By Yvan Delporte & Peyo
Publisher: Papercutz
ISBN: 978-1-59707-224-3
Papa Smurf has run out of a vital ingredient so he's leaving the village to spend many days travelling to get more. With a brief and casual goodbye he leaves the rest of the Smurfs to themselves who instantly begin to bicker about who should take Papa Smurf's place while he's gone. Before long this turns into a full-blown fight before somebody has the bright idea of an election. Seemingly a good idea at the time, this fares no better as everybody wants to be the one who is elected, until one clever Smurf realises that as long as you make promises, that you don't necessarily have to keep, he can acquire voters at a fantastic rate of knots. Come the day of the election he wins with a clear majority, but almost instantly falls foul of his new found authority and slowly slides into a dictatorship and an inevitable rebellion. The Smurf penchant for replacing key words with 'smurf' is used rather well in a speech at a rally, which is funnier for the bitter reality it reflects. It's political, it's – in fact – rather topical, and it's good entertainment too.
There's a back-up tale featuring the sorcerer Gargamel, who is able to discover the Smurf village by following the sound of music. It's a fun little tale, but it lacks the satire and scale of the former story. All in all though, the book is full of fine cartooning and clever writing, so lots to appreciate and enjoy.
And if you liked that: Book 4, featuring Smurfette is available now
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