Full Name: Tintin

Debut: Tintin In The Land Of The Soviets (Le Petit Vingtieme)

Original Name: Tintin

No. Of Appearances: 24

Principal Role: Hero Of Series

Residence: 26 Labrador Road, Brussels, Belgium (1), Marlinspike Hall, Brabant-Wallon, Belgium (2)

Profession: Reporter

Catchphrases: Great Snakes!, Crumbs!, Come on, Snowy!

Key Adventures: Tintin In The Land Of The Soviets, The Blue Lotus, Tintin And Alph-Art

The hero of this series, the focus of these adventures, Tintin is no ordinary cartoon character. He is extremely strange from one point of view, and rather normal from another. Let us examine the traits of this reporter. Tintin's job is simply to be a journalist. Yet only once in all his adventures do we see him actually doing a journalist's work. He is more of a detective/adventurer than a reporter, yet he is not affiliated with the police. He does not look for mysteries to solve or adventurous prospects, they come to him. His facial features are quite interesting too. He has no recognizable or outstanding facial feature, apart from his universally famous quiff. He has no known family at any time, nor is it mentioned that he ever did have any relatives. His family is his close circle of loyal friends which he builds up over the years. He is also asexual; he does not have a girlfriend in the series and marriage plans are never an issue. Tintin is also completely honest and detests violence of any form. Tintin also has no political affiliation, though in the early days, he was staunchly Catholic, like his readers. But throughout most of the books, he is not officially a member of any political party. He is often seen as being a fair-minded, honest Liberal. This lack of political bias allows Tintin to transcend the ages, from being a colonialist in Africa to sheltering with rebels in South America, from becoming the friend of the Latin dictator General Alcazar to aiding a secret society fighting the Japanese invaders of China.

His name is also a point of speculation. He is not, as some have suggested, Tin Tin, but simply Tintin. We do not learn if this is his first name, last name, middle name, nickname, or whether it is his only name. He is referred to in cases of friendly conversation and strict formality. It does not mean anything in English or French and is not really a Christian name although one can find boys in Bhutan named Tintin.

 His clothes are not too varied; unlike some fictional heros, Tintin does not see the need to update his wardrobe every 5 seconds. His trench coat and plus fours, en vogue when he was created, have become an endearing trademark for him. He is often seen wearing a blue crew-neck sweater, a simple brown suit, or a yellow shirt. His socks are either black or white (excepting one occasion when he dons Argylls in the original Tintin In The Congo) and he wears brogues for shoes. He often exchanges his clothes, suitable for most climates, for local garments (A burnous in North Africa and a kilt in the Hebrides). Only in Tintin And The Picaros does Tintin "get with it" and adopt 70s-style pants and shoes. Far from modernizing him, Tintin just looks even more dated and out of place than usual. These oddments about Tintin may be seen as a weakness, but that would be a misunderstanding of Herge's work. It makes the character and the books more timeless, more appealing, and more fascinating. It is this and this alone that makes Tintin such a versatile, classic, and timeless creation.

Full Name: Snowy

Debut: Tintin In The Land Of The Soviets (Le Petit Vingtieme)

Original Name: Milou

No. Of Appearances: 24

Principal Role: Tintin's Dog, Aide, And Loyal Friend

Residence: Same As Tintin

Profession: Dog

Catchphrases: Wooah!, Golly!

Key Adventures: Tintin In The Land Of The Soviets, The Crab With The Golden Claws

Present from the very start of the adventures, Snowy is essential, courageous, funny,  and absolutely adorable. He is Tintin's dog, a white wire-haired fox terrier who provides humor and emotion, two things that Tintin, especially in the early books, lacks. He is more of a human at heart than a dog and is much more like us than Tintin is. He is staunchly loyal to Tintin and is extremely brave, having saved Tintin countless times from the jaws of death through his use of quick thinking, skill, and cleverness. In fact, if Tintin had chosen to leave Snowy at home during his first adventure, Tintin In The Land Of The Soviets, he would have been dead before reaching Russia. Snowy is also very amiable, astute, and perceptive. He loves children, and for some reason, is welcome aboard any ocean liner, airplane, or train without being examined for diseases or quarantined, allowing him to follow Tintin everywhere he goes, making him one of, if not the, most widely traveled dogs in the history of fiction, having trekked through Tibet, relaxed in India, sauntered through the heart of Africa, and even been the first animal in fiction to visit the moon.

