Talbot spent years researching The Tale of One Bad Rat: he read up on sexual abuse, on Beatrix Potter (Helen's role model in more than one way), on rats; he found reference models for all of the main characters; he took hundreds of photographs of scenery and buildings. He did all of this on his spare time, and thus, without the time constraints of mainstream comics. The result is spectacular on many levels. The story is well paced, humane, believable, and interweaves several themes effortlessly and to much synergic effect; the characters have distinct speech patterns, unique body language, rounded personalities; and the art... Ah, the art.
In the art front, like in everything else, Talbot did everything himself: pencils, inks, layouts, colors, it's all Talbot. The Tale of One Bad Rat's art is very different from Talbot's usual work - for instance, this is the first time he used colors, and to splendid effect - and here, too, it's a labor of love. But even though the backgrounds are all realistic and every facial expression expresses the character's mood precisely, Talbot uses the art to serve the story, avoiding cheap melodrama.
- Talbot sets the mood
The Tale of One Bad Rat is an important book on an important subject, true. But it's also an important landmark for graphic storytelling, demonstrating the medium's potential for providing an empathic, engaging, profound reading experience. It's recommended for everybody interested in comics or graphic novels, but for those that still think books with pictures are for children it's an absolute must.
Article comments
1 - Paul Goldman
What an interesting twist on the Beatrix Potter characters!