Although I've occasionally heard comments to the effect that Tintin's last couple of published adventures are some of the weakest entries in the series, I'd have to say that I disagree with those sentiments. Praise for The Castafiore Emerald seems to be pretty universal, and I won't argue the point, especially since Herge manages to pull it off in what is at first blush one of the unlikeliest of scenarios: the adventure comes to visit Tintin and Captain Haddock at home in Marlinspike, rather than the more usual setup that requires the duo to travel to some exotic locale in search of a good story.

So what then of the remaining two adventures in this volume, which do not seem to generally receive praise at any level approaching that accorded to The Castafiore Emerald? As a child, I loved Flight 714 best out of all the Tintin adventures, and my admiration for it remains. The crazy plot features aliens, revolutionaries, a cranky billionaire, and a return appearance from Rastapopoulos, one of the most entertaining of Tintin's adversaries. The artwork represents Herge at his peak, and there is lots of gratuitous gunplay, so what's not to love?

And lastly, we have Tintin and the Picaros, the capstone to Tintin's long career. If this adventure represents a return to the characters and environs of The Broken Ear, it pulls the trick off with wonderful style, and manages to redeem some of the cross-cultural crudity and misunderstanding that marred the earlier story. The grim political situation at the heart of Tintin and the Picaros is redeemed by the comedy surrounding Professor Calculus's anti-alcohol pill, to say nothing of Bianca Castafiore (and her ever-present maid and accompanist) in jail!

Overall, I think the three adventures compiled in this volume are among the very best of the Tintin series, and a fine end to his brilliant and always-entertaining career in the comics. ( )