The new Gaston Lagaffe will appear in November

22nd^e A volume of The Adventures of Gaston Lagaffe will appear on November 22, after a controversy prevented the album from seeing the light of day, Dupuis Editions announced on Tuesday.

• Read more: Gaston Lagaffe can be born again: the end of the dispute between the family and the publisher

Sent to press in a Belgian publisher’s publication plan, The Return of Lakafe (48 pages, 12.50 euros in France) Signed by Canadian designer Delauf (Marc Delafontaine in civil status).

The latter took over the series with the intention of more carefully honoring the spirit of the character’s creator, the Belgian Andre Francoin (1924-1997).

However, Francquin’s daughter and benefactor, Isabelle, has requested that the plan be halted as soon as it is announced in early 2022.

His father, he asserted, “has always expressed his desire that Gaston should not live his life under the pencil of another designer, constantly and repeatedly.”

To resolve the controversy, Dupuis et al^me In this case by a Brussels-based lawyer, Frankin opted for private arbitration.

He concluded that in May 2023 Gaston Lakoff could be reincarnated “if he had the prior permission of Isabelle Francquin”. From the owner’s point of view, “Any denial […] must be justified by ethical or artistic reasons,” noted the referee.

Gaston Lakaffe, the office worker with legendary laziness and clumsiness, is an antihero created in 1957 who personifies resistance to orders for productivity and conformity.

Delauf had a specific method for taking on the character: he carefully cataloged all of her attitudes and traits before immersing her in more modern situations. His painting is an exact copy of Francquin’s painting.

The choice raised doubts among some critics.

“The designer, a good student, created a database of 10,000 files from the original work. Can more respect give a better tribute? Gaston Lakoff deserves a little more craziness,” the magazine wrote in June. Les Incorruptibles.