 However, he is at times a coward who puts on a brave face, confident but insecure, determined but easily led astray, but from the beginning he is indispensable. In the beginning, Tintin's only friend, aide, and confidant is his dog. Before Herge developed a family of characters around Tintin, and ever after that, Snowy was very important. Tintin, for all his oddities about him, does not show too much character. Snowy could provide emotion, humor, anger, patience, and vanity to the series. In the early days, he provided much slapstick humor, which would later be sized down by the pratfalls of the Thompsons and later Captain Haddock. For being a dog, Snowy is very like a human. For one thing he talks, (he can come up with some memorable lines at times) and in the early books, even has lengthy conversations with Tintin on the same wavelength. Although he is steadfast and straightforward, Snowy has desires which are bad for him. Already in the first adventure in Berlin, we can see him become intoxicated with champagne before achieving a headache. Yet he will learn to like the drink and become fond of it in later adventures. He also has a penchant for bones. Although these cravings do Snowy no harm in the books, they do on one occasion (in Tintin In Tibet) nearly cost Tintin his life. However, Snowy always makes up for his faults by showing true bravery and ingenuity on more than one occasion.

Although he follows Tintin everywhere and a Tintin adventure would not be complete without him, he is downsized in later books. Initially, he was so important that the series was called The Adventures Of Tintin And Snowy, but from The Crab With The Golden Claws onwards, he is very much eclipsed by the overpowering Captain Haddock. Snowy talks less, plays less of an important role in the plot, and much of the emphasis on his character that made him so endearing in the first place goes to Haddock. However, in particular tales, like The Shooting Star, Land Of Black Gold, and Tintin In Tibet, his importance is re-lived. Yet by Tintin And The Picaros, Snowy has been reduced to rubble. Tintin even prefers to pet Captain Haddock's cat and recognizes his existence only twice in the entire book. In the end, Snowy is the most endearing character in the series, and at one time or another, every protagonist loves him. It can be said that without Snowy, Tintin would never be the same again.

Full Name: Captain Archibald Haddock

Debut: The Crab With The Golden Claws (Le Soir Jeunesse)

Original Name: Capitaine Archibald Haddock

No. Of Appearances: 16

Principal Role: Bosom Friend Of Tintin

Residence: Brussels (1), Marlinspike Hall (2)

Profession: Merchant Sailor

Catchphrases: Blistering Barnacles!, Thundering Typhoons!, various insults, etc.

Key Adventures: The Crab With The Golden Claws, Red Rackham's Treasure

Hot-tempered, alcoholic, emotional, stern, generous, brawny, and Herge's favorite creation, Captain Archibald Haddock is from the start eye-catching. He is Tintin's close friend, who accompanies him to all parts of the globe in all of the adventures that take place after their meeting. Tintin first meets him aboard the illicit ship Karaboudjan in the Atlantic Ocean. Captain Haddock at that time is a drunken, miserable, and pathetic wretch of a sailor. But by the time of the end of the story, he will have developed a strong personality and character. He loves whisky, particularly Loch Lomond in the later books, although he becomes more sober in later books.

 Initially, Haddock has no home, although by The Secret Of The Unicorn, he has settled into a small, cheaply furnished flat in Brussels. His luck takes quite a turn in the next adventure, Red Rackham's Treasure. He discovers he is the heir to the grand country estate Marlinspike Hall and also finds a wealth of jewels. In later adventures, the bawling drunk has become a sober squire sitting over his country seat and possessing a significant amount of wealth. Although he plays a vital role in his debut adventure, The Crab With The Golden Claws, Captain Haddock does not become a vital addition to the books until The Shooting Star. A man of a forceful personality, Captain Haddock often eclipses Snowy and even Tintin, stealing the show. He has the ability to envelope all those around him and centre events on him. His facial expressions openly express his feelings. Haddock is less upright than Tintin, and although he is completely honest, he has no mercy towards villains, and many of his enemies would be dead if Tintin did not stop the Captain from sending them to their deaths. Haddock is at times unfortunate, bumbling, humorous, sarcastic, and hot-tempered.

