De Smurfen #42

A delightful 2023 entry in the long-running Dutch-language Smurfen series from Standaard Uitgeverij, this volume carries the intriguing title Gargamel de Smurfenvriend — "Gargamel the Smurf Friend." The cover sets up a wonderfully absurd premise: a close-up of a grinning Gargamel looms large in the foreground, his massive hand cradling Papa Smurf while several other little blue Smurfs gather around him near their mushroom-house village. Something curious is clearly afoot between the Smurfs' greatest nemesis and his tiny blue neighbors, and it's hard not to smile at the sight of it.