A comic that doesn't tremble

The duo of Damien Marie, scriptwriter, and Fabrice Meddour, illustrator, are back together to tackle another chapter of American history. After the aftermath of the Civil War in After hell, they return a century later with a new thriller.

Spanning two volumes, with the second volume scheduled for release in late August 2024, San Francisco 1906 intertwines major organized crime with figures from art history, against the backdrop of one of the most significant natural disasters of the 20th^th century. It’s hard to imagine a more explosive mix! While…’After hell While that book dealt with the Great War, this one focuses on the «little» one: the conflict between rival gangs in the Fog City. In North America’s oldest Chinatown, a single spark can ignite a full-blown conflict between Italians and Chinese. And despite herself, Judith, a maid at a luxury hotel, finds herself caught in the middle of the hostilities.

Art, the Mafia, and Opera

Tuesday, April 17, 1906, at the Palace Hotel; Just as she had begun her shift, as she did every evening, Judith was given a cigar box to deliver to the room of the Italian tenor Enrico Caruso, who was in the middle of a performance at the Grand Central Theater, where the city’s elite were giving him a standing ovation. Once she had delivered the package and was about to leave, she spotted a mysterious wrapped object hidden under the bedsheets. But she only had time to catch a glimpse of the package before a blow struck the back of her head, knocking her unconscious. Now in the hands of the most notorious criminals and privy to a smuggling operation that should have remained secret, Judith will not be treated with the same honors as the opera singer…

What strikes you right away when reading San Francisco 1906, it's the very subdued atmosphere, verging on the vintage chic, conveyed by the monochromatic color palette of the panels. And this directly—yet subtly—anchors the artistic dimension within this mafia story. References to the world of painting (such as Judith beheading Holofernes, for example) are sprinkled throughout rather than displayed ostentatiously, reinforcing this understated quality.

The storyline, on the other hand, is more predictable and serves to set up the plot and introduce the various characters rather than blow the reader away. The few pages at the end of the volume, however, which revisit details of the story or contextual elements to explore them in greater depth, are a real treat! It’s a pleasure to immerse yourself in San Francisco’s underworld, but above all, you’re eager to see how events will unfold in the next volume.

Write to the author: quentin.perissinotto@leregardlibre.com

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Damien Marie (screenplay)
and Fabrice Meddour (artwork)
San Francisco 1906
Bamboo Edition
February 2024
68 pages

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