Jesuit Joe is a mysterious character who appears in the eponymous story of

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

comics creator developed specialized terminology. Some several attempts have been made to formalize and define the terminology of comics by authors such as Will Eisner, Scott McCloud, R. C. Harvey and Dylan Horrocks. Much of the terminology in English is un ...

Hugo Pratt Ugo Eugenio Prat, better known as Hugo Pratt (15 June 1927 – 20 August 1995), was an Italian comic book creator who was known for combining strong storytelling with extensive historical research on works such as ''Corto Maltese''. He was indu ...

. This

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

was initially serialised in ''

Pilote Cover of the first ''Pilote'' issue #0 ''Pilote'' () was a French comic magazine published from 1959 to 1989. Showcasing most of the major French or Belgian comics talents of its day the magazine introduced major series such as ''Astérix'', '' ...

'' magazine before it was released as hardcover albums in 1980, in France entitled ''Jésuite Joe'', and in Italy, entitled ''L'uomo del grande nord'', published by

Dargaud Société Dargaud, doing business as Les Éditions Dargaud, is a publisher of Franco-Belgian comics series, headquartered in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. It was founded in 1936 by Georges Dargaud (), publishing its first comics in 1943. ...

and

CEPIM Sergio Bonelli Editore (formerly CEPIM and other names) is a publishing house of Italian comics founded in 1940 by Gian Luigi Bonelli (1908–2001). It takes its name from its former president, comic book writer Sergio Bonelli (1932–2011), son of ...

, respectively. In 2017 the graphic novel was published in English under the name ''The Man From the Great North'' by

IDW Publishing IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW), itself formed in 1999, and is regularly recog ...

, in an edition where storyboards made by Pratt for the movie mentioned below have been added to the story.

Plot

The laconic, anti-heroic and unpredictable main character, a Canadian native dressed in the uniform of a Sergeant in the Canadian Mounties, travels the wilderness during late 19th or early 20th century Canada, occasionally assisting those he finds in need of help. He rescues a kidnapped child and frees an imprisoned couple, but also shoots a bird for being too happy and stabs a priest in the hand. The concerns of famed Italian cartoonist Hugo Pratt included responsibility,

humanity Humanity most commonly refers to: * Humankind the total population of humans * Humanity (virtue) Humanity may also refer to: Literature * Humanity (journal), ''Humanity'' (journal), an academic journal that focuses on human rights * ''Humanity: A ...

, and

social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...

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of European ideals in

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settings is a common theme in his stories and forms the main thrust of ''Jesuit Joe''.

The Jesuit Joe film

Jesuit Joe has been adapted into a

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

directed by Olivier Austen and starring French actress

Laurence Treil Laurence Treil (born 28 February 1967) is a French model and actress. She was a famous fashion model who was also a Revlon spokesmodel during the 1980s, before becoming an actress, featuring in several films and television programmes. Biograph ...

Sources

Pratt publications in ''Pilote''
BDoubliées

Archivespratt

Bedetheque

External links

* {{Hugo Pratt Italian graphic novels Italian comics titles 1980 comics debuts 1980 comics endings Comics characters introduced in 1980 Male characters in comics Comics set in Canada Italian comics characters Fictional Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers Italian comics adapted into films Comics by Hugo Pratt