What Captain Haddock is probably most renowned for is his legendary and memorable vocabulary. His anathemas, over 200 counted, have become a source of fascination for Tintinologists alike. He will use these insults freely towards those he opposes regardless of the disagreement. The slightest altercation will set off the Captain's temper and colorful nouns flavored with luxuriant adjectives will flow out of the Captain's mouth. These do not include any objectionable words, but consist of scientific terms or nouns jumbled with verbs completely out of context. They are more funny than objectionable and a vital addition to the annals of humor in The Adventures Of Tintin.

Full Name: Cuthbert Calculus

Debut: Red Rackham's Treasure (Le Soir)

Original Name: Professeur Tryphon Tournesol

No. Of Appearances: 12

Principal Role: Scientific Genius And Friend Of Tintin

Residence: Brussels (1), Marlinspike Hall (2)

Profession: Scientist

Catchphrases: Great Sunspots!, Further to the west...

Key Adventures: Red Rackham's Treasure, Destination Moon, Explorers On The Moon

A humorous yet intellectual addition to the series, Professor Calculus exemplifies a character type that Herge had used since 1932, 11 years before the creation of this enduring and endearing professor. The absent-minded professor, intellectually astounding yet basically foolish, was a favorite syndrome of Herge. One may find such professors as early on as Cigars Of The Pharaoh and as late as Tintin And Alph-Art. However, above all these such scientists, one keeps returning to mind. This is Calculus.

He begins his long career in the adventures of Tintin as an irritating yet comical figure. After having just scared off scores of avaricious con-men from Tintin's flat, Captain Haddock mistakes this little bearded man wearing a green hat and coat for another one and makes a sarcastic remark. However, he soon learns that Calculus is a hearing-impaired inventor who has come to offer Tintin his assistance in hunting for treasure. The following scenes are a tour de force as we are introduced to Calculus' flat for the one and only time. Calculus gives them a tour of his apartment, showing them a removable wall-bed he designed to conserve space and a clothes-brushing machine, both of which cause the Thomsons and Haddock considerable pain and embarrassment. After the mini-submarine, bearing similarity to a shark, which Calculus has built collapses, it appears that this homegrown inventor has departed stage left. However, a few pages on, there he is again, hard-of-hearing as ever. He stows himself away on board, to the displeasure of Captain Haddock and the probable relief of his doctor (read the book to understand what I mean) and from then on he is indispensable. His submarine is vital in discovering the wreck of the Unicorn and his emphasis on what Tintin disregards as old documents helps Captain Haddock realise that Marlinspike Hall is his birthright. He is vital to the plot of the next six adventures bar Land Of Black Gold, the only adventure afterwards in which he does not make an appearance. It is impossible to communicate with him on the same wavelength except in the Moon adventure, because of his hearing problems, so he is often in a world of his own. The Professor is very sweet-tempered, although in Destination Moon, he goes into a mad rage and nearly gets himself, Tintin, and the Captain killed because of an insult made by Haddock to his dignity, and in Flight 714, he mauls billionaire Laszlo Carreidas when the pigheaded tycoon attempts to swipe the professor's hat. Even when he does understand, the Professor does not get mad at real insults, but will become enraged at what others would consider mere trifles. 

Calculus was directly inspired physically by Auguste Piccard, inventor of the bathyscaph. His French name, Tournesol, means Sunflower, and his first name originally, Tryphon, was the name of a carpenter who worked near Herge's house during WWII. This element is summed up in his English name, Cuthbert Calculus.

Calculus, for all his faults, is a very intelligent man. He appears to be well versed in mechanics from the first adventure. He is responsible for finding a solution to the volatile and dangerous Formula Fourteen in Land Of Black Gold and is the mastermind of the Rocket X-FLRG, which was launched a good fifteen years before Apollo XI. In The Calculus Affair, his cover-title role, he invents an ultrasonic sound weapon. Over the following years, in which his importance is diminished, among his inventions are motor-roller skates, a colour television, and a cure to alcoholism. From start to finish, we see him progress from household mechanics to chemistry and pharmaceuticals. He has a wide interest in various fields of science, ranging from nuclear physics to horticulture. He also is fond of dowsing, and is rarely seen on his own without a pendulum.

