The Armadillo Prophecy Zerocalcare

[Renita Lukins]

MicheleRech (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-smallfont-size:85%.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-smallfont-size:100%Italian: [miˈkɛːle ˈrɛk]; born 12 December 1983), known as Zerocalcare ([ˌdzɛrokalˈkaːre]), is an Italian cartoonist. His pen name, literally meaning "zero limescale", was inspired by an Italian TV commercial jingle for a descaler product, and was chosen when he needed a nickname to quickly join a discussion on the Internet.[1]

Rech was born in Cortona, Italy, to an Italian father from Rome and a French mother. He was raised in France, then later Rome (Rebibbia-Ponte Mammolo area), where he graduated at the Lyce franais Chateaubriand.[1][5]

In 2003, at the age of 20, Rech began working as an illustrator for Liberazione, Carta, La Repubblica, and several other periodicals. At this time, he also wrote and drew a webcomic titled Safe Inside for Zuda Comics, the online division of DC Comics. In 2004 he created a comic about the G8 summit in Genoa, which had taken place three years before.[6]

Zerocalcare published his first graphic novel in October 2011 titled The Armadillo Prophecy, and in November created zerocalcare.it, a website where he published autobiographical comic strips. In September 2012, the blog won the Macchianera Award as 'Best draftsman-Cartoonist'[7] and the Gran Guinigi Award at Lucca Comics for best short story with The Armadillo Prophecy.[8]

In April 2016, his fourth graphic novel Kobane Calling: Greetings from Northern Syria was published. The material had been previously published in 'Internazionale' and focused on the conflict between the Kurds and the Islamic State.[10] Kobane Calling won the Micheluzzi Award as best cartoon at Naples Comicon, 2017. In October, a film based on La profezia dell'armadillo entered production with Fandango (a Fremantle subsidiary) and Rai Cinema.[11] Zerocalcare was one of four screenwriters on the movie.[12]

On 14 January 2018 L'Espresso published a short comic by Zerocalcare titled 'Questa non una partita a bocce,' focusing on the rise of Neo-fascist movements in Italy.[13] The same year, Zerocalcare was invited to attend San Diego Comic Con following the English release of Kobane Calling, but only obtained his US Visa last minute, due to his travels which inspired the book.[14][15]

On 3 September 2018 the film La profezia dell'armadillo was released, based on his comic of the same name.[16] In November, the MAXXI museum of Rome hosted an exhibition of Zerocalcare's works, titled Zerocalcare. Scavare fossati, Nutrire coccodrilli. It lasted until March 2019.[17] That same month a theatrical adaption of Kobane Calling: Greetings from Northern Syria debuted at Teatro del Giglio in Lucca, during Lucca Comics & Games 2019[18] and toured as part of the 2019/2020 theatre season.[19] In 2020, Zerocalcare got high visibility, particularly thanks to the animated shorts Rebibbia Quarantine broadcast on LA7 on the Propaganda Live program during lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy. On the same year, he made variant covers for Marvel's Absolute Carnage comic book miniseries, only released in Italy.[20] He wrote an introduction for the Italian edition of TRANSito, a transgender-themed comic by Ian Bermdez drawn by David Cantero, released in Italy in March 2020.[21]

On 21 December 2020 Zerocalcare announced that he would be creating an animated series for Netflix titled Tear Along the Dotted Line.[22][23] Ten months later, on 8 October 2021, Netflix released a teaser trailer for the show, which announced the show's 17 November 2021 release date.[24] The show premiered ten days later, on 18 October, at the Rome Film Fest.[25] On 16 November Ablaze Publishing announced that they would be releasing English translations of Zerocalcare's first three graphic novels, The Armadillo Prophecy (2011), Tentacles At My Throat (2012) and Forget My Name (2014).[26] Tear Along the Dotted Line was released through Netflix on 17 November 2021. Early reviews have been positive.[27] An animated series featuring the same team of creators, titled This World Can't Tear Me Down (Italian: Questo mondo non mi render cattivo), was released on Netflix on 9 June 2023.[28][29][30]

Third of five little personal projects about the characters of Zerocalcare, an Italian comic book author. This pose is ispired by the cover of the first Zerocalcare's book "La profezia dell'armadillo" (The prophecy of the Armadillo).

In this first long-form comics, the wound takes the shape of a lie to a close friend. Zerocalcare is still a child. To avoid being punished at school, he puts the blame for something he has done on his friend Sarah. Unable to confess the truth, he says that another kid snitched on her. Thus, remorse takes a grip on his throat, literally in the form of a black, imaginary octopus.

The fact the protagonist takes years to get rid of this shame, conveys the idea of how much one can be stuck in their past. After all, as the school teacher says, nobody recovers from their childhood.

Zerocalcare represents being a child as a merciless condition, where personalities in the making struggle to find their own place. A wrong move at eight can have consequences on a whole life. However, this depends also on how someone interprets what happens, and how much weight they give to it. Sometimes the guilt is right and consistent with the fault, like a character shows in the end. Most of the time, though, people tend to exaggerate the consequences of their actions, living in anguish just out of self-doubt. In both cases, the best option is to let the truth come out, instead of doom yourself to perpetual and inner shame.

In Skeletons, Zerocalcare leaves university because he feels inadequate, and twenty years later he ghosts his friends for the same reason. However, the point is not what you do, but understanding everyone has a different path in life. It makes little sense to feel left behind when no one is either ahead or behind you.

Within this harsh context, Zerocalcare tackles the delicate balance of both taking care of others and of himself. He struggles with all the things people ask him to do, making him feel miserable if he refuses. At the same time, though, he feels guilty because his work often takes him away from his friends. Conflict breaks out when his own friends are the ones to ask him a favor. They want to participate in a call for proposals, hoping to better their professional situation. Differently from the author, by then a famous cartoonist, they all strive to make a living. Zerocalcare accepts to participate in the call, even if reluctantly.

Throughout the story, the issues of all characters clash, to the point where Zerocalcare pulls himself out of the call for proposals. His inner voice, the armadillo, is replaced by a careless panda who wants to teach him a hard lesson. Growing up means caring mostly about yourself and the least possible about others.

After all, there were other clues that our lives had been built on rather shaky foundations. So we moved slowly because we thought that as long as you tore along the dotted line, life would take the right shape.

Ten years distance The prophecy of the armadillo from Tear along the dotted line, respectively the first graphic novel and the first animated show by Zerocalcare. They both stand out as a sort of summary of his work. The suicide of an old friend is at the center of either story, as much as the feeling of anguish caused by occasions lost forever. They are stories about and for bewildered people who find it hard to make up their minds about the future, dreams, and reality.

Zerocalcare has been writing comics for ten years now and already has a legacy of his to pass on. From different perspectives, within different contexts, he tries to understand how one can find a place in this hectic world. His works touched the heart of many because they manage to go straight to the main issues of our time. Like Zerocalcare always ends up understanding the value of his relationships and bonds to keep on, the reader feels something similar. They feel less alone because they find an author capable of expressing uncomfortable matters. And, maybe, even showing a path toward a solution.

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