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THE SPECTACULARS VOL I: THE CABARET OF SHADOWS RÉGIS HAUTIÈRE ARNAUD POITEVIN 5 ONGOING SERIES 5 64 pages / 233 x 312 mm / €14 At the beginning of the 20th century in Paris, the quartet of Spectaculars of Paris struggles for better or for worse to bring their magic show hall to life. Alas, the little theater where Pétronille, Évariste, Eustache, and Félix appear is in decline, and the creditors are putting on the pressure. But then, Prosper Pipolet suddenly shows up. He is a brilliant and eccentric scientist and the inventor of a revolutionary weapon. Betrayed by his associate, the sinister businessman Victor Stingler, he begs the Spectaculars to help him save the world. And against all odds, they accept. The only problem is that the joyful gang has no extraordinary powers… Watch out, it's going to be explosive! Set in the 1900s, these are the humorous tribulations of a small troupe of clumsy traveling performers who have become the righters of wrongs. Lively! BIO Arnaud Poitevin began his studies at an advertising Arnaud Poitevin began his studies at an advertising school before enrolling in animation. At the end of his school before enrolling in animation. At the end of his studies, he became a director’s assistant and story- studies, he became a director’s assistant and story- board artist before publishing his first drawings in the board artist before publishing his first drawings in the magazines J’aime lire and Spirou. His first comic book magazines J’aime lire and Spirou. His first comic book Ogre l’ogre came out in 2005, with Panini Comics. Ogre l’ogre came out in 2005, with Panini Comics. y CONTACTS Isabelle Darthy - [email protected] Rue de Sèvres is a comics and for Germany, The Netherlands, Japan, Italy & Middle East countries graphic novels publisher for children and adults. Created in Marija Gaudry / Anne Dufour - [email protected] 2013, it belongs to l’école des for English worldwide, Scandinavia, Eastern European countries & Korea loisirs group, one of the main Agathe Bourachot - [email protected] French children books publishers. for Spain & Latin America, Portugal & Brazil, Turkey, Greece, China & Taiwan PeTRONILLa FÉLIX Young woman of character who pos- A ferocious werewolf with sharp fangs sesses a certain talent for disguise. She and sharp claws on stage, Felix beco- is the uncontested leader of the Specta- mes gentle as a lamb when he steps culars. While her partners recognize her off set. Allergic to pollen and cat fur. determination, lively spirit, and perseve- He is subject to violent sneezing fits, rance, at times they reproach her for her notably when he puts on his rabbit fur authoritarianism (no one would dare say werewolf costume. it in her presence). PROSPER PIPOLET Came in third place twice at the Lépine Competition. A compulsive in- ventor, he works on creating extraordi- nary machines meant to improve the lot of humanity. It must be admitted that some of them could almost prove to be useful, provided they receive some fine tuning. EUSTACHE ÉVARISTE “The strongest man in the world” is His