In the end, Professor Cuthbert Calculus is an excellent addition to the series, bringing an element of science and freshness to every adventure he appears in. He is more than just a funny scientist, he is an institution in the adventures of Tintin.

Full Name(s): Thomson and Thompson

Debut: Cigars Of The Pharaoh (Le Petit Vingtieme)

Original Name(s): Dupond et Dupont

No. Of Appearances: 20

Principal Role: Detectives, Certified Idiots

Residence: Brussels

Profession(s): Certified Detectives

Catchphrases: To be precise, Dumb's the word, that's our motto,...

Key Adventures: Cigars Of The Pharaoh, Land Of Black Gold, Tintin And The Picaros

Easily the most obvious example of first-degree stupidity in all the works of Herge, these pretentious, prejudiced, moronic officers of the law would in real life be undesirable, but in fiction they are indispensable for long periods of time. Thomson and Thompson, or Dupond et Dupont in the original French, are two "certified detectives", the pride of the police force. For some reason, despite their absolute idiocy and incompetence, they are seen as the best officials the law has to offer, and they are often handed high-profile cases, which they always bungle, and in the end, it is Tintin who sorts it out for them.

Their appearance, regardless of when or where, is unmistakeable. They are two balding middle-aged men, large-nosed, and bearing a large black moustache each. They are often referred to as twins, even though they are not, because it is virtually impossible to tell them apart. They even go so far as to wear the same clothes, a black bowler hat, a dark suit and tie, white shirt, brown shoes and walking stick. It would not be a lie to say that they are two of a kind. Funnily enough, the only way the readers, and Tintin himself can tell these two detectives apart from each other is by looking at their moustache. Thomson's curves at the bottom, while Thompson's goes straight down.

The Thomsons are not really Tintin's friends at any time. They work with him on many cases and collaborate with him, but they also are ready to arrest him if they are given a charge. In fact, they make their debut in Cigars Of The Pharaoh, when they arrest Tintin, accusing him of drug-smuggling. Although the hero escapes, the detectives continue to be a menace and pursue him until the end of the adventure.

Their most common catchphrase, "To be precise" is used often. One will say something and the other will say "To be precise" and then contradict the previous statement completely. An example from Prisoners Of The Sun: "Otherwise we have absolutely no hope." "To be precise, we're absolutely hopeless." The state of exactness in every statement, peppered with classical quotes is their idea of true eloquence, and they fail to achieve this on every occasion. They also are klutzes, being responsible for over two dozen pratfalls. They always appear oblivious to their own ineptitude. When abroad, they attempt to blend in with the locals by donning traditional clothes. Instead, they make themselves extemely noticeable and absolutely ridiculous. When in Mandarin rig in The Blue Lotus, they manage to become the laughing-stock of an entire city, and in The Crab With The Golden Claws, their burnouses make them so outstanding that Tintin is able to recognize them from their back profiles at a distance of several feet.

In the end, Thomson and Thompson, Certified Detectives, (Agents X33 and X33A in the beginning) are a mockery of law and order. They humiliate themselves and what they stand for on every occasion. They rank as two of the most popular characters in the series. They are omnipresent at times. Herge gave them a cameo role in the color version of Tintin In The Congo and they turn up in the strangest circumstances, even hitching a ride to the moon unintentionally. Although from The Calculus Affair onwards they lose significance greatly, they still manage to crop up in every adventure, albeit briefly bar Flight 714 and Tintin In Tibet. They exemplify the incompetent policeman at tevery time, leaving room for Tintin to sort the messes they create out. They are an invaluable source of humor and however much of a hinder they may be to Tintin, they are a great aid to the richness of the texture woven by Herge.

Full Name: Signora Bianca Castafiore

Debut: King Ottokar's Sceptre (Le Petit Vingtieme)

Original Name: Madame Bianca Castafiore

No. Of Appearances: 10

Principal Role: Famous Diva, Pain In The Neck

Residence: N/A

Profession: Opera Singer

Catchphrases: AHH MY BEAUTY PAST COMPARE..., Mercy! My Jewels!

