Review by Frank Plowright

Unlike the previous two volumes, as the subtitle indicates, Disastrous Season focusses on an entire season rather than a single race. It means Denis Lapière and Vincent Dutreuil have to straddle a fine respectful line, as the 1970 Formula One season was littered with tragedy. Without consideration, inserting the fictional Michel Vaillant and Steve Warson could seem ill-judged.

As seen in A Driver’s Soul, the series is improved for concentrating on the racing rather than prioritising a surrounding action thriller plot, and the requirement for multiple races ensures other activities are minimised anyway. There’s space for some celebrity cameos, drawn by Dutreuil with the expertise he brings to his likeness of drivers, while racing enthusiasts will surely appreciate the detail he brings to the cars also. The Vaillante team have a new car for the season, and with knowledge of how Formula One cars develop after 1970, Dutreuil is able to supply something suitably futuristic. Dutreuil includes maps of every racecourse and draws dynamic racing scenes, acknowledging some to be his versions of scenes originally drawn by Vaillaint’s creator Jean Graton. Either way, the art looks great, bringing home the thrills of motor racing despite the old cars.

With the fatalities mounting, Lapière inserts Vaillant into conversations about safety concerns. That may seem fanciful, but notes at the start mention the author consulting with Belgian driver Jacky Ickx who was present throughout the season, so his recollections presumably provide the comments. The drivers feel the controlling organisation are unconcerned about their safety and slow to introduce now standard features such as crash barriers around the entire track.

A romantic subplot seems tagged on unnecessarily, but may connect with the Michel Vaillant comics of the 1970s, so would make more sense to European readers. Otherwise the thrills and tragedy of the 1970 season transmit and ought to appeal to anyone with an interest in the history of Formula One.