Ce quatrième tome des formidables aventures de Lapinot réjouira les amateurs de piscine, de chips, de grosses motos et de théologie statistique.
(This fourth volume of the spiffy adventures of McConey will delight those who like swimming pool, crisps, big motorbikes and stastical theology.)
Amour & Intérim is a 1998 comic book by Lewis Trondheim. It is the fourth album of The Spiffy Adventures of McConey series. Lapinot tries to get a job and to date Nadia. A mysterious company, Damoclès, hires him as general manager.
Amour & Intérim provides examples of the following tropes:
- Aborted Declaration of Love: Subverted. In the end, Lapinot has the opportunity to talk to Nadia, his love interest, who he has never dared declare his love to. He starts saying that during his face-to-face meeting with death he realized it was stupid not to... go to the cinema to see 30's and 40's films... with her.
- Big Damn Heroes: Lapinot arrives to save Richard just as the henchmen are going to hit him.
- Briefcase Full of Money: Lapinot finds one. He does not spend the money and he tries to find its owner. This is actually a Secret Test to hire him as general manager of Damoclès. The briefcase comes back in the end as the payment for the murder of two people.
- Call-Back: The Briefcase Full of Money that Lapinot finds in the beginning shows up again in the end as a payment for the murder of two people.
- Cool Key: Lapinot finds one in the Briefcase Full of Money.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: The chairman of Damoclès is the villain. He wants to punish people who committed bad actions, so he uses his vast fortune to pay henchmen who attack or even to kill them. He also orders to kill Lapinot and Richard, because they are informed of his actions.
- Disproportionate Retribution: Richard stole two chewing gums from a Briefcase Full of Money. The chairman of Damoclès orders two henchmen to break Richard's arm to punish him for that.
- Every Car Is a Pinto: The car of the chairman of Damoclès explodes after a collision with a truck.
- Follow That Car: Subverted. Lapinot asks a taxi to follow a car, but the taximan does not agree: first, he wants to put Lapinot's bag into the trunk; then he runs away, because he thinks the bag contains a bomb.
- Foreshadowing: The chairman of Damoclès says he is worried about Richard. Much later, we understand that he was worried because Richard stole two chewing gums and that he orders two henchmen to break Richard's arm to punish him for that.
- A God Am I: The chairman of Damoclès explains that, since there is no God to punish the bad guys, he has to punish them in place of Him, so he acts as God ad interim.
- Maybe Ever After: The story ends up with an akward declaration by Lapinot to Nadia. We do not see her reaction.
- Meaningful Name: Damoclès
is quite appropriate for a dangerous company whose boss can order the murder of its employees. - Money to Throw Away: Invoked. Richard says he would throw the money away if he had found a Briefcase Full of Money.
- "Not So Different" Remark: The chairman of Damoclès says Lapinot that they are both very sensitive and they both eat chocolate as an antidepressant.
- Right in Front of Me: Richard criticizes the new boss in front of Lapinot, then he hears that the new boss is Lapinot.
- Secret Test: Lapinot finds a Briefcase Full of Money. He does not spend the money and he tries to find its owner. Damoclès was assessing his honesty to hire him as general manager.
