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Castafiore Emerald: not much of a plot?

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stuart
Member
#31 · Posted: 23 Aug 2005 13:37
I think Snafu's point about Red Rackham's Treasure is very shrewd, that book and Castifiore Emerald do go well together. Both are episodic, both involve wild goose chases, both are treasure hunts, in both the treasure turns out to be hidden in Marlinspike, birds are a running theme of both (Bird brothers, the Eagle which hides the cross, the Magpie etc.), both show Haddock etc. beset by reporters and both have one reporter completely misunderstanding Calculus, Calculus demonstrates his inventions in both ...
Stas Werno
Member
#32 · Posted: 11 Mar 2006 22:22
first one i ever read, and one of my favorites! it shows herge didnt need exotic locations or evil villians to make a great story
Tintin Quiz
Member
#33 · Posted: 18 Mar 2006 19:19
Quoting from an answer on my Tintin Trivia Quiz
At the end of The Castafiore Emerald, Castafiore leaves Marlinspike to sing in Rossini’s opera La Gazza Ladra. From Wikipedia on La Gazza Ladra: “The opera begins with a young girl, Ninetta Villabella, who works as a house maid to a wealthy farm-owner. Some expensive silver cutlery goes missing, and Ninetta is blamed, though it was actually stolen by a magpie. Ninetta is condemned to death, and it is only the discovery of the cutlery in the magpie’s nest that saves her life.”

So not only is the thieving magpie a twist, the whole plot of Emerald resembles the plot of the opera. I've always thought Emerald a clever twist on a Tintin story.
SingingGandalf
Member
#34 · Posted: 18 Mar 2006 20:03
Like many, I used to find it boring, but now it's one of my favourites. The plot was really well thought out and doesn't rely on action, it's like a romance but not a romance, and a bit like a murder mystery, like Poirot, but it isn't. A murder mystery would have been better, but maybe a bit two grisly for younger viewers/readers. Interesting post Tintin Quiz. Im very glad that this wasn't Herge's last book. It would make it seem like Tintin's life was slowing down, he was getting old.
pokemon
Member
#35 · Posted: 24 Jul 2007 14:44
i hate castafiore emerald as well. the book is what i call a homely one. my dad who is another tintin fan dislikes it.

what actually happened was that i got the book from my school library and did return it even when the school closed for the summer. and so it remained with me the entire summer and reading it continuously gave me an imprisoning effect.

when the school re-opened they asked for the book and i was happy to return it!!
pokemon
Member
#36 · Posted: 24 Jul 2007 14:47
anyway tintin.com says that while writing castafiore emerald Herge turned his back to adventure

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Mirirocks67
Member
#37 · Posted: 14 Aug 2007 20:00
Emerald was the first Tintin I ever read,and that´s how I became a tintinologist,but certanly it´s not my favourite.It´s a stay-at-home adventure,not like the others,but the plot is good.
I was thinkikng that in Herge´s early adventures(especially America and Congo)they had a plot,yes,but more than a plot it was like a bunch of images popping in random moments.It´s not Herge´s fault, fo course he was new at this.
orange2009
Member
#38 · Posted: 10 Jan 2011 15:39
I find The Castafiore Emerald to be the most hilarious of the Tintin adventures.It also has the suspense element going throughout the story.There's total confusion at Marlinspike with all characters in the best of their typical style & with suspense in and around Marlinspike.It most closely appears to be like a stately home comedy as some people put it, with no real criminals.It's unique as Tintin does not leave for an adventure and no one proves to be the real culprit.

The front cover matches the story type- a smiling Tintin, a singing Castafiore and Haddock with his ears covered: reflecting a comical theme.The background: is a dark one which reflects suspense.
Bordurian Thug
Member
#39 · Posted: 16 Jan 2011 20:54
The Castafiore Emerald shows just how on top of his game Herge was by that stage of his career. To successfully subvert the reader's expectations of what they would normally expect from a Tintin adventure (travel, more often that not to another country; a villain or nefarious organisation against which Tintin is opposed; a picaresque storyline in which Tintin's fortunes rise and fall in quick succession) and still produce a compelling adventure is why it's one of the finest albums, and possibly the greatest argument for his genius. He could do parochial drawing room comedy just as adeptly as international espionage thriller.
doubleT
Member
#40 · Posted: 21 Jan 2011 21:49
To me, "The Castafiore Emerald" has a sort of Seinfeld feel to it, it's like an adventure about nothing, it's just got a whole lot of funky craziness=)and I mean funky in a good way, the same way as Seinfeld

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