Ralph Azham: "Why Would You Lie To Someone You Love?" (Vol. 1)
Trondheim’s Dungeon graphic novels (created with fellow French luminary Joann Sfar) have long been a treat of postmodern sword ’n’ sorcery satire. Now, English readers can dig into another fantasy series populated by his distinctive anthropomorphized animals and distinguished by equal parts cutting humor and bizarre plot twists. A village pariah ever since he failed to live up to his “chosen one” promise as a child, Ralph has an insufferable ability to grate on everyone’s nerves that is only outweighed by the impending threat of the Horde, who have been dishing out regular doses of annihilation and ruin for centuries. What seems like a good, old-fashioned unlikely-hero tale in the making actually turns out to be more complex and slippery, as Ralph’s past gets sliced in bit by bit as we gradually learn about the world he inhabits, all leading to a blindsiding reveal and a tantalizing finish. Trondheim’s cartooning is as saucy and quirky as ever in this first of six volumes that promises more endearing oddities to come. --Ian Chipman