Status
Available
Call number
Publication
Fantagraphics (2019), Edition: Illustrated, 368 pages
Description
For the first time in English, this seminal Argentinian science fiction graphic novel whose main character is still viewed as a symbol of resistance in Latin America. This originally appeared as weekly installments from 1957-59. Juan Salvo, the inimitable protagonist, along with his friend Professor Favalli and the tenacious metal-worker Franco, face what appears to be a nuclear accident, but quickly turns out to be something much bigger than they had imagined. Cold War tensions, aliens of all sizes, space-and time travel-this one has it all.
Media reviews
Crikey, but this book comes with an amazing history. Published for the first time in English (its translator is Erica Mena) by Fantagraphics, The Eternaut was created in Argentina in 1957 where it appeared initially as a newspaper serial, and where its reputation, even today, could not possibly be
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higher. According to an afterward in the English edition by Juan Caballero, a professor of Hispanic studies, in Argentina El Eternauta isn’t just a classic comic; it is “the alpha and omega of a national tradition”. In Buenos Aires, its hero, Juan Salvo, wearing the homemade diving suit he hopes will save him from the mysterious radioactive snow that has unaccountably blanketed his country, may still be seen in murals, political graffiti and hipster poster campaigns: a uniquely Argentinian superhero.
The Eternaut was created by Héctor Germán Oesterheld, a writer who was “disappeared” as a result of his involvement in groups protesting against the country’s military dictatorship (he was presumed dead in 1977), and drawn by Francisco Solano López (1928-2011), an artist who would eventually flee Argentina for Spain. Naturally, then, there is more to their brilliant comic than meets the eye. It is at once both science fiction and political allegory Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1957-1959
Physical description
368 p.; 11.9 x 8.9 inches
ISBN
1606998501 / 9781606998502