Jean “Moebius” Giraud died today, not entirely unexpected as he was seventytwo years old and was apparantly suffering from cancer, but it’s still a blow to anybody who likes comics. His influence on French comics cannot be underestimated. Together with Jean-Michel Charlier he first created arguably the best western comic ever, Blueberry, which spawned hordes of imitators and kept the western comic genre alive and relevant in Europe when it was dying in America. Then there was his science fiction work, both in comics and as a storyboard artist for various movies, including Alien. He was one of the people (together with Jean Claude Forest, Paul Gillon and of course Jean-Claude Mézières) that from the sixties onward has shaped our vision of what the future should look like.
It’s almost impossible to do proper homage to such a creative genius, so instead I’ve found some videos showing off his drawing skills, with bonus appearances by Joe Kubert and Neal Adams in the top one. All are — unsurprisingly — in French.