Writer Matt Kindt and artist Ibrahim Moustafa will team up to bring the world from John le Carré’s novels into comics. The three-issue John Le Carré: The Circus—Losing Control will begin in November.
Le Carré is the author of many best-selling espionage novels, including The Spy Who Came in from the Cold and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, which have been adapted to film. Several of his books are connected and feature a British intelligence agency nicknamed the Circus, which is overseen by a man known only as “Control.” His right hand is a man named Smiley, and his left hand, as seen in the comic, is his executive assistant, Maggie. When Control goes missing, it’s up to Maggie to find him — while keeping the world on track.
“Getting asked to contribute a piece to John le Carré’s world of Smiley has been one of the greatest honors and responsibilities of my life,” said Kindt. “I wasn’t looking for this job but I was called into service. And much like Smiley, my heart is in the right place and hopefully that will be enough.”
Dark Horse shared more details on the miniseries:
Every day, behind closed doors, the men and women of The Circus are embroiled in high stakes, high-wire acts that the average citizen would never notice. These intelligence officers protect Britain’s most sensitive secrets. At the head of it all is Control: an all-powerful puppet master who decides who goes where, who does what, and sometimes, if necessary, who lives and who dies. But now, Control has vanished.
He doesn’t show up at the office. He misses his meetings. He won’t—or can’t—answer his phone. He is simply nowhere. Control’s assistant Maggie is the only one who knows he’s gone, and with a mole’s identity blown in Moscow, the clock is ticking. A member of “The Mothers” – the unsung fleet of assistants and secretaries who hold the show together behind the scenes of The Circus – Maggie knows every protocol, every password, and every operative—but she has no idea whether something has happened to Control or whether this is part of his plan. Either way, she can’t trust anyone. No-one can know Control is missing. And can she even trust Control?
Secrets within The Circus have a way of unravelling, and Maggie will have to act fast… or risk the walls tumbling down around her.
The miniseries will kick off on Nov. 19.