Key Adventures: King Ottokar's Sceptre, The Calculus Affair, The Castafiore Emerald

Everyone knows the golden voice of the famous Bianca Castafiore in the adventures of Tintin. She is a robust Italian blonde, the jewel of La Scala, The Milanese Nightingale, whose performances are broadcast in the remotest parts of the globe. She is adored by her fans, admired by statesmen, applauded by critics, and loathed by Herge's characters.

She is a capricious, unintelligent, pampered, assuming diva whose presence is almost as powerful as her voice. Her calling card aria is the Jewel Song from Faust, by Charles Gounod. She breaks out into it at every possible moment, whether in a car or a courtroom. The first few words of the Jewel Song are now familiar to every Tintin fan. They symbolize her and her presence.

The international public in the Adventures Of Tintin looks upon her as a divine heroine while the real characters of the series, the ones of any importance, have no appreciation for her whatsoever, with the exception of Calculus, who is clearly in love with her. Men are fascinated by her. The villainous Marquis di Gorgonzola, the devilish Colonel Sponsz, the wealthy Maharajah of Gopal, and Professor Calculus are all clearly smitten by her. Even Nestor shows embarassment after she thanks him for retrieving her precious jewels. 

She is vain, inglorious, and pompous. She sees fit to inflict her beastly presence upon Tintin and later Haddock at the most inconvenient times. She sees fit to invite herself to Marlinspike Hall for "a quiet rest" and sets all hell loose in the quiet countryside. The usually firebreathing Captain is reduced to ruins at the mere sight of her, not to mention the sound. He prefers jumping onto a raft and marooning himself in the Red Sea to being reacquainted with her. In The Castafiore Emerald, he is mortified to learn that the tabloids have reported their alleged engagement and in Tintin And The Picaros, he is greeted by Castafiore upon her release from prison in San Theodoros with a warm embrace. And in the ultimate adventure, Tintin And Alph-Art, Castafiore smooches him in public, much to his horror.

She is of little importance in the series except on four occasions: first in The Calculus Affair, when she proves her mettle by sheltering Tintin and Haddock from the murderous Sponsz, second, in The Castafiore Emerald, wherein she gains a cover-title role by allowing the entire plot to center around her character, thirdly and lastly, in the final two adventures,  in both of which she plays a vital role in the plot. She is mainly a shallow character, but she shows her bravery when she fearlessly tackles a military court in South America. She is one character that you could say is of both the greatest and least importance.

Full Name: General Alcazar

Debut: The Broken Ear (Le Petit Vingtieme)

Original Name: General Alcazar

No. Of Appearances: 4

Residence: Las Dopicos, San Theodoros

Profession: Politician

Catchphrases: Caramba!

Key Adventures: The Broken Ear, Tintin And The Picaros

A delightfully colorful character, this South American revolutionary is a comical interpretation of South American politics. He is a hard, unforgiving character, sometimes Tintin's friend, sometimes his enemy. He first appears in The Broken Ear, when his series of short-lived revolutions manages to save Tintin's life. General Alcazar hires Tintin as his ADC after a misinterpretation of events. The General himself is revealed to be a cunning politician, hard on his own officers, demanding, and dangerous. The character loses his so-far humorous disposition later on in the books when, worthy of a politician, he agrees to compromise with American entrepreneur Trickler into an oil-mining scheme that will cost many lives. Then Trickler frames Tintin and gets the General to arrest him. The boy reporter's relations with the general appear to be over when he is forced to flee from the fictional country of San Theodoros, pursued by Alcazar's men, intent on killing him.

But the memorable San Theodolite returns under the alias of Ramon Zarate, music-hall knife thrower, in The Seven Crystal Balls. Considering that one desperately wanted to kill the other, it seems odd that they should be on such amicable terms in this adventure. He also pops up briefly in The Red Sea Sharks and achieves his position as a key character in Tintin And The Picaros.

Alcazar, so splendidly named after the Spanish word for fortress, is often down on his luck. His second and third meetings with Tintin are in unfortunate circumstances. He has been ousted both times by his eternal rival General Tapioca (yes, you read that right) and is forced to undergo various tests, first as a music-hall performer, and secondly and more dubiously, as a politician illegally buying aircraft to be used in a war. And finally in Tintin And The Picaros, we meet his hardly charming wife, Peggy, daughter of Sir Basil Bazarov, arms dealer.

