 Jean @-@ Marc and Randy Lofficier described The Black Island as " a clever little thriller " that bore similarities with the popular detective serials of the era . The Lofficiers thought that the 1966 version " gained in slickness " but became less atmospheric , awarding it two out of five . Biographer Benoît Peeters thought The Black Island to be " a pure detective story " , describing it as " Remarkably well constructed " and highlighting that it contrasted the modern world of counterfeiters , airplanes , and television , with the mysteries of superstition and the historic castle . He described it as " an adventure full of twists and turns " , with the characters Thompson and Thomson being " on top form " . He nevertheless considered the 1966 version to be " shorter on charm " than the earlier versions . Elsewhere he was more critical , stating that " under the guise of modernization , a real massacre occurred " , and adding that " the new Black Island was more than just a failure ; it also showed one of the limitations of the <unk> system " , in that it was obsessed with repeated redrawing . 
