Narpartheid #29 & 30

Posted: Tuesday, October 30, 2001
By: Darren Schroeder

Cover of Narpartheid #29 & 30 Creator(s): Various
Publishers: Napartheid
From: Irunea
Price: 3000pzta./12libera

I don't understand a single word of this comic, which is a shame cause it looks like an excellent small press anthology from somewhere on the coast of the Bay of Biscay near Spain. They come in handsome glossy covers and are full of a mix of drawing styles from cartoonish to montage and photo-stories.

Issue 30 appears to have been based on the theme of immigrants, with stories about how people react to others who look different and the treatment handed out to those who try to find a new life in what they expect to be a better place. This issue includes a couple of wordless comics which meant I could at least follow what was going on. If I have the names and titles around the right way Monk Bat wrote and drew Yksi Markka which follows a guy finding a pen on the floor of a train station. He starts clicking the pen, which draws the attention of the person who lost it. It's a simple story told with an un-cluttered art style that works well.

The other story I could follow appears to be called Negozioa and shows the story of a group of Africans who buy passage on a boat in an effort to enter a country illegally. They soon find that they have been betrayed and cheated out of their money. However, the con man doesn't hold onto the money long himself. It's a thoughtful story illustrated in an appealing scribble style.

In a Word: Propitious.



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