COMPLETE CREPAX HC #3
EVIL SPELLS
(W) GUIDO CREPAX (A) GUIDO CREPAX (CA) GUIDO CREPAX
The third volume of Fantagraphics' monumental collection of GUIDO CREPAX's comics collects the "Baba Yaga" storyline, which recasts the witch of folklore (it was adapted for the screen in 1973 starring Carroll Baker as the middle-aged, lesbian villainess). Under Baba Yaga's influence, a doll, Annette, comes to life; Valentina and her lover, Philip, are forced to act out the fairy tale Bluebeard; and Philip must fight the witch in her lair. Evil Spells also features the famed Italian cartoonist's sinuous adaptations of several literary masterpieces: Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Henry James's The Turn of the Screw, and a giallo genre take on Edgar Allan Poe.
COMPLETE CREPAX HC #4
PRIVATE LIFE
(W) GUIDO CREPAX (A) GUIDO CREPAX (CA) GUIDO CREPAX
The fourth volume of Fantagraphics' groundbreaking Complete Crepax series puts the author's sexy proto feminist heroine Valentina, the globe-trotting Milanese photographer, front and center in a series of erotic comics narratives. Most of the comics in this volume, spanning 1965 to 1985, have never before been published in English. It includes Crepax's first foray into comics magazines-"The Curve of Lesmo"-in which our heroine is introduced as an adventurer's sidekick! Elsewhere in this volume, she becomes a mother, outwits a gang of jewel thieves, flashes back to her childhood and adolescence, encounters a mysterious cello, and much more! Not only is Crepax's impeccable draftsmanship on full display, but this deluxe package highlights the innovative visual storytelling techniques that made him an international sensation.
COMPLETE CREPAX HC #5
AMERICAN STORIES
(W) GUIDO CREPAX (A) GUIDO CREPAX (CA) GUIDO CREPAX
The Complete Crepax Vol. 5: American Stories collects stories that span 1968-1986, such as Crepax's ode to boxer Joe Louis. In other tales, Valentina attempts to balance new relationships with lovers alongside the domestic life she shares with Phil. Meanwhile, Valentina's fantasy life goes Hollywood. Bonnie and Clyde make an appearance, and there are several homages to the silent film era.
COMPLETE CREPAX HC #6
DANGEROUS LIAISONS
(W) GUIDO CREPAX (A) GUIDO CREPAX
In The Complete Crepax Vol. 6: Dangerous Liaisons, which spans 1977-1989, Valentina settles into middle-aged home life with her longtime partner, Phil, with whom she has a grown son, Mattia. Two of Crepax's lauded graphic adaptations: "Venus in Furs" and "The Memoirs of Cassanova" are featured.