A review by gabesteller
Tunnels by Rutu Modan
5.0
My Favorite graphic novel Ive read in a while! thx for the present Paddy!
Brought me back to my Tintin Days! I love that Modan makes use of the Ligne Claire style to do this outwardly very Tintin-esque story, but overlays it with a wonderfully complex web of loyalties, jealousies, ambitions and betrayals. The art kicks ass and the characters are really human and sharp tongued and theres some excellent dark satire on extremism. I mean i have my quibbles with some aspects where instead of bouncing off of adventure tropes she leans on em but it doesn't hurt anything toooo bad.
I would say the story is very political in spirit while not being didactic which I enjoyed and the ending essay about Archaeology and a culture’s need for stories is fascinating and humanistic. Although its tough to say with an issue like Israel and Palestine, where the crimes are so great and on going. While this is first an foremost a jewish story, and Palestinians though portrayed as justifiably aggrieved, play a smaller part i thought she did a decent job showing how the same ground can mean be incredibly important in similar ways to do different peoples.
Oddly enough reminded me of Jon Ronson’s style of examining incredibly fraught issues though individual’s stories rather than in the usual complex accounting of each side.
anyway could perhaps have been even radical but still loved, gonna read the rest of her stuff for sure.
nice job Rutu! thx again Pat!
Brought me back to my Tintin Days! I love that Modan makes use of the Ligne Claire style to do this outwardly very Tintin-esque story, but overlays it with a wonderfully complex web of loyalties, jealousies, ambitions and betrayals. The art kicks ass and the characters are really human and sharp tongued and theres some excellent dark satire on extremism. I mean i have my quibbles with some aspects where instead of bouncing off of adventure tropes she leans on em but it doesn't hurt anything toooo bad.
I would say the story is very political in spirit while not being didactic which I enjoyed and the ending essay about Archaeology and a culture’s need for stories is fascinating and humanistic. Although its tough to say with an issue like Israel and Palestine, where the crimes are so great and on going. While this is first an foremost a jewish story, and Palestinians though portrayed as justifiably aggrieved, play a smaller part i thought she did a decent job showing how the same ground can mean be incredibly important in similar ways to do different peoples.
Oddly enough reminded me of Jon Ronson’s style of examining incredibly fraught issues though individual’s stories rather than in the usual complex accounting of each side.
anyway could perhaps have been even radical but still loved, gonna read the rest of her stuff for sure.
nice job Rutu! thx again Pat!