Mazzucchelli (who you may remember from such excellent comics as Daredevil: Born Again and Batman: Year One) is quite simply, an amazing artist and storyteller. I've never seen anything like Asterios Polyp. Granted, I feel that I'm a novice when it comes to current graphic novelists. Well, not novice...but my knowledge base is limited. But this feels almost revolutionary. Okay, that's an insult to revolutionists but it certainly feels significant. What I mean to say is that Mazzucchelli has out done himself.
Asterios Polyp is the story of the aforementioned Asterios, a middle aged "paper architect", whose life begins to deconstruct after he loses his apartment in a fire. Asterios uses this opportunity to start a new life and embark on a classic "Greek-hero-tragedy" story arch, becoming a mechanic in some no name town. As the story unfolds, Asterios becomes a fully realized character in ways I didn't think were possible in graphic novels. Only in Chris Ware have I seen this kind of insight and empathy. Along with a compelling love story, Asterios Polyp touches on various philosophical and intellectual abstractions which are not only interesting but are also presented seamlessly by Mazzucchelli and don't feel contrived or pedantic. The art and story mirror one another on every page, with the artwork reflecting the words and the words reflecting the artwork. It's hard to list all of the reasons (and there are many) this graphic novel is worth your time.
All hail David Mazzucchelli.
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