Le Chevalier D’Eon Volume 2

‘France will change. It must change!’

The opening words of Volume 2 are full of foreboding: it’s Holy Week and D’Eon and his friends are on the trail of the Russian fur merchant Vorontsov whom they suspect is embroiled in a plot to bring down the throne of France. They pursue him to Le Havre but arrive too late; his ship has already set sail.

King Louis sends the ‘Four Musketeers’ on a secret mission to Russia; they must try to discover the identity of the traitor who murdered Lia and is plotting to destroy the old order in France. Each of the four men has his own reasons for going: veteran soldier Teillagory has nothing left in his life but his duty to the crown; Durand was Lia’s colleague and, perhaps, her lover; royal page boy Robin was taken in as a young child and raised by Queen Marie, and D’Eon is out to avenge his sister’s death. But the queen, whose motivation is far from clear, uses D’Eon’s body as a vessel for Lia’s restless spirit. Dressed in his sister’s gown, D’Eon gives voice to his dead sister who is at last able to tell the queen, ‘The Royal Psalms were hidden – handed over to Russia.’

As the four men set out for Cologne on the first stage of their hazardous journey, we are shown Madame de Pompadour and the Comte de Saint Germain sending magical orders, ordering their contacts in Germany to hunt them down. This results in a spectacular duel on the dizzy heights of Cologne cathedral, where D’Eon/Lia and his friends are attacked by gargoyle hounds whose undead eyes stream with silver mercury. This attack has been orchestrated by a new opponent, the ambitious Comte de Cagliostro and his beautiful mistress Lorenzia who channels the words of the ‘psalms’ through her body. ‘If you recite those poems, you can control tremendous evil power.’

Travelling in the guise of jewel dealers, the Four Musketeers reach Saint Petersburg and attempt to gain an audience with the formidable Empress Elisaveta, whose life Lia once saved. Not all is well at the imperial court; Elisaveta’s daughter-in-law, Ekaterina, is suffering at the hands of her boorish husband and heir to the throne, Grand Duke Pyotr. There is to be a masquerade at the palace in which the men dress up as women and vice versa. What better opportunity could there be for D’Eon to don his sister’s dress and attend? Observed by Vorontsov and the enigmatic Robespierre (yes! premonitions of a revolution to come), D’Eon is challenged by a shaken Elisaveta to prove himself by duelling her guards. Ominous hints of a plot to assassinate the empress poison the air; someone is out to kill Elizaveta and put the blame on the shoulders of the four Frenchmen.

Beautifully drawn backgrounds evoke the different locations: we travel from St Germain des Pres and the Palais Royal in Paris to the chateau of Chambord, then the sombre streets of old Cologne, and at last, the broad boulevards and bridges of Saint Petersburg during the famous White Nights. And the feeling of historical authenticity is enhanced by the fact that the costumes and uniforms have been well-researched.

The hints of revolution to come are portrayed in the opening titles; as flames rise around D’Eon, the colours of the French revolutionary flag, the tricolore, appear. And check out the rosette D’Eon wears in his hair when, in Lia’s guise, he goes to meet the empress.

I’m certainly no purist when it comes to dubs and I’m equally happy to listen to an English version as to the original Japanese. I still have a few reservations about this cast and English script in this volume, especially when it comes to the pronunciation of the French names (cringe-making). However, the actors seem to be settling into their parts and if you can ignore the mangling of the French language, there are genuinely convincing performances to be enjoyed, especially by Alice Fulks as the Empress and John Swasey as Teillagory.

‘Le Chevalier D’Eon’ is proving a fascinating fantasia on themes of revolution and the supernatural in eighteenth century Europe. The only reservation I have is that the cast is so large that it’s difficult to engage emotionally with the plight of any of the central characters. We can feel horror at Lia’s murder and sympathy for D’Eon, but we haven’t come to know enough about them as people yet to allow us to become more involved. By the end of the second volumes of ‘Eureka 7’, ‘Fullmetal Alchemist’, and ‘Noein’ I was desperate to know what would become of the main protagonists. With ‘Le Chevalier’ I’m intrigued, but I’m not living the adventure, as I did with Renton and Eureka, the Elrics, or Haruka and Karasu.

Extras
As with Volume 1, there’s a fascinating booklet included, and on the disc there are commentaries, interviews with the cast, and historical notes in plenty. Just beware of the clip entitled ‘Crossed Swords and Cross-Dressing’. David Matranga (D’Eon) in a ballgown – now that’s really scary!! (Don’t say I didn’t warn you.)

In Summary

Dark in tone, laden with foreboding and danger, the supernatural and historical mysteries of ‘Le Chevalier D’Eon’ continue to grip the imagination.