This brilliantly drawn, cleverly narrated, atmospherically themed struggle against a monstrous and hostile organism is at its heart a personal and intimate story. It has a little Kafka, a lot of Lynch, and perhaps even a touch of Lovecraft.

Comics

Branko Jelinek’s first graphic novel in eight years immediately captivates us with its precise black-and-white line work and meticulous hatching. As we delve deeper, we are drawn in by the refined language of comics and the rhythm of the visual narrative. The story, which begins in the banal setting of a train compartment, quickly transforms into a surreal world where technology intertwines with the organic. Scenes from an office alternate with episodes set in a mysterious hotel; the everyday shifts into a fantastical, hallucinatory dream, and the individual layers of meaning multiply and mirror one another. The masterfully crafted if ambiguous narration provides an inner narrative whose grandiosity is not only due to the illustrations. The protagonist must struggle against a monstrous organism, but, more importantly, he must face pressing loneliness and burning self-doubt. Although this is Branko Jelinek’s third extensive graphic novel featuring his “actor” Oskar Ed, the three works do not form a series; each book is an autonomous, self- contained story.

Branko Jelinek (born 1978) is a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Bratislava and works as a graphic designer for a video game production company. He creates comics in his spare time; in addition to the three graphic novels featuring Oskar Ed, he has published several shorter stories, including in the prestigious magazines Metal Hurlant and Heavy Metal.