Tintin Forums

Do you think some of the Tintin books are propaganda for either the Nazis or the Allies?

(Modestly) You could check out my article on this topic:
In Defence of Hergé

Best -
Garen.

No. Some Bodurian soldiers wore German-style helmets in the scene when Tintin is trying to flee to Syldavia by air in "King Ottokar's Sceptre". Syldavia also looks like a combination of a number of Eastern European nations between the Axis powers and the USSR. Some scenes try to show evidence that Syldavia uses the Kyrillic script, and some of the clothing that the Syldavians wear appear quite similar to what was worn in the Balkans, which was ravaged during WWII. The same can be said about the drawings of various Syldavian towns and villages. In addition, doesn't it occur to you that Musstler, one of the main villains of the episode, is what you get when you combine the names Mussolini (Muss) and Hitler (tler) together?

I didn't see any evidence of propaganda for the Allies either. "King Ottokar's Sceptre" appears to be more of a warning about the Axis menace than propaganda for either side of the war. No wonder why Herge had to be especially careful about keeping his mouth shut on political matters while drawing the WWII-era comic strips!