Contextualising the Offenstadt Brothers' Wartime Comics and Their Reception From Barrack-Room Comedy to 'Amazing' Propaganda

Abstract

The forms taken up by French comics in the Offenstadt brothers’ wartime weeklies echo other representations of the Great War produced behind the frontlines, including the music hall, popular imagery and illustrated newspapers. The Offenstadt brothers’ picture stories, which staged comic operas starring soldiers and conformed to French propaganda instructions, were a hit with soldiers and civilians (including children), aside from some offended Catholic critics. This essay contextualizes their success, focusing on the reception of the comics, particularly those by Louis Forton.