- "To be precise..."
- —Thompson and Thomsom
Thomson and Thompson (French: Dupont et Dupond), also known as "The Thompson Twins," are a pair of inept Scotland Yard detectives first appearing in Cigars of the Pharaoh. However, on the first page of Tintin in the Congo, you can see them in the right corner of the first panel, with one saying " Seems to be a young reporter going to Africa". Though very alike in appearance, there is controversy as to whether they are related or not. They have arrested Tintin, because in The Black Island he got arrested for robbery. Snowy himself seems to be inclined towards the former, he mentions offhand in Destination Moon that "This is it!...Sensational appearance of the Thomson twins!" [1] They are distinguishable by their moustaches. Thompson's moustache is straight while Thomson's turns up. They believe almost anything and jump to conclusions on first glance. In the episode The Land of Black Gold the detectives mistakenly take a substance called "Formula 14," believing it to be aspirin. This chemical causes their hair to grow rapidly and change color and they burp continuously.
The Detectives in the plot
Thompson & Thomson in one of their many costumes.
Of the 19 books following the Cigars of the Pharaoh, not including the unfinished Tintin and Alph-Art and the cartooning of Tintin and the Lake of Sharks, they appear in 17. The only two books they do not appear in are Tintin in Tibet and Flight 714. Although their appearances may vary in importance depending on the album, they always add humor to the story and sometimes are involved in subplots, eventually achieving success by sheer luck or with Tintin's intervention.
Work
Members of Scotland Yard and Interpol, Thompson and Thomson lead more or less discrete and efficient investigations. They are hardly brilliant. They test the limits of discretion, dressing up in folkloric costumes in order to "blend in," which inevitably only leads to them sticking out more. They also pile up an incredible number of falls, slips and accidents. The epitome of stupidity, they followed their own footprints in the desert. Their total disorganization is also reflected in their language. They are experts in pleonasms and have to their credit sayings such as "I would say even more," "our lips are sealed," and "it is my opinion and I share it." Their motto, as mentioned, is "Mum's the word," which is immediately corrected to be "Dumb's the word." Also, Thomson always states "to be precise," and then either restates the statement his twin said or says the sentence mixed-up, such as instead of "He's given us the slip. Got away, with the handcuffs too. What a cheek," he says "To be precise, he's given us away. Slipped us the handcuffs, too. What a sneak." Their introduction is also humorous; Thompson identifies himself as "Thompson, with a p, as in psychology...", philosophy, or any other "p" word in which the beginning "p" is either silent or coupled with an "h" in order to change pronunciation to an "f" sound, Thomson's intro is a similar sounding, "Thomson, without a P, as in Venezuela" or any other amusing sounding name not starting with a "p".
Costumes
Main article see: List of Thompson and Thomson's Costumes
The duo in one of their many costumes.
The duo are also renowned for their use of disguises in their detective work. They are usually used in an attempt to blend in with the crowd in foreign locations or different settings. However, the pair end up in the most ridiculous of costumes, making them more visible.
Names
In the original French, their names are Dupont and Dupond. The translations for some languages are listed below.
- Uys and Buys in Afrikaans
- Tik and Tak in Arabic (تيك و تاك)
Thompson & Thomson without their hats as seen in The Secret of the Unicorn (TV episode).
- Johnson and Rohnson in Bengali
- Zigue e Zague in Brazilian Portuguese.
- 杜邦 and 杜帮 in Chinese
- Kadlec and Tkadlec in Czech
- Dupond og Dupont in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danish_language Danish
- Jansen and Janssen in Dutch
- Thomson and Thompson in English
- Schultze und Schulze in German
- Clodius and Claudius in Latin
- دوپونت و دوپونط in Persian
- Tajniak and Jawniak in Polish
- Дюпон и Дюпонн in Russian
- Dupont i Dupond in Catalan
- Hernández and Fernández in Spanish and Galician and Asturian
- Skapti and Skafti in Icelandic
- Johns and Jones or Parry-Williams and Williams-Parry in Welsh
- Tomson and Tompson in Serbian
- Dupont e Dupond in Portuguese
- Dupond ve Dupont in Turkish
- Dupond och Dupont in Swedish
- デュポン＆デュボン in Japanese
- Dupond and Dupont in Indonesian
- Dupond og Dupont in Norwegian
- Petek in Svetek in Slovenian
Popular culture
Thompson and Thomson as seen in Asterix in Belgium.
The detectives had a brief appearance in Asterix in Belgium, in 1979, the last album of Uderzo & Goscinny together. In the cartoon, they appear dressed in traditional Belgian, and announce the arrival of Julius Caesar. It is a clear reference to the beloved characters and a tribute of the creators of Asterix to Herge, in respect to fame and honor of Belgian comics. Specifically, they appear on page 31.