This issue is one I’ve wanted to do for a long time. As you all know, Tintin is one of the main inspirations around here, and this issue has especially close ties to Tintin because I stole the idea from Hergé. Now wait a minute there, don’t get excited. See, it’s an idea he didn’t use. In some source I can no longer find, I read that Hergé’s original plan for one of the Tintin albums (Alph-Art, if I remember correctly) was to set the entire story in an airport. He said that airports were interesting places and that they were more than capable of supporting an entire story. Ultimately he came up with a completely different story, though, and his airport idea is now just a footnote in the annals of Tintinalia*. Since I love a challenge and hate to see a good idea go to waste, I decided to take a stab at it myself.
“Concourse,” as you’ve probably gathered, takes place entirely in an airport. I’d originally planned to do it as Issue 8, but when the first Issue 7 concept fell through, I decided the best thing to do would be to jump ahead to this one. Unfortunately, due to its premise, we don’t get to see the Akhenaten at all, which is too bad since we didn’t get to see it much last time, either. However, I will assure you that they’ll be airborne again in the next issue, which I already have some vague ideas for.
In the meantime, enjoy Issue 7: “Concourse,” which has its share of exciting action, surprising plot twists, and people sitting around talking. I’m counting on all of you to protect me if the Moulinsart Foundation decides to strike.
*I hereby challenge all of you to find further uses for the phrase “annals of Tintinalia.”
It's nice to know this! And I'm very glad that Sunrise has returned.
Airports certainly are interesting places. It's funny to think that you're using an unused idea proposed by your major influence. I bet Hergé would be glad to see it used! That's kind of how it seems to work anyway, if not slightly less directly.
Though maybe I'm biased because I know that's how scientific research usually works, in a general way (one study will lead to a thousand more by forming new questions from slightly changed ideas–and no one can pursue or answer every quesion). So, I mean maybe Hergé was hoping that someone would take up his good idea which he for whatever reason didn't pursue, in light of another. I'm sure he wouldn't have thrown it out there if he didn't want someone to use it!