“Through me you pass into the city of woe:
Through me you pass into eternal pain:
Through me among the people lost for aye.
Justice the founder of my fabric moved:
To rear me was the task of power divine,
Supremest wisdom, and primeval love.
Before me things create were none, save things
Eternal, and eternal I shall endure.
All hope abandon, ye who enter here.”
Dante Alighieri, „Divine Comedy“
Imagine having to descend into the depths of the earth in order to save the love of your life. This once happened to Dante Alighieri – or, at least, he wrote about it – and now, cartoonist Michael Meier has transformed this vision into a modern graphic novella. If you assume that this involves a gloomy noire style, you could be more wrong. Das Inferno’s storyline is funnier than you expect, without crossing the boundary into becoming ridiculous.
A modern and refreshing style matches the current comic zeitgeist perfectly, with small gags and alterations added by the artist. The protagonist’s companion, Vergil, is reborn as a fox. Even the circles of hell have been modified to keep up with today’s times. Das Inferno by Michael Meier is a mellow and fresh comic, and I enjoyed it a lot!
Copyright and source: http://www.amazon.de/Das-Inferno-Dante-Alighieri/dp/3940304352