XIII (comic)

XIII (thirteen) is a French comic book series written by Jean Van Hamme and drawn by William Vance. XIII is similar to Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Identity in that both protaganists have amnesia. XIII first appeared in the 1980s. In 2004 the storyline of the first five volumes was adapted into a video game, also titled XIII, it was released on several platforms.

Volumes

Note: only the first three volumes were translated to English in the initial run by Catalan Communications, but Dabel Brothers plans to release all volumes starting 2005. English titles in the below list are translations of the French original titles, and may change for the actual albums.

Most volumes consisted of three individual issues during the initial run, not otherwise named or numbered.

1. Black friday
2. Where the Indian goes
3. All tears of hell
4. SPADS
5. Red alert
6. The Jason Fly files
7. The night of August 13
8. Thirteen against one
9. For Maria
10. El Cascador
11. Three silver watches
12. The Trial
13. The Inquest
14. Danger to the state
15. Release the dogs!
16. Operation Montechristo

Storyline

The series starts when a man washes up on a shore, suffering from amnesia, with only an 'XIII' tattoo to link him to his past.

Volumes one through five deal with XIII searching for his identity and his past, only to find himself confronting the "conspiracy of the XX" which aims to a coup d'etat in the United States.

In volumes six to eighth XIII takes up again the investigation about his past. He has to deal with the relationship his father and he himself have with Kim, daughter of general Carrington. Kim is married to Steve Rowland, one of XIII's former identities.

In volumes nine to eleven, the action takes place in Costa Verde, a small nation in Central America where XIII once led a revolution under the identity of "El Cascador".

Volume twelve starts a new storyline, with XIII hunted by the NSA, while XIII himself once again confronts his old enemy, the Mongoose.

Volume thirteen (XIII) is a special issue, where two journalist retrace the first twelve issues, clarifying and expanding the storyline.

Volumes fourteen to sixteen continue the storyline began in volume twelve.

The first five volumes form a closed story, ending with the destruction of the "conspiracy of the XX". At the end of volume five XIII believes he has found his old identity as "Steve Rowland", and is prepared to continue his life normally, even if his memories have not yet returned. This illusion is shattered in the next volume, as XIII learns that "Steve Rowland" was but one of many identities. XIII once again becomes a government agent, while at the same time he has to deal with his missing past and uncertain future.

Popularity

First released in 1984 as a serial in the popular French Spirou magazine, XIII was an instant hit among Spirou readers. The first three issues were released as a single hardback volume by Spirou published Dargaud the same year, a trend continued for later issues. By the time of the eight issue, Thirteen against one, sales of the hardback had reached 140'000 copies, and the publisher belatedly realizes they have a bestseller on hands. Promotion starts, including a special drawing by the French national lottery in 2000 with 1'500'000 tickets and a €13'000 grand prize.

Translations

Originally in the French language, XIII was quickly translated into the Dutch language, and translations in other languages such as German and Italian quickly followed.

XIII was first released in English in 1989, but after the first three volumes publication ended in 1990. Dabel Brothers is planning to reissue all sixteen volumes starting 2005.

XIII video game

Main article: XIII (game)

XIII was adapted as a 2004 video game released for PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox, and the PC. The plot of the game is an adaption of the first five volumes of the comic series.

External links

• XIII official website