It would be easy to believe that everything has already been said about parallel universes and their fantastic creatures that populate the collective imagination. Princesses, witches, dragons, fairies, wolves or even pirates have indeed been staged many times, revised, rehabilitated, often watered down. This fall, however, Sébastien Perez denies this impression with the publication of two astonishing albums.
The French author is not taking his first steps in this world that is as abundant as it is enigmatic. He actually has a real fascination with these characters who have, through the ages, been able to shape the imagination of readers. On your mind, The fairy herbarium, Genealogy of a witch, Witches’ Grimoire, Sons of Dragons, to name only those titles which appear in the author’s bibliography. This fall, Perez takes on the role of historian on one side and offers an encyclopedia bringing together more than forty terrifying protagonists. On the other hand, playing with psychology, he probes the past of the awful and the villainous to better understand their motivations.
In Monsters, the fourth title to appear in the “Encyclopedia of the Marvelous” collection directed by Benjamin Lacombe, Sébastien Perez highlights a portrait of known and lesser-known monsters while ensuring a palpable link with the child reader. After the presentation of a classic table of contents in which the creatures are grouped according to their origin – mythological, fairground, of the seas, of the night, etc. —, a prologue introduces Lucas, a shy little boy invited to his friend Tom’s costumed birthday party. Frozen, uncomfortable in his disguise, the child slips into the closet, a temporary refuge from the assault from outside. Has he become the closet monster himself? Medusa, Cerberus, Griffin, Bogeyman, Jabberwock, Mr. Hyde then parade, between which the reality of Lucas returns, a little boy who just wants to be accepted at school. In short texts, Perez places the dreadful in their original context and summarizes what contributed to putting them on the dark side. Some – the Yeti, Joseph Merrick (the Elephant Man), the Kraken – are entitled to a more elaborate staging, in which the author retraces the story of the cursed being or even that of a human having encountered the thing. Perez’s text shines with its conciseness and the clear evocation of the characters’ character. Everything contributes to capturing the contours of these frightening beasts. If Stan Manoukian’s fantastical style suits this horrific universe – a few paintings, notably that representing Lovecraft’s Cthulhu, are particularly evocative -, the alternation with a representation more endearing than repulsive of Lucas’ universe or even these few pages on how to find or ward off monsters tends to create a disconnect in the rhythm. In return, as a way of softening the whole, this presentation embraces the story of the hero, a small human with whom readers will tend to identify.
At the origin of evil
“The villain…what a fascinating character! Since the dawn of time, it has nourished stories. Deliciously detestable, it haunts stories and novels. More complex than the hero, he is the one who spices up the stories. But why is he so mean? Was he born that way or did he become that way? What could possibly have led him to want to do evil to those around him? Difficult to imagine it, and yet…” As a true historian of the subject, Perez continues this approach in Lchildhood of the wicked, the naughty and the awful, album published by Éditions Margot. Going back in time to the childhood of the great mythical figures who populate tales and legends, Perez imagines what led, for example, Dracula, Polyphemus, the Queen of Hearts or even Bluebeard to become the execrable and bloodthirsty beings that ‘they became. Thus we learn that in a desire to become queen in place of her mother, Elizabeth pushed the queen mother over a railing, killing her instantly. The villainess also took the opportunity to get rid of her father, the king, declared mad by his daughter after this crime. Bluebeard, for his part, would have surprised the servants stealing jewelry and uncorking fine wines in the absence of his parents. Faced with this affront, he decided to poison them with rat poison. Baba Yaga, for her part, would have suffered from hunger and exclusion, which would have led her, one day of high fever, to bite the arm of a boy “by clenching her jaws very hard until she swallowed a piece of flesh.” It was while “watching the child’s body roasting in the fireplace that she said to herself that this dark period was behind her. She would never be hungry again! »
Historian, but also somewhat of a psychologist, Perez thus imagines the childhood of 20 archetypes. Each presentation offers a new perspective of these emblematic figures who, even as children, carried within them the seeds of what would make them legends that everyone knows. The author’s detailed, concise and cinematic writing ensures an immersion into these parallel lives. This vibrant and rich text is coupled with the flamboyant and profound illustrations of Benjamin Lacombe. The French artist presents a portrait of the characters, each one set in an atmosphere, a setting which sets them apart and contributes to establishing and deploying the enigmatic aura which characterizes them. Hades, all blue and adorned with horns, poses in the middle of a red decor, a reminder of the infernal inferno, populated by demons. Challenging the reader’s gaze with a serious or rebellious air, the figures are most often presented in close-ups, enhanced by the light which directs the eye onto these disturbing faces.
As a true connoisseur of these illustrious creatures, Sébastien Perez offers not only a vibrant dive into the heart of these universes, but a literature that echoes the imagination of children, their innate need to escape as well as the fears that give shape to their emotions.