“The Crab with the Golden Claws” is the first Tintin adventure featuring Captain Haddock and Allan. Haddock, who later became one of the most popular characters in the Tintinesque universe, is depicted as a half-mad sea captain in thrall to alcohol. Allan is Haddock's first mate and would become a recurring villain in future Tintin comics, eventually getting abducted by an UFO! As for Tintin himself, he comes across as something of an action hero in this adventure. Although he doesn't drink, he is quick to use his gun and various blunt instruments to subdue the bad guys. This may explain why the Tintin Hollywood film “The Adventures of Tintin” uses “The Crab with the Golden Claws” as one source of inspiration.
The original version was published during the Nazi occupation of Belgium, which
explains one curious anomaly. In a previous Tintin adventure, “The Blue Lotus”,
the Japanese are the villains, but in the “crab” story, the Japanese police are
suddenly on good terms with the young reporter. Why? Because Japan and Germany
were allies, probably. More absurdly, the edition published under Nazi
occupation featured Black seamen freely mingling with Whites, while the
post-war American edition didn't, since the U.S. publisher was worried about
adverse reactions in the Jim Crow South!
The story itself isn't particularly interesting, revolving around Tintin's
action hero antics as he hunts down an international gang of opium smugglers.
We also get our fair share of Haddock's delirium tremens, and the slapstick
stupidities of the “world famous detectives” Thomson & Thompson. With the
risk of rubbing Tintin fans the wrong way, I will only award this story two
stars.
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