A Page 45 Comic Book of the Month
In an episode of the “Wonders of the Universe” television programme, Professor Brian Cox demonstrated how all life is made up of elements that result from the death of a star. In other words, we are all dependent on the process of death and rebirth. The latest Vertigo offering from the Brazilian brothers Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba, takes this concept as its central theme in a story about the sheer joy of being alive.
Daytripper opens with words penned by our protagonist, Bras de Olivia Domingos, about death:
“When the cancer that had spread throughout most of his brain finally took the best of him...”
These are words that Bras has written about a stranger in his job as an obituary writer (incidentally this is a text book example of the storytelling technique of introducing character). The words are dark and gloomy and depressing, in marked contrast to the words at the end, also about death but written by Bras' father, Benedito, on the birth of Bras' son, and intending to accept death as part of the celebration of life. The most important part of the letter begins:
“Only when you accept that one day you'll die can you let go...and make the best out of life.”
In the letter, Benedito explicitly spells out the theme of death and rebirth:
“This baby is the new master of your life. He is the sole reason for your existence. You'll surrender your life to him, give him your heart and soul because you want him to be strong...to be brave enough to make all his decisions without you.”
“Your life is out of your hands now...just like mine has been since the day you were born.”
There are obvious shortfalls in telling a story like this, the most obvious being the potential for it to come across as smug and sickly sweet. The two brothers neatly avoid many of the problems, and the only real misstep is in the first chapter, which feels too melodramatic and out of keeping with the tone of the rest of the book. The bar owner's death at the hands of his nephew feels overly contrived. Why wouldn't the nephew simply ask for some money or a loan. Shooting his uncle and an innocent bystander seems counter productive to his aims.
Of course it needs to be remembered that this was a DC Vertigo series, and as such there are likely inbuilt assumptions about the reader base. Given that Vertigo readers tend to have come from a super-hero reading background, a certain amount of overt violence is probably expected. Obviously this is a huge generalisation, but it would certainly explain this opening chapter, which would originally have been the first issue of the comic with the aim of hooking the readers in. If this had been a release by a different publisher (e.g. Fantagraphics) then I imagine the first chapter would have been different in feel and would have presented a much more cohesive whole as a collected work. However this is a minor point and it certainly does not detract from the artisitic success of Daytripper.
In terms of technique, the most obvious little trick employed throughout this book is the use of full bleeds on certain panels on most pages. This seems to serve to do a couple of things. On a subconscious level it attracts the readers eye, emphasising what is happening in that panel and making it stand out a little more on the page. The other is in the evocation of atmosphere. A quick example would be in the second chapter, where certain panels with the sea bleed to the edge of the page, giving a feeling of calm, whilst also placing emphasis on the sea as an important part of the chapter. This is also used in the busy marketplace, and we feel like we are part of a bustling market.
The style of art used is itself interesting. On the scale of abstract to realism, it veers towards the cartoony end. However at the end of the book Fabio states that they wanted a world which felt real:
“Every reference, every photo, every color and every character, everything was made to reproduce feelings. A feeling that you were alive, happy, lonely, afraid or in love. We wanted that feeling that life was happening right there, in front of every one of us, and we were living it.”
To this end, the use of a more abstract style makes perfect sense, especially if we agree with Scott McCloud's assertion, in Understanding Comics, that the more cartoony style allows the reader to project themselves into the image more completely:
“...when you enter the world of the cartoon...you see yourself.”
Scott McCloud (Understanding Comics. 1993)
This style perfectly fits a book about the world within each of us rather than the world around us, and this is definitely a story about our inner world, how we see and understand ourselves and fully appreciate the joy of life and through this the world around us.
Daytripper is a truly wonderful experience. There are numerous touching scenes, particularly in chapter eight where Bras never appears, but we see the positive impact he has made as a husband and father. Ultimately this is how our lives will be judged a success or not. The amount of money we make, or supposed power we wield are, in the end, meaningless. It is how we are seen by our loved ones – friends, partners and, most importantly, children. The impact on children is the most important because they are completely reliant on their parents, not just for feeding and housing them, but to demonstrate how people should behave within themselves and towards one another. This seems to be one of the messages of the book. As we see the positive impact Bras has had on his son, we also witness the positive impact his father made on him.
This is a great book, which came out last year and deserves to be on everybody's must-read list. It is uplifting and thought provoking without being cloying or didactic, and it stays in the mind so long that one read is not enough. The good thing is that subsequent readings will reveal further meanings, but all these meanings will be personal to that particular reader.
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