flying man act makes him the big actually a giant in cardboard whose star of the Cabaret of Shadows. Unde- waistline is more impressive than the niably courageous, Évariste is just as size of his chest. Very friendly. He can indisputably pretentious, to the point also be sensitive. He is by marriage the that he cannot imagine that a woman cousin of the nephew of the maternal might remain indifferent to his charms. grandmother of the godfather of He has no sisters. Évariste’s younger sister. VICTOR STINGLER Wealthy businessman who has suc- ceeded in transforming the family hardware store he inherited into a prosperous company. Victor Stingler is a person with no scruples, a cynical and violent misanthrope ready for any act of betrayal in order to increase his fortune. I DEMAND ABSOLUTE SILENCE! THE ACT YOU ARE ABOUT TO SEE REQUIRES EXTREME CONCENTRATION. … AND AS HE DOES THIS, … AND ESCAPE ON MY SIGNAL, HE MUST TRAVEL THROUGH THE CLAWS ÉVARISTE, PRESENT HERE, THE HOOP OF FIRE... OF THE WEREWOLF... IS GOING TO LEAP INTO THE AIR AND MAKE A PRODIGIOUS CURVE, RISING AND SUPERBOLIC... … BEFORE LANDING ON TOP OF THE PERCH THAT EUSTACHE, THE STRRRR- RO-O-O-ONGEST MAN IN THE WORLD, IS BALANCING ON HIS INDEX FINGER. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN... … HOLD YOUR BREATH! UP WE GO! YOUR APPLAUSE, PLEASE!!! POOF 7 WE WERE REALLY GOOD ATCHOO! TODAY! YEAH. TOO BAD ALMOST NOBODY SAW US. EUSTACHE... HM! AND YOU, YOU ARE INVENTOR- CAN YOU HELP ME... YOU ARE...? FAN-TAS-TIC! INNOVATOR? FANTASTIC! PROSPER PIPOLET, INVENTOR- INNOVATOR. I INVENT BUT WHAT DO YOU I CAME IN THIRD PLACE AND I INNOVATE. YOU INVENT... INVENT? OH... TWICE AT THE COMMISSIONER LÉPINE COMPETITION! ALL SORTS OF THINGS... PRACTICAL OBJECTS, ELECTRIC OH... AND WHAT UTENSILS, MECHANICAL DO YOU WANT? TOYS... YOUR HELP. HE INNOVATES. OUR HELP? WHAT FOR? TO SAVE THE WORLD! 8 LISTEN... I AM AWARE UM, OF COURSE, ANY OTHER DAY, MY REQUEST MY SEEM … OF COURSE, OKAY! IT WOULD BE EXTRAVAGANT, OUR PLEASURE, BUT BELIEVE ME, BUT WE ARE BUSY HUMANITY IS IN NOW. GREAT DANGER. SO, IF YOU WOULD PLEASE... STOP! TWO YEARS AGO, AND I KNOW I MET A VERY WEALTHY BUSINESSMAN, “STINGLER THIS BECAUSE VICTOR STINGLER. DOES HIS NAME NUTS AND BOLTS I AM IN LARGE PERHAPS RING A BELL? NEVER COME PART RESPONSIBLE. LOOSE!” SOME OF THEM, YES. THAT’S IT! NUTS, BOLTS, SCREWS... WAS HE INTERESTED IN HE OFFERED TO MARKET THEM HE MADE A FORTUNE IN YOUR INVENTIONS? HARDWARE ITEMS. AND FINANCE MY FUTURE PROJECTS. BUT HE DID SO UNDER ONE CONDITION... BUT HE HAD BEEN LOOKING HE WANTED ME TO DEVOTE TO DIVERSIFY HIS BUSINESS THE MAIN PART OF MY RESEARCH FOR SOME TIME. IT WAS IN THIS TO CREATING A REVOLUTIONARY CAPACITY THAT HE CONTACTED WEAPON. ME. SO? GIVEN THAT HE FINANCED AND YOU REFUSED. WELL... TO SELL YOUR RESEARCH, IT SEEMS NORMAL THEM, I SUPPOSE. THAT HE IS LOOKING TO MAKE A PROFIT AND I ACCEPTED! THIS IS THE TO THE MINISTER OF FROM IT... PROBLEM! I ACCEPTED AND WAR OR TO A WEAPONS I SUCCEEDED. AND STINGLER TOOK MANUFACTURER. OR MAYBE POSSESSION OF THE PLANS FOR EVEN TO A FOREIGN MY INVENTION! POWER... OH, NO! OUR AGREEMENT WAS PERFECTLY CLEAR ON THIS POINT: TO DO MY INVENTION WAS NOT MEANT TO WHAT? BE USED TO MAKE HIM WEALTHIER, BUT TO INSTITUTE WORLD PEACE. 