Review by Ian Keogh

There’s a great start to The Edge of Night, as for once it’s not Largo Winch endangered, but acting as a compassionate financier. It’s a well-worked sequence from writer Eric Giacometti, displaying what a committed man with scruples can do with one of the world’s biggest fortunes at his disposal.

As was the case in the Morning Star/Scarlet Sails pairing, Giacometti’s thriller plots make full use of present day technology, even looking a little toward the future, and following Jean Van Hamme’s lead, reflect current world politics. As such, his work on Largo Winch can be compared with the way Daniel Craig’s stint as James Bond built on the principles of the earlier films. Influencers, live streams, #MeToo protests and a genius constantly striving to bring the future to the present all have a part to play. The latter’s real world equivalent is obvious, hardly concealed by the name Munskind. However, for all the efficiency of introducing ethical concerns, there are places where Giacometti is hardly subtle, and on one occasion there’s the feeling of being lectured by an activist. Never mind, though, because this is a first rate plot with twists and connections that will come from nowhere.

There are no concerns whatsoever about Philippe Francq’s art. He’s been a class act for decades and once again delivers the polished and the spectacular, never shirking when detail is required, to the point of supplying a couple of dozen people in miniature dancing at a party on the sample page. Most artists wouldn’t have chosen to show that scene from distance, never mind the number of people within it. The same work rate and the same storytelling mastery applies all the way through.

The predicament that ends the story is foreshadowed at the start, and a couple of mysteries accompany Giacometti’s tight plot heading into The Golden Percentile. Will Largo escape? Probably. Will the W group board remain intact? Possibly. Will Elon Musk sue? Who knows.