Louis Riel

(Drawn and Quarterly, 1999-2004, 2006)
™ and ©2000 Chester Brown

Louis Riel isn’t much of a household name for any American, let alone a comic-book fan. But Riel’s name is an important, if controversial, one in Canadian history, for he is strongly associated with the creation of Manitoba as a Canadian province in the late 1800s.

Chester Brown’s well-researched maxi-series is one interpretation of Riel’s biography, which has been chronicled over the years by others with varying degrees of pro and anti-Riel slants. Brown’s is decidedly pro-Riel, and this issue focuses on Riel’s people, known as the Metis, and their victorious 1885 battle against Canadian Mounties in a remote burg known as Duck Lake. In particular, Brown focuses on Riel’s high-road ethics: Despite leading his people into battle, he refuses to use a firearm personally or engage in dishonorable fighting tactics.

Brown’s European flavor of storytelling yields a dry, somewhat emotionally distant take on the story, making it read more like educational literature than a piece of entertainment. But Brown’s take on Riel also makes him an extremely interesting character; that mostly makes up for the lack of flair. And Brown’s intent wasn’t to make this a visually interesting book, anyway, but, rather, an intellectually stimulating one, as witnessed by footnotes and other information amassed at the issue’s end.

This is entertaining enough on a scholastic level but not for those looking for thrills.

— Jim Johnson

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