Blacksad (2000-)

It's the late 50s America. Actresses strive for fame and the attention of the powerful. Scientists experiment with bombs even deadlier than the one what ended the war. The red menace is looming over America and with it right-wing paranoia permeates society. Klansmen hold small towns in their icy grip - or turn them into burning hell. Beatnik poets start to show the middle finger to the conformist society while struggling jazz musicians are mingling with mobsters.

From buzzing, vice-ridden cities to redneck land, this is the backdrop of the series of adventures of the eponymous private detective. John Blacksad is as archetypical noir P.I. as one gets. He is a loner with quick wits and hard fists, romantic heart and strong moral instincts. The Red Sun story alludes that once he got a good education so something must have gone sideways. Scarce references to his family are dropped here and there. There is only one unusual, curious fact about him. He is a cat. All the characters in this world are animals whose species match their traits (wise and recluse owl professor, cold-eyed lizard hitman, you get the picture).

Working on a very classic material, Blacksad is a seamless combination of great narrative and beautiful artwork. But the word "beautiful" doesn't do it justice. When I opened the book for the first time, it took me only a couple of pages to experience a sudden and unexpected realization. I remembered why I fell in love with comics 30 years ago. And that is something very rare.

Even among favourites few works deserve the label "masterpiece", but Blacksad most definitely is one of them.