9 THIS IS NOT JUST ANY KIND OF WEAPON. WORLD PEACE? IT’S A TERRIFYING MACHINE! ABLE TO DESTROY AN ENTIRE WITH A WEAPON? ARMY ON ITS OWN! OUR INITIAL IDEA WAS TO PROVIDE THINK ABOUT IT: KNOWING THE PLANS TO ALL THE MAJOR THEY ALL POSSESS THIS MONSTROUS WEAPON, POWERS AT THE SAME TIME. THE NATIONS WILL NOT DARE DECLARE WAR ON ONE ANOTHER, FOR FEAR OF SELF-DESTRUCTION. STRANGE IDEA, FOR PACIFISTS... DID YOU THAT MAKES GO SEE SENSE. MMM... PERHAPS... BUT LESS THE POLICE? ABSURD THAN IT MAY SEEM! I MUST ADMIT TO YOU THAT BEFORE THIS ARE YOU JOKING? EVENING I HAD LOST ALL HOPE... BUT THAT’D BE LIKE DELIVERING SEEING YOUR SHOW, AND DISCOVERING MY INVENTION DIRECTLY YOUR EXTRAORDINARY POWERS, I REALIZED TO THE FRENCH ARMY. THAT ALL IS NOT LOST. WITH YOUR HELP, I HAVE THE CHANCE TO PUT STINGLER IN CHECK. I CREATED THIS WEAPON TO MAINTAIN PEACE, NOT TO START A NEW WAR WITH THE PRUSSIANS! UH... I WILL PAY YOU, EUSTACHE... COME OF COURSE! HERE. OUR... EXTRAORDINARY... TEN THOUSAND POWERS? FRANCS! 10 WE ARE SORRY TO DISAPPOINT YOU, BUT I’M AFRAID THAT WHAT YOU HAVE TAKEN FOR EXTRAORDINARY ABILITIES ARE NOTHING BUT TRICKS AND ILLUSIONS. BUT... THANKS TO A THIN I SAW YOU LEAP STEEL ROPE AND THE PERCH THAT EUSTACHE BALANCED ON THE TIP OF TO THE CEILING! AN INGENIOUS SYSTEM HIS FINGER WAS ALSO HELD BY A CABLE. OF COUNTERWEIGHTS. AND A CHILD COULD LIFT HIS EMPTY BARBELLS. TRICKS ! THE YOUNG FEMALE TELEPATH? AND... THE... THE... AND THE OTHER THERE ARE ARTISTS? NO OTHER ILLUSIONS! ARTISTS. I AM VERY SORRY... WHAT DO YOU MEAN? THE KNIFE THROWER WITH HIS FORMIDABLE PRECISION? 11 NEVERTHELESS... WHAT A STRANGE PSSHHH... GOTTA ADMIT CHARACTER! SAVING THE WORLD... THAT WOULD ADD AS IF WE HAD NOTHING A BIT OF ELSE TO DO! PANACHE! AND THEN, IT WOULD BE A GREAT FORM OF ADVERTISING! PEOPLE WOULD COME RUSHING IN TO COME SEE OUR SHOW. NOT COUNTING THE TEN THOUSAND FRANCS. THAT’S NO SMALL AMOUNT! WHAT DO YOU THINK, PETRONILLA? I THINK THAT THIS OLD GENTLEMAN IS COMPLETELY NUTTY AND THAT WE HAVE MORE URGENT PROBLEMS TO SOLVE THAN ESTABLISHING WORLD PEACE. WE HAVE NO PAYMENTS ON RECORD THE NEXT DAY, AT THE HOUR WHEN SINCE JANUARY. THE INTEREST IS ELEGANT WOMEN’S PETS LEAVE THEIR ACCUMULATING AND YOUR OUTSTANDING FIRST DEFECATION ON THE SIDEWALKS. SUM IS GROWING AT AN ALARMING RATE. I KNOW... BUT I NEED I WANTED TO MORE TIME. SEE YOU THIS MORNING, WE ARE WORKING MADEMOISELLE, BECAUSE THE ON TWO NEW ACTS THAT CIRCUMSTANCES OF YOUR ARE EVEN MORE SPECTACULAR. LOAN ARE CRITICAL. ONCE THEY ARE UP AND RUN- NING, AUDIENCES WILL COME POURING IN. PERFECTLY! I WOULD LIKE TO BELIEVE YOU, TUT, TUT! CINEMATOGRAPHY, MADEMOISELLE, BUT I DOUBT IT. WE LIVE IN THEY NEED YOU SEE, DOES NOT TROUBLED TIMES. WITH ALL THESE ANARCHIST TO BE REASSURED! LIE. IT’S SERIOUS! WE ATTACKS AND THESE LEFTIES WHO NO LONGER WISH TO REDISCOVER THEIR AREN’T TALKING ABOUT TRICKS, TO WORK TEN HOURS A DAY, DO YOU THINK THAT CONFIDENCE IN THE ILLUSIONS, AND BAWDY JOKES.

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