Review by Jamie McNeil
A self-explanatory title of Yakari and The Pronghorns leads off the 22nd album in Cinebook chronology and the 23rd in the French of artist Derib’s (Claude de Ribaupierre) and Job’s (André Jobin) delightful adventures of the Sioux First Nation’s boy Yakari. As always there’s more to it, with a splash of danger and a whole heap of adventure thrown in.
Yakari is puzzled when he spots the village elder Quiet Rock dangling a moccasin over the edge of a bush. When he enquires why, Quiet Rock gives him an introduction to the curious Pronghorn Antelope. This leads to Yakari, who can speak to animals, befriending the pronghorn and his family, especially their two fawns Topii and Tipoo. Then disaster strikes in the form of a prairie fire and things become dangerous, especially when Topii is separated from his family in their flight. Yakari helps the Pronghorns search for their fawn but even if he survives the fire plenty of other dangers await out on the plains.
In the early 1990s, Derib and Job arguably hit their peak on the series both artistically and in plotting with gems like The Snow Bird, The Wall of Fire, and Fury from the Skies. While not as grand, following stories such as this are consistently good, charming, readable and entertaining nevertheless and espouse all that a good children’s tale should be.
The Pronghorns is in part a nature documentary, Job’s research detailed and informative. It doesn’t have the same level of excitement as their previous outing Fury From the Skies, but it is paced well and elegantly presents the challenges for any creature on the American Plains. It ebbs and flows in the right places and Job gives the cast personality whether a disgruntled coyote out for payback or a kindly if curmudgeonly porcupine.
Derib doesn’t have tornadoes or great walls of flame to illustrate but his artwork doesn’t disappoint. The pronghorns leap and bound, and he magnificently conveys the species’ protective parenting which both Yakari and a coyote painfully discover. His renderings of the prairie fire’s destructive prowess and the chaos of the ensuing animal stampede heightens the tension (see sample art). The aftermath is stark and highlighted by a river showing the burnt prairie on the one bank and the lush greenery on the other. Colourist Dominique has been assisting Derib for some time and their excellent palette demonstrates the smoky hue and change in the atmosphere on such occasions.
Both creators are into their seventies at this stage, but maintain a curiosity about life, the world and what entertains a generation of 1990s children that were more jaded than their predecessors. This shines through in their tales and while Yakari and The Pronghorns doesn’t match the brilliance of some of their previous works in this decade it is delightfully charming and an engaging read. It is not unreasonable then to expect more in the next adventure Yakari and the Ghost Bear.
