform importance. Artists working in it do not use hatching, while contrast is downplayed as well...
style. Vandersteen made the adaptation and Suske en Wiske first appeared in Kuifje and Belgian Tintin on September 16, 1948 with the story titled Het Spaanse spook and Le Fantôme Espagnol in the two languages. In all 8 stories ran until it ended in April 1959, making up the material collected in The Blue Series
The Blue Series
The Blue Series is the name of one of the series' of the Suske en Wiske books , written by Willy Vandersteen. The Blue Series is shorter than the other two series - The Red Series and the "specials" - but is possibly the most popular...
.
Vandersteen established Studio Vandersteen in 1952 to manage his expanded activities. To have time for other series such as De Rode Ridder
De Rode Ridder
De Rode Ridder is a Belgian Flemish comic book series set in medieval Europe. It stars the titular character Johan, the Red Knight, easily recognizable by his red tunic. It appeared six days a week in the newspaper De Standaard and a few other ones.-Summary of the story:The series are...
(The Red Knight) and Tijl Uilenspiegel, he gave Paul Geerts
Paul Geerts
Paul Geerts is a Flemish comics artist who succeeded Willy Vandersteen as the main artist of the Spike and Suzy series.-References:...
the job of creating new albums of Suske en Wiske in 1968. Geerts did this until 2001, when he gave this task to Marc Verhaegen. From 2005 on, a team of writers and cartoonists makes the new series, led by Luc Morjeau. These authors are helped by Studio Vandersteen.
Newspapers and magazines
Before Suske en Wiske appeared as albums, they were published in several newspapers and magazines, such as:- De StandaardDe StandaardDe Standaard is a Flemish daily newspaper published in Belgium by Corelio . Circulation was about 102.280 in 2007. It was traditionally a Christian-Democratic paper, associated with the Christian-Democratic and Flemish Party, and in opposition to the Socialist Flemish daily De Morgen...
(1945-...) daily newspaper - Tintin and Kuifje magazinesTintin (magazine)Le journal de Tintin or Kuifje , was a weekly Belgian comics magazine of the second half of the 20th century...
(1948–1959) Éditions du Lombard's French and Dutch sister publications - TV Ekspres (1972–2001) weekly TV magazine
- Suske en Wiske weekblad (1993–2003) weekly comics magazine
The Red Series and The Blue Series
The books are generally divided into two groups - The Red Series, and The Blue series. The Red Series contains the vast majority of the books, and is so called because all of the books in this series have a red colour. There are only a few books in the blue series, and they are so called because of their blue colour. The blue series encompasses all those originally published in Tintin and Kuifje. The Red series is everything published before or after. The following album series exist:- 1.The Red SeriesThe Red SeriesThe Red Series of Suske en Wiske are the best known series of Dutch comics. The name of these series originated in the red covers of the albums...
- The Flemish non-coloured series (1946–1959): 1-35
- The Dutch non-coloured series(1953–1959): 1-23
- The Flemish two-coloured series (1959–1964): 7,19,20,32-50
- The Dutch two-coloured series (1959–1964): 1,8,10,11,21-50
- The uniform Flemish-Dutch (two-coloured)series (1964–1966): 51-66
- The (uniform) four-coloured series (1967-...): 67-... ; the first 66 albums and the blue series have been re-edited in this series.
- 2.The Blue SeriesThe Blue SeriesThe Blue Series is the name of one of the series' of the Suske en Wiske books , written by Willy Vandersteen. The Blue Series is shorter than the other two series - The Red Series and the "specials" - but is possibly the most popular...
(1952–1957)
- 2.The Blue Series
Special editions
Other stories or editions have been published, such as:- The collector's editions (1958-...)
- Advertisement editions (1965-...)
- Various collections (1972-...)
- Holiday editions (1973-...)
- Luxury editions (1977-...)
- Suske en Wiske Classics (1993–1999)
Albums in English
Main article List of Spike and Suzy books in EnglishEnglish translations have been published in three incarnations. The first was in the U.S., under the name of Willy and Wanda. It was then published in the U.K. in the 1990s named Bob and Bobette, a copy of the French title. The final print run was in the U.K. by the title Spike and Suzy.
Other languages
Translations in other languages (including regional dialects) are plentiful but may exist as short-lived series only.The series is known in the following languages as:
- Afrikaans: Neelsie en Miemsie
- Brabantian: Suske en Wieske
- Chinese (Taiwanese version): 達達和貝貝歷險記 (Dada & Beibei)
- Chinese (mainland version): 波布和波贝特 (Bobu & Bobete: 1996) or 苏苏和维维历险记 (Susu & WeiWei: from 2011)
- Danish: Finn & Fiffi (later: Bob & Bobette)
- Esperanto: Cisko kaj Vinjo
- Finnish: Anu ja Antti
- French: Bob & Bobette
- German: Ulla und Peter (later: Bob und Babette/Suske und Wiske/Frida und Freddie)
- Greek: Bobi & Lou
- Indonesian: Bobby dan Wanda
- Icelandic: Siggi og Vigga
- Italian: Bob e Bobette
- Japanese: ススカとウィスカ (Susuka & Wisuka)
- Latin: Lucius et Lucia
- Norwegian: Finn & Fiffi
- Portuguese: Bibi & Baba
- Portuguese (Brazil): Zé & Maria
- Spanish: Bob y Bobette, Bob y Bobet
- Swahili: Bob na Bobette
- Swedish: Finn & Fiffi
- Tamil: Bayankaap & Bayanam
- Tibetan: Baga & Basang
- Hebrew: Bob & Bobet
Spin-off series
There have been various spin-off comic series from Spike and Suzy:- In 1960, Jerom began publication. It featured the character Jerom (Jethro) and focused on his adventures as a modern day knight.
- In the 1950s, Lambik (Ambrose), ran in the newspaper De Bond. These were then put into the albums called De Grappen van Lambik ("The jokes of Ambrose"). The series was ended in 1962, but in 2004, it resumed with new stories. Seven books in the new series have been released.
- In 2002, Klein Suske en Wiske ("Young Spike and Suzy") ran in the magazine Suske en Wiske weekblad. It charts the adventures of the children when they were very small, along with their pet dog. So far nine albums have been released, containing short sketches.
Other media
The strip has made it onto TV, cinema and stage:- In 1975, BRTVlaamse Radio- en TelevisieomroepThe Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie , or VRT, is a publicly-funded broadcaster of radio and television in Flanders ....
produced a TV series consisting of six stories taking the form of a puppet show narrated by Ambrose. These stories were later converted into comics. Dutch broadcaster TROSTROSTROS is a Dutch television and radio organization part of the Netherlands Public Broadcasting...
was the first to air the series with BRT following suit in 1976. Re-runs came in 1985 and 1990. - In the early 1990s a cartoon-series was made; the episodes were edited versions of already-existing stories with voice-overs from Han Peekel, who hosted comic strip-themed programme Wordt Vervolgd at the time.
- In 1994, a musical was started by the Royal Youth Theatre of Antwerp. It ran for several years, touring the country.
- In 2004, Suske en Wiske: De duistere diamant, a Spike and Suzy live action film was released in French and Dutch called The Dark Diamond.
- A CGI animated film called Luke and Lucy: The Texas Rangers was released in July 2009. Produced by Skyline Entertainment, it is planned to be the first of a series of 13 films.
- The musical Circus Baron breaks a tradition of male actors being cast for the role of Aunt Sidonia.
Sources
- Index of Suske en Wiske publications, Suske en Wiske publications in Kuifje Suske en Wiske op het www
- et Bobette publications in Belgian Tintin and French Tintin BDoubliées
Footnotes