Alcazar is a splendid parody of a Third-World politician. He is dishonest, cunning, villainous, unscrupulous, and mistrusting at times. Only circumstances and his wife can reduce him down to size. Depending on the issue and times, he is Tintin's friend and enemy. Even in Tintin And The Picaros, he threatens to have Tintin shot if his plan fails, something that he had almost done in The Broken Ear. In the end, Alcazar is a tour de force of a character, and grabs attention whenever he appears in the Adventures Of Tintin.

Full Name: Emir Ben Kalish Ezab

Debut: Land Of Black Gold (Tintin Magazine)

Original Name: Emir Ben Kalish Ezab

No. Of Appearances: 3

Principle Role: Emir of Khemed, Friend of Tintin

Residence: Hasch Abaibabi, Khemed

Profession: Emir of Khemed

Catchphrases: Inshallah!, Mangy dog!

Key Adventures: Land Of Black Gold, The Red Sea Sharks

After the Thompsons get arrested for driving through a mosque wall while asleep in the desert, Tintin goes to lodge a plea for their release. He meets with Emir Ben Kalish Ezab, leader of the Emirate of Khemed. Not only does Tintin manage the acquittal of his friends, but he also forms a key alliance and finds a new trail of fresh clues leading to the solution of the mystery that brought him to the Middle East in the first place.

The Emir is a bearded man, simply referred to as either Your Highness or the Emir. His perpetual rival is Sheik Bab El Ehr, who Tintin had the displeasure of meeting before him. The Emir is a strong, confident, and clever leader, cruel but culutured, educated but egotistical, smart but sadistic, exemplyifing the traditional Arab monarch in every way.

 His only example of bad leadership is his son, Crown Prince Abdullah. Abdullah is a pampered, spoilt brat of about 6 years who makes Tintin's life a living hell from the moment they meet. He becomes a constant source of irritation to Captain Haddock in particular. Despite whatever villainous pranks the Crown Prince may play, the Emir just laughs it off and sees it as just part of the prince's charm. His blind spot turns out to be the cause of his undoing in The Red Sea Sharks, when a trifle of a disagreement over Abdullah leaks into a chain of events leading to his dethroning. Tintin arrives on the scene and straightens everything out for the Emir, and all's well that ends well again.

The Emir crops up in a television interview watched by Tintin & Co. in the final adventure, Tintin And Alph-Art. Like most bureaucrats, the Emir appears to have let power and wealth intoxicate him. The Emir appears not only to be villainous, treacherous, and unjust during his three-page run in the book, but also appears to have let the money pouring in from Western oil corporations during the Reagan era go to his head. Indeed, the Emir is so rich that he talks haughtily but seriously on television of buying Windsor Castle, Eiffel Tower, and the Centre Beaubourg, as well as many great works of art from the Louvre. By the time he makes his departure, the Emir's friendship with Tintin has become questionable, and some today see him as a potential suspect for the true identity of Endaddine Akass...

Full Name: Chang Chong-Chen

Debut: The Blue Lotus (Le Petit Vingtieme)

Original Name: Tchang Tchong-Jen

No. Of Appearances: 3

Principal Role: Extremely Close Chinese Friend Of Tintin

Residence: Rural China (1), Shanghai (2), London (3)

Profession: N/A

Catchphrases: N/A

Key Adventures: The Blue Lotus, Tintin In Tibet

Tintin's first human friend was in fact a real person. Chang Chong-Chen was a sculptor who lived in Belgium for many years during the 1930s. He also happened to be a very close friend of Herge. Chang taught Herge many things about China, including Mandarin. The wonderfully exact examples of Chinese to be found throughout The Blue Lotus came about only thanks to Chang. The character was Herge's idea: to give Tintin the fictional alter ego of his real friend.

Chang Chong-Chen (the character) is a young boy, who, extremely mature, becomes an ideal companion for Tintin very quickly. After Tintin saves him from drowning in the Yangtze River, Chang reciprocates by saving Tintin from the clutches of the Japanese in Hukow and at the very last second, preventing the reporter's decapitation at the very end of the story. Tintin equals the tally by saving Chang's life in Tintin In Tibet.

