''Arzach'' () is a comic book collection of four wordless short stories by artist/author Jean 'Moebius' Giraud, which were originally published in the French

sci-fi Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

comics magazine ''

Métal Hurlant ''Métal Hurlant'' (; literal translation: "Howling Metal," "Screaming Metal") is a French comics anthology of science fiction and horror comics stories. Originally created in 1974, the anthology ceased publication in 1987, but was revived b ...

''. The stories follow Arzach, a silent warrior who rides a

pterodactyl Pterosaurs are an extinct clade of flying reptiles in the order Pterosauria. They existed during most of the Mesozoic: from the Late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous (228 million to 66 million years ago). Pterosaurs are the earlie ...

-like creature through a strange, desolate landscape. The imagery and situations in ''Arzach'' are often compared to

dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensation (psychology), sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around ...

s or the

subconscious In psychology, the subconscious is the part of the mind that is not currently of focal awareness. The term was already popularized in the early 20th century in areas ranging from psychology, religion and spirituality. The concept was heavily popu ...

. These stories had an enormous impact on the

French comics French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

industry, and the Arzach character is still among Moebius' most famous creations. It can be defined as a pantomime comic,

fantasy comics Fantasy comics have been around as long as Comic book, comics. The classification "fantasy comics" broadly encompasses illustrated books set in an other-worldly universe or involving elements or actors outside our reality. Fantasy has been a mai ...

or an experimental comic. The spelling of the title, originally Arzach, was changed in each of the original short stories. Moebius later revisited the character with a story called ''The Legend of Arzach''. This later story contains dialogue, and it ties the Arzach stories into a previously unrelated Moebius story called ''The Detour''. Moebius' 2010 book ''Arzak: L'Arpenteur'' (''Arzak: The Surveyor'') was the first of a planned trilogy to explore the origin of the character. However, with the death of Jean Giraud in March 2012, this vision was never realised.

Legacy

''Arzach'' is credited as the inspiration for the final sequence, "Taarna", of the

animated film Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

'' Heavy Metal'' (1981). ''Moebius' Arzach'' is a novel by Jean-Marc and Randy Lofficier, published by iBOOKS in August 2000. The book features a cover and inside illustrations by Moebius, and a map by J.O. Ladronn. The first half of the book is a novelisation of several Arzach stories. The second half recursively introduces John Gerard (a thinly disguised Jean Giraud) and family into the world of ''Arzach''. A brief essay on the publishing history of ''Arzach'' concludes the book. ''Arzach'' was one of '' Panzer Dragoons major artistic influences.

Jean Giraud Jean Henri Gaston Giraud (; 8 May 1938 – 10 March 2012) was a French artist, cartoonist, and writer who worked in the Franco-Belgian comics, Franco-Belgian ''bandes dessinées'' (BD) tradition. Giraud garnered worldwide acclaim predomin ...

even contributed in the creative process of Team Andromeda's game with original artwork. ''Arzach'' inspired

Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese animator, filmmaker, and manga artist. He co-founded Studio Ghibli and serves as honorary chairman. Throughout his career, Miyazaki has attained international acclaim as a masterful storyteller and creator of Anime, Japanese ani ...

and he said in an interview that he directed ''Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind'' under Moebius' influence.

Notes

References

External links

* * {{Jean Giraud French comic strips 1975 comics debuts Comics characters introduced in 1975 2010 comics endings Fantasy comics Fantasy graphic novels Male characters in comics Pantomime comics Comics by Jean Giraud Comics adapted into novels Comics adapted into animated series Comics adapted into television series