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Explorers on the Moon
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==Critical analysis== Jean-Marc Lofficier and Randy Lofficier believed that the two-part story "belongs" to Calculus as his "cosmic vision moves the story forward".{{sfn|Lofficier|Lofficier|2002|p=64}} They further expressed the opinion that Wolff was a unique character in the ''Adventures of Tintin'', suggesting that he is akin to a character from a [[John le Carré]] novel.{{sfn|Lofficier|Lofficier|2002|p=64}} Referring specifically to ''Explorers on the Moon'', they opined that it was "a true epic of the human imagination", believing that its depiction of the Moon has "withstood the test of time" more than other "proto-space exploration novels".{{sfn|Lofficier|Lofficier|2002|p=66}} They felt that the Moon adventure was "Hergé at his best... a triumphant achievement on every level", awarding both halves of the story five stars out of five.{{sfn|Lofficier|Lofficier|2002|p=66}} [[File:Benoit Peeters 20100329 Salon du livre de Paris 3.jpg|thumb|right|Hergé biographer [[Benoît Peeters]] ''(pictured, 2010)'' felt that Wolff's character brought "a tragic note" to the story.{{sfn|Peeters|2012|p=97}}]] Hergé biographer [[Pierre Assouline]] felt that the two Moon adventures "mark a stage in the development of Hergé's work".{{Sfn|Assouline|2009|p=174}} Hergé biographer [[Benoît Peeters]] praised the "gradual introduction into the story of a real dimension of evil" as being something particularly effective.{{sfn|Peeters|1989|p=97}} He also expressed the view that Wolff brings "a tragic note" to the story, comparing him to the characters in the stories of [[Graham Greene]].{{sfn|Peeters|1989|p=97}} He was critical of the two-part story arc, stating that they had "neither the liveliness and dynamism" of ''The Secret of the Unicorn'' and ''Red Rackham's Treasure'', "nor the supernatural quality" of ''The Seven Crystal Balls''-''Prisoners of the Sun''.{{sfn|Peeters|1989|p=97}} [[Harry Thompson]] noted that ''Explorers on the Moon'' was widely regarded as Hergé's "greatest artistic achievement",{{sfn|Thompson|1991|p=144}} describing the entire Moon adventure as "a technical masterpiece" as a result of its "uncannily accurate" depiction of the Moon.{{sfn|Thompson|1991|p=138}} Thompson expressed his opinion that ''Explorers'' could be compared to the work of science-fiction writers [[Jules Verne]] and [[H. G. Wells]].{{sfn|Thompson|1991|p=146}} Focusing on the scene in which the Thom(p)sons' hair grows rapidly in bright colours, he stated that it provides an abrupt contrast with "the almost scholastic nature of the rest of the story", and that it "injects a few bright splashes" into an otherwise "carefully restrained colour scheme".{{sfn|Thompson|1991|pp=146–147}} Philippe Goddin praised the depiction of the rocket's landing as "a magnificent spectacle, well worth the double space spread given by Hergé",{{sfn|Goddin|2011|p=29}} also highlighting what he perceived as the ending's "unprecedented dramatic tension".{{sfn|Goddin|2011|p=36}} In his [[psychoanalysis|psychoanalytical]] study of the ''Adventures of Tintin'', the [[literary criticism|literary critic]] Jean-Marie Apostolidès praised the ''Destination Moon''-''Explorers on the Moon'' story arc for its "meticulous attention to scientific facts", but added that this had also resulted in the story's "rather pedagogical tone".{{sfn|Apostolidès|2010|p=179}} He added that in these stories, the main division was "no longer Good and Evil" as it had been in previous ''Adventures'', but "Truth and Error".{{sfn|Apostolidès|2010|p=179}} Apostolidès opined that despite being a "fussy and somewhat ridiculous character", through his scientific achievements Calculus grows to the "stature of a giant" in this arc, eclipsing Sir Francis Haddock (from ''The Secret of the Unicorn'') as the series' "founding ancestor".{{sfn|Apostolidès|2010|p=182}} He goes on to claim that in becoming the "sacred ancestor", the voyage to the Moon becomes "a mystical quest" with science as its guiding religion.{{sfn|Apostolidès|2010|p=184}} Drawing comparisons between this arc and the ''Prisoners of the Sun'' story, he drew symbolic links between the scientific centre and the Inca Temple of the Sun, but noted that here Calculus was the "high priest" rather than the sacrificial victim as he had been in the previous story.{{sfn|Apostolidès|2010|pp=184–185}} Moving on to discuss the Moon rocket in these stories, Apostolidès described it as a phallic object which penetrated the "virgin territory" of the Moon.{{sfn|Apostolidès|2010|p=186}} At the same time, he described the rocket as a "maternal belly" in which the space explorers slept.{{sfn|Apostolidès|2010|p=186}} Commenting specifically on ''Explorers on the Moon'' he commented that the protagonists of the story reverted to childhood when exploring the Moon, believing that they had treated it like a [[theme park]].{{sfn|Apostolidès|2010|pp=187–188}} Literary critic [[Tom McCarthy (novelist)|Tom McCarthy]] stated that in the ''Destination Moon''-''Explorers of the Moon'' story arc, Calculus "embodies Hergé's... own wartime position, spun out into a post-war environment", representing a genius driven by his work whose activities are coincidental to national and political causes.{{sfn|McCarthy|2006|p=42}} He suggested that ''Explorers on the Moon'' was "perhaps both the most wildly adventurous and the most contemplative" instalment in the series.{{sfn|McCarthy|2006|p=172}} He felt that the inclusion of Jorgen being smuggled aboard the rocket as a stowaway reflected the idea of the "stranger" penetrating the "home", something which he thought was present in other ''Adventures''.{{sfn|McCarthy|2006|p=79}} Commenting on the scene in which Haddock smuggles a whisky bottle inside the ''Guide to Astronomy'', he states "the text, in this case, is hollow, smuggling something else", which he believed was a reversal of the appearance of a parchment hidden within a model ship in ''The Secret of the Unicorn''.{{sfn|McCarthy|2006|p=17}}
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