vinpauld 's review for:

The Eternaut by Francisco Solano Lopez, Héctor Germán Oesterheld

5.0

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This epic tale of an alien invasion, originally published in weekly installments in the Buenos Aires newspaper Hora Cero from 1957-1959, reads like an Argentinian version of "The War of the Worlds," but with Cold War references thrown in. The story begins in the home of a comic book writer, who, while working at his desk one night, witnesses the appearance of a time traveler. His visitor, a man fated to travel through eternity, refers to himself as The Eternaut. This man, trapped in time, soon begins to relate a terrifying tale of events set to take place in Earth's future, a future just a few years away. We learn the man's real name is Juan Salvo and his story, leading up to how he became a time traveler, is a tale of devastating alien invasion, one that begins on a quiet night as he and his nerdy pals play a game of cards. The bulk of the story is a tale of resistance, of humanity's fight for survival and of a group of men, who, using their wits, manage to fight back against an army of invaders who have enslaved other alien races and inducted them into their war of conquest on Earth. Originally written as a weekly newspaper serial, The Eternaut is an episodic tale and because of its serial origins, information is sometimes repeated (helpful for an audience that might have joined the story late in progress, allowing readers to jump in at any point and understand what was taking place). The black and white artwork is for the most part amazing and seems to improve as the story goes along. After finishing this, it's easy to understand how the character of Juan Salvo, aka the Eternaut, became a symbol of resistance in a country that has a dark history of repression under a military government. As revealed in this edition's preface, it's sad to realize that the author himself became a victim of Argentina's repressive regime and was one of the thousands of people who mysteriously disappeared after being taken into government custody in the late 1970s.