Corto Maltese: Ballad of the Salt Sea #5

In "Ballad of the Salt Sea," Hugo Pratt crafts a tense, atmospheric chapter as Corto Maltese navigates a web of betrayal and violence on a remote island. With Pratt both writing and drawing, the story unfolds with his signature blend of gritty realism and mythic tone, as Rasputin’s ruthless actions escalate—killing a Japanese shore party, eliminating Cranio, and turning on the Monk, only to find the man he sought is a decoy. Cain stays to aid Corto while his sister flees on a Maori pirogue, setting the stage for a perilous journey ahead. The cover, also by Pratt, captures the story’s brooding intensity.