Webcomics: Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant

If you’ve been a big fan of Tintin comics for as long as you’ve known about Hergé, its almost certain you’ll love Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant, a graphic novel written and illustrated by Canadian artist Tony Cliff.  

Its like that scene from Pixar’s Ratatouille where the scary food critic takes a sip of some ratatouille served up for him and is immediately transported to the childhood memory of his mother’s kitchen. The moment you start reading, you feel all of those afternoons of reading Tintin books coming back to you.

I’m not saying this novel is exactly like Hergé’s work, I’m saying the experience is similar. Much of the story takes place in the plains of Turkey, with wide expanses of green for backdrop, while the protagonists travel long distances on horseback or by ship. The story is narrated by Abu Selim (a Turkish lieutenant) who interrogates Miss Delilah Dirk (a notorious English criminal) when she is apprehended by the Turks for trying to steal some precious scrolls. Delilah Dirk boasts about her ability to pick any lock in the world, disappear into thin air, walk through solid walls and claims to have been trained in 47 different sword-fighting techniques, besides other martial arts.  Later, she hilariously proves her claims true in a sort of twisted way (lets just say she likes to romanticize ‘hiding in a straw jar’ by calling it ‘turning invisible’). Her fighting skills, however, are something to look out for.

In any case, their first meeting ends such that Abu Selim loses his job and comes very close to being beheaded by the Turkish general (“KILL HIM!! AND KILL HER!! AND KILL THEM BOTH!!”) and has no other option but to stow away with Miss Dirk (“Because Mr. Selim, you make the finest tea in all of Europe”). The question is, how long before he starts missing his old job and home? 

The book is rich with all the culture and mannerisms of the Turks and Arabs of the 19^th century, with just the right bits of action and comic timing.  One of the running jokes is the repeated line “Curse you, Delilah Dirk!” by various angry characters. The illustrations are beautiful and if you’re into some exotic culture, this is one novel that promises a lot of entertainment.

This graphic novel is self-published by the author, and though it may not be available easily in print, you can read it for free online (legally) on www.DelilahDirk.com where the novel is updated a couple pages every week, all by Tony Cliff himself.  There are 4 chapters out already, with updates available on facebook, twitter and blogger. Enjoy!         

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Basma Rizvi, artist and storyteller, sharing some excellent but lesser known webcomics from around the world and learning a little in the process. Stories and genres covered will vary greatly. Only on comicaddicts.com