Review by Paul Hanna.
DIABOLIK vol. 1, #3: Crumbs for the Scum
Authors: Angela and Luciana Giussani
English translation: Remo Di Pasquale
Published September 1999, by Scorpion Productions
DIABOLIK is an Italian comic book that debuted in 1962, the brainchild of Angela and Luciana Giussani. The title character is a suave and clever thief who, with the aid of his accomplice/lover Eva Kant, is one of the most notorious criminals in the world. Constantly in Diabolik's pursuit is Inspector Ginko (pronounced Jinko), who has an obsession for all things Diabolik. When Diabolik decides to steal something, he makes sure the hit follows through.
Crumbs for the Scum revolves around an evening party held by Ambassador Wanders and his wife. The evening party, in turn, revolves around the display of the renowned Zarina's Necklace. After Diabolik initially tries to steal it, the Wanders purchase the necklace, and Ambassador Wanders' wife plans to wear it at the party. It is Diabolik's goal to make certain that he and Eva have the priceless trinket when the night is done. A campy plot, if anything, but it is devices like this that allow Diabolik to stand out when compared to American crime comics. The characterization is minimal, so the story is powerfully plot-driven. As a result, the dialogue comes off as cold and unfeeling, yet it gels very appropriately with the criminal, sinful world the Giussanis have created.
Even the art, drawn with a skilled line, skimps heavily on characters' emotional expressions that might help the reader better identify with them. They're there, but they are often drawn very subtly and with a certain lackluster quality. Unfortunately, the faces are drawn like this to the point where the characters occasionally look like mannequins. The story's pace is very cinematic, with the more mysterious scenes drawn out slowly through several panels, and the action scenes moving very much more quickly and pseudo-chaotically, yet with the same deliberation used in drawing the slower scenes.
The only thing that impedes the reader's fun are several grammatical errors in the story, probably from the Italian-English translation (for example, the contraction for "you are" should be "you're" as opposed to "your"). DIABOLIK runs along a similar wavelength as the Bonelli Comics that Dark Horse recently reprinted. Readers who enjoyed these works ought to give Diabolik a look.
Recommended for fans of classic Euro-pulp.
Diabolik #1-3 available now from Scorpio.
 |
 |
 |
|
Pop Preview - Grendel: Past Prime Talkback:
|
||
 |
|
 |