Chang is very amiable. He becomes a close friend of the Yeti in Tintin In Tibet, who is revealed to be very softhearted. He takes to Tintin instantly, and upon the news of Chang'a apparent death in Tintin In Tibet, Tintin and Snowy both collapse into uncontrollable tears.

Just as Tintin was reunited with Chang in Tintin In Tibet, so was Herge with Tchang. After returning to his homeland, Tchang had disappeared after the war. Herge came into contact with his brother in 1975, and in 1981, amid much press coverage, they were reunited in Brussels, 44 years after they last met. Tchang eventually settled down in Paris. He died in 1998. His daughter runs the Tintin Boutique in Brussels.

Tintin, like most other heroes, is by no means short of enemies. Herge, unlike other notable character authors, such as Ian Fleming, did not have a motif villain. Each of Tintin's nemeses had individual characters and were very different from one another. The earliest examples of villains in the series were numerous Bolshevik thugs and American gangsters. Herge did not characterize villains until Tintin In America. However, by Cigars Of The Pharaoh, Herge had devised a new formula for villains that would shape his career.

Full Name: Roberto Rastapopoulos

Debut: Cigars Of The Pharaoh (Le Petit Vingtieme)

Original Name: Roberto Rastapopoulos

No. Of Appearances: 5

Principal Role: Arch-Nemesis

Residence: N/A, M.S. Scheherazade, Pulau-Pulau Bompa

Profession: Film Director, Tycoon, Millionaire, Thug

Catchphrases: Diavolo!

Key Adventures: Cigars Of The Pharaoh, The Blue Lotus, The Red Sea Sharks, Flight 714

Unarguably Tintin's greatest nemesis, Roberto Rastapopoulos is a unique character in the adventures of Tintin. Also the most durable villain in the series, Rastapopoulos makes good his reputation as Tintin's ultimate enemy.

No villain within the series can compare with him. He is not only the favorite villain of Herge and Tintin's fans, but also the most common one. Rastapopoulos has never been known to answer to anyone, and he is always the ringleader in whatever story he appears in.

Rastapopoulos's origin appears to be Mediterranean: His Christian name is Italian and his surname Greek. In fact, his most commonly used curse, Diavolo!, is Italian for devil.  In Flight 714, we learn of his past. He appears to have been a miserable wretch from the start. He notes that he was the ruin of his three brothers, two sisters, and parents. Rastapopoulos first appears under name when Tintin stops him from assaulting Dr. Sarcophagus onboard the S.S. Isis. When an enraged Rastapopoulos introduces himself, Tintin quips: "And its not the first time we've met..."

In fact, it is true. Rastapopoulos and Tintin were first acquainted in Chicago. On page 57 of Tintin In America, we see him situated between the reporter and actress Mary Pikefort. As we learn in Cigars Of The Pharaoh, Rastapopoulos is a film director and President of Cosmos Films. Inc., thus it makes sense for him to be well acquainted with America.

But Rastapopoulos and Tintin do not immediately start off into another Punic war when they first meet. In fact, Rastapopoulos is seen as Tintin's friend, aiding and secretly abetting him throughout Cigars Of The Pharaoh. He appears so friendly and civil after their first meeting that it is no wonder that Tintin is shocked to discover that Rastapopoulos is his grand enemy in The Blue Lotus.

The villain, who had kept Tintin busy for two books was carted off to prison in Shanghai at the end of the adventure, and his tenure appeared to have ended. Thus, it was shocking to readers to re-encounter the thug in The Red Sea Sharks, written and set a good quarter-century after The Blue Lotus. However, Rastapopoulos has changed his name since then, but none of his habits. He is now the Marquis di Gorgonzola, wealthy aristocrat courting the creme de la creme of Western society. His lavish lifestyle has lost none of its extravagance, and to the contrary the gangster's already massive fortunes appear to have skyrocketed even further, allowing him to become more opulent in his habits.

The headquarters of the Marquis di Gorgonzola, his luxurious yacht, the M.S. Scheherazade, is the favorite gathering place for patricians and princesses alike, who, like Tintin initially, do not doubt the honesty of their host. It is also modelled on Aristotle Onassis' Christina, which was in terms of shipping quality and luxury, the equivalent of the truly magnificent boat that navigates the Red Sea.

