The Blue Lotus - Publication History

Publication History

This adventure was originally published under the name Tintin en Extrême-Orient (literally "Tintin in the Far East").

The original version of The Blue Lotus was published in black-and-white in Le Petit Vingtième in 1934. It was later redrawn and colourised in 1946.

Many scenes that appeared in the original 1934 version were left out in 1946. They included:

• The fakir who performs tricks with glass and daggers and reads Tintin's palm is named as Cipacalouvishni.
• As the fakir warns him of the dangers to come, Tintin looks visibly more nervous in the 1934 version than in 1946.
• After firing the dart into the neck of the Chinese man at the Maharaja's palace, the fakir from Cigars of the Pharaoh can be seen hurrying away through the jungle.
• Tintin then tells the Maharaja that he will not leave for China until he knows the fakir is back in custody. They later receive a telegram announcing his recapture. Tintin, who has lost Snowy, decides to leave without him (these decisions were changed in later versions).
• When Tintin is jailed after bumping into a Sikh policeman, Dawson sends three tough men in to beat him up. In the original version they are British soldiers, from England, Ireland and Scotland. However, it is they who end up in hospital where an official pays tribute for their "sacrifice in the defence of their ideals!". In 1946 the white soldiers are replaced by Indian policemen.
• While watching a newsreel in a cinema, Tintin sees footage of Sir Malcolm Campbell breaking the world land speed record in his high-powered Bluebird car.
• While searching the cellar of the Blue Lotus, Tintin opens a door and he and Chang come face-to-face with yet another gangster. Tintin tells Chang to follow his example, raise his arms and put down his gun. When the gangster bends down to pick up the guns, Tintin slams the door onto him, knocking him out. Chang then ties him up with rope.