''The Smurf Apprentice'' (original French title ''L'Apprenti Schtroumpf'') is the seventh album of the original French-language ''

Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (french: Les Schtroumpfs; nl, De Smurfen) is a Belgian comic franchise centered on a fictional colony of small, blue, humanoid creatures who live in mushroom-shaped houses in the forest. ''The Smurfs'' was first created and int ...

'' comic series created by Belgian artist

Peyo Pierre Culliford (; 25 June 1928 – 24 December 1992) was a Belgian comics writer and artist who worked under the pseudonym Peyo (). His best-known works are the comic book series ''The Smurfs'' and ''Johan and Peewit'', the latter in whi ...

. Apart from the titular one, it contains other two stories: ''Smurftraps'' and ''Romeo and Smurfette''.

Plots

The Smurf Apprentice

A smurf wants to learn magic and alchemy. After some failed attempts of getting

Papa Smurf Papa Smurf is one of the protagonists from the comic strip the Smurfs. Most Smurfs are said to be about 100 years old, but at the advanced age of 546 (553 in the 1980s series episode "The Littlest Giant"), Papa is the oldest Smurf and the leader ...

's magic book, he goes to

Gargamel Gargamel is a fictional character and the main antagonist of the '' Smurfs'' show and comic books. He is a wizard and the sworn enemy of the Smurfs. His main goals are to destroy the Smurfs, eat them, or transform them into gold. Appearance ...

's lab and steals one page of his magic book. However, what the potion written on the page does is written on the following page, so the only way to know what the potion does is to test it. After some failed attempts of giving the potion to the other smurfs, the Apprentice Smurf drinks it himself and becomes a green lizard-like monster that the other smurfs (save for Papa Smurf) are afraid of. Not one of Papa Smurf's attempts on an antidote works, so the Apprentice Smurf goes to Gargamel's lab after the antidote, but is captured. Papa Smurf leads the other smurfs to save him, and then they make the antidote that restores the Apprentice Smurf to his normal smurf appearance.

Smurftraps

Gargamel prepares a series of traps to capture the smurfs, while they are playing hide-and-seek. Brainy Smurf is trapped by a book, Greedy Smurf is immobilised by a sticky cake, Grouchy Smurf follows a series of directions that lead him to a hole, and so on. But the smurf who was counting watches when Gargamel catches the last of his playmates, and goes to the village to tell Papa Smurf, who then organises all the remaining smurfs for a rescue mission. However, Gargamel catches all the rescue party, save for Papa Smurf, with a giant net. Gargamel makes the smurfs do slave labor on his home, but Papa Smurf arrives at night and leaves a trace of gold coins near Gargamel's bed. When Gargamel awakens, he finds the trace and follows it to a chest where Papa Smurf traps him. Papa Smurf releases the smurfs and they leave Gargamel's home.

Romeo and Smurfette

A series of one-page gags showing the love all the smurfs feel for Smurfette.

Publication and other media

*In the Hanna-Barbera cartoon version of The Smurf Apprentice,

Clumsy Smurf This is a list of ''The Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (french: Les Schtroumpfs; nl, De Smurfen) is a Belgian comic franchise centered on a fictional colony of small, blue, humanoid creatures who live in mushroom-shaped houses in the forest. ''T ...

is the one who becomes the apprentice rather than the unnamed smurf from the comic. *The animated version of Romeo and Smurfette links the gags as one story, where Gargamel (who did not appear on any one of the gags) uses a magic flower to make Smurfette decide that she will marry

Handy Smurf This is a list of ''The Smurfs'' characters appearing in the original The Smurfs (comics), comics series, The Smurfs (1981 TV series), televisThe Smurfs (2021 TV series), ion shows, Smurfs Bubble Story game and the The Smurfs (film), 2011 movie ...

or Hefty Smurf, thus dividing the Smurfs between Handy's supporters and Hefty's supporters. The episode also uses some scenes adapted from ''

Smurf Versus Smurf ''Schtroumpf Vert et Vert Schtroumpf'' is the ninth comic album adventure of the Smurfs, written and drawn by Peyo with Yvan Delporte as co-writer. The story is considered a parody on the still ongoing language war between French- and Dutch-spe ...

''.

References