However, "the Marquis" is revealed by Tintin at the end of the adventure, and in true form, rises to expectations and cleverly escapes, leaving the world to mistake him for dead.

Yet, there he is again, mastermind of the hijacking of the Carreidas 160 jet which Tintin, Haddock, Calculus, and Snowy are traveling on board. This time seeking the bank account number of multibillionaire Laszlo Carreidas (in many ways Rastapopoulos' contemporary), he is aided by Sondonesian nationalists at his Indonesian headquarters, the volcanic island of Pulau-Pulau Bompa. The once suave gentleman thief has now become a pathetic and disturbingly grotesque trigger-happy thug whose miserable mishaps deserve a pantomime show more than a Tintin adventure. However, Rastapopoulos disappears from the universe of Tintin by being abducted by a flying saucer towards the end of the adventure, leaving forever, having created a career that lasted from 1932 to 1968. Many still believe that Herge intended to return Rastapopoulos, perhaps in Tintin And Alph-Art.

The Marquis di Gorgonzola, aka Roberto Rastapopoulos, chatting with his guests aboard his mystical yacht, the M.S. Schehezerade.

Full Name: Dr. Muller

Debut: The Black Island (Le Petit Vingtieme)

Original Name: Dr. Muller

No. Of Appearances: 3

Principal Role: Arch-Fiend, Nazi Spy

Residence: Sussex, Khemed

Profession: Doctor, Forger, Spy

Catchphrases: Kruziturcken!, Ach!

Key Adventures: The Black Island, Land Of Black Gold

Dr. Muller is one of the most durable and certainly among the finest villains ever created by Herge. The flaws in his character are numerous, and as a human being he had many counterparts in reality.

Although in The Black Island, it is the Russian Puschov who leads the gang of continental forgers in Britain, Dr. Muller is easily the antagonist of the story and he quickly steals the show. Muller is a character that works as well on screen and stage as well as on paper. A wealthy, highly-respected German physician living in a small Sussex village, Dr. Muller echoes many other people in history, notably Dr. Alan Bell (Tintin The Complete Companion, Michael Farr). Muller appears to have received his doctorate in torture, as we learn at his luxurious home in the English countryside.

Muller, always bald, initially whiskered but later bearded, and eternally wicked, is a German. One can assume through indirect characterization that Muller must be a Nazi spy. He bears similarity to various SS agents who worked their way into societies throughout Europe. The entire focus of The Black Island, the counterfeiting ring, was actually inspired by widespread forgery throughout Europe later traced to Nazi Germany. Indeed, it would have been in the interests of Adolf Hitler to damage the economy across the continent, especially Britain, before launching the Blitzkrieg.

The Nazi element of Dr. Muller is reinforced with examination of the original version of Tintin In The Land Of The Black Gold (1939-1940), which ended with the Nazi occupation of Belgium. The plot showcased Dr. Muller once again at work for the Third Reich, this time to jeopardize secure oil supplies in the Palestine, Britain's Middle East stronghold.

However, during the occupation, Muller was abandoned as a character and resurfaced in the "new" edition of Land Of Black Gold, published in Tintin Magazine. This time less macrocephalic and with more plausible facial hair, Muller continued his exploits, from the Arab emirate of Khemed.  Once again wealthy, but this time posing as Professor Smith. However, he is once more foiled by Tintin, this time after using his skills to build the deadly Formula Fourteen.

In a moment of dry political satire, Herge returns the character briefly for The Red Sea Sharks. Appearing as Sheik Bab El Ehr's military adviser, he is Mull Pasha, a subtle play on Glubb Pasha, British traitor and commander of the Arab Legion.

After this he disappears, though a similar though less durable but more ominous German, Dr. Krollspell, crops up in Flight 714, no villain reaches Dr. Muller's calibre. He is often overlooked in comparison to others, such as Rastapopoulos or Allan. Yet no villain ever created by Herge is as realistic as Muller, except perhaps Colonel Sponsz. Muller still deserves a place in the hall of fame devoted to Herge's characters, and will never be forgotten...

Professor Smith (a.k.a. Dr. J.W. Muller) falls victim to sneezing powder, yet another trick of treacherous little brat Crown Prince Abdullah of Khemed, his prisoner and hostage in Land Of Black Gold.