If you’ve watched Tear Along the Line , the Zerocalcare comic will fill in the gaps and give you a different perspective on the main character. And what if the animation is still ahead of you? So much the better for reading.
Which doctor is it?
A young, innocent comic book enthusiast who works part-time as a tutor experiences a haunting! He is visited by himself from the future, because only in this way can the boys save themselves. After all, they’d made so many mistakes… Like that doomed fight with the ants! Or a cutlet eaten by that bloody hyena! And the worst were the moments that were supposed to be groundbreaking…
Zero leaves Zero a big book of mistakes and self-complaints. Lots of anecdotes and jokes covering grief and longing. I admit that after reading the Prophecies for the first time , I was slightly disappointed, because it’s not so much a comic as a collection of anecdotes. The second approach, however, proved to me that the humor (better than in Oderwij ) does not wear out, and the main “plot” axis is really coherent and … well, touching.
If you are fans of the Mandioca publishing house , you may be surprised, because this is not a typical epic story told in sophisticated frames. The league is much lighter this time, but the tradition of good publishing and translation has been preserved. Don’t forget to smell after unpacking!
Daily fight
Zero is a decidedly Allenian character: a neurotic who can’t cope with life, constantly talking about his failures. If he stayed silent, he would have to think about them, and that would be painful. This time he tries to tell the reader the story of his acquaintance with Camille. This type has it that it will not be fast, straight or to the point: countless everyday annoyances will stand in the way.
Yes, you are dealing with an egoist. Fortunately, much more likeable than in the animation. The prophecy allows you to understand him, even to like him, which in Oderwij turned out to be impossible for me. Zero throws himself around, helps others, pretends to look for a solution, focuses mainly on himself, but in the end he does not come out as a complete asshole. Emotions simply overwhelm him … and he loves to generate chaos and drama. We can’t blame him, in the comics, mess and crazy anecdotes sell better than Marie Kondo. And besides … even if the hero can be annoying, it’s easier to identify with him!
Confession of a child of the age
If you too were born in the 80s, you will find your generation portrait here. Zero loves grunge, although Cobain has long since retired from both music and life. He’s learning Japanese like the rest of us. He tries not to eat meat, and he succeeds … well, how do we. We can even take comfort in the fact that it could be worse. So we’re better off. In addition, he lived for a long time with his mother, who constantly rescues him from oppression. Basically, he is not very well adapted to life, and his greatest cultural assets are his punk background and knowledge of languages.
I would venture to say that the hero of Calcare is a Bridget Jones who abandoned dreams of great love. All that’s left is cooking blue soup and chatting with friends. Watching her district gentrify and taking advantage of the process as much as possible financially. Still a few forays to the center, where it’s like on a foreign planet. Is romance possible under these circumstances? Especially when Mr. Darcy fell victim to… (trying to avoid a spoiler)… early 21st century pressure?
Before I finish, a word about translation. The translation was done by Paulina Kwaśniewska-Urban and it is wonderful! And the task was difficult, because it is a language not so much spoken as spoken, and at a speed worthy of Eminem. She managed not to lose the pace, speech bubbles and narration perfectly stick to Calcare’s cartoon line and its dramatic foreshortening. She also elegantly sensed the tension of forcing serious, even formal phrases (Zero is an intelligent man after all) into this messy stream of consciousness.
The armadillo prophecy has a terribly narrow perspective, don’t expect diagnoses or solutions here. And I have to say it’s OK. After all, it is a diary in the form of a book of complaints and grievances. The only conclusions we can draw are reading from a distance our own stories. See if we managed to better embrace longing, mourning and everyday disasters. Or skip the moral and just talk to Zero.
