XIII

A cult saga, the XIII series—created in 1984 by the legendary duo of Belgian writer Jean Van Hamme (Largo Winch, Thorgal…) and Belgian writer and artist William Vance—is one of the greatest successes in the history of comic art. A man wakes up on a beach with total amnesia and the number XIII tattooed on his collarbone. Thus begins the greatest comic art crime and espionage series, set in an America on the brink of dictatorship, against a backdrop of conspiracy reminiscent of President Kennedy's assassination. The series soon became a benchmark, showcasing both Vance’s artistic genius and Van Hamme’s exceptionalscriptwriting talent. With over 14 million copies sold since its creation and translated worldwide, the series now comprises 30 volumes, including 19 written by Van Hamme and 18 illustrated by Vance. It has since been taken over by Yves Sente for the script (volumes 20–30), and by Jean Giraud (volume 18) and Youri Jigounov (volumes 20–30) for the artwork.