Nuées noires, voile blanc, which has just been published by Vents d'Ouest, is the penultimate episode of the great adventure of Azimut, imagined by Lupano and masterfully illustrated by Andreae. On a dishevelled rhythm, the authors make us follow again the adventures lived by the motley group of heroes and anti-heroes formed around the beautiful Manie Ganza, struggling with the powerful Baba Musiir.
There is a huge flaw in Azimut's albums: they are too quickly finished! Not that they read too quickly – nuance! – but the last page is always frustrating because once it is read, we realize that we will have to wait another two years to know the rest (and this time, the end also) of this great epic. Originally, this story was planned in three volumes, but very quickly the authors realized that the material was too rich for it to be satisfactory in so few pages. And it is easy to understand when you read it.
Azimut is one of those stories combining machine and wonder, like La Nef des fous or Horologiom, without falling into steampunk. We also think, for its "crazy race around the world" aspect of De cape et de crocs. And then, there are many references, especially in the first volumes (how not to think of Major Grubert de Mœbius), which however fade, and fortunately, in favor of the story and the characters. How many screenwriters stuff us with references to the point of overdose to the point of totally spoiling their stories?
Once again, with Black Clouds, White Veil, the authors show an imagination and inventiveness that impress. They also know how to combine the classic figures of this kind of story with the originality of adventures that would leave Baron de Münchausen himself jealous. Things are becoming clearer, however, and we see the beginning of an end to the quest of the various characters. The reader's imagination is set in motion, but the authors are talented enough to surprise us in the final album of the series that should be released a priori in 2020. We are therefore both in a hurry to discover volume 5, but as it will be the last, we still hesitate a little to be afraid.
