Kairos by Ulysse Malassagne - TRADE RATING
By Zack Quaintance — Kairos by Ulysse Malassagne just got a new North American release and translation courtesy of publisher First Second. The book — which hit our stores this year in a pretty little hardcover that’s smaller than most novels — was first released in Malassagne’s native France as a three-part series. It is, essentially, a subversion of the damsel in distress narrative that has long been so pervasive in fantasy stories.
In Malassagne’s book, Nills and Anaelle are a couple on the road to a getaway in a rustic cabin when we first meet them. Essentially, Kairos opens as a typical relationship drama. They’re leaving the city, he wants to move in, she’s hesitant; her family owns the cabin, he grouses about them being rich; she has a tendency to fear the worst, he wants her to relax...and on we go. If you’ve seen the preview artwork, however, you know that the story is largely set outside of the real world or mundane, and in a realm of fantasy. The narrative shortly gets us there (I’m not going to spell out exactly how, but it does say “through the door of destiny” on the cover), and off we go.
I found Kairos to be an engaging and quick read, although not at all flimsy. The book reads quickly because of how well-done the pacing is and because of the compelling nature of the subject matter. You’ll finish it fast because you won’t want to put it down, and then once you’re done, you’ll have quite a bit to think about, all of which is executed with a cartooning style and set of interests that fall somewhere between Maurice Sendak and the video game Assassin’s Creed.
There’s a strong message to this book about nuance. Maybe, it asks, obsessively questing after the distressed princess isn’t empirically correct and is, in fact, just something you want to do because it makes you feel good and separates you from serious examination of your own life? Ouch, I think there’s something that is very much difficult and relatable to that. In this book, characters are regularly backwards engineering odd logics and justifications for doing what they want or feeling how it’s easiest to feel, which makes it very much relevant to our own American moment. The question then becomes — just because something can be justified, does it make it in everyone’s (or even your own) best interest to paint it that way?
There are also questions raised here about the price one pays for caring about anything, about the toll of leadership, and about the inevitable price of oppressing/ignoring the needs of the masses. None of it, however, would matter so much if it were not for the quality of the visual storytelling within these pages. There’s a kinetic, operatic quality to the fighting that takes place throughout this book, and it’s all as epic as a top-tier anime brawler while feeling as consequential to its initial plot of a thoughtful comic like Saga.
Beneath all of the magic and battling and questions about rulers and fairness, however, is the love story we see at the start, and that’s really where the twists and beauty of this excellent book can be found most clearly.
Kairos
Writer/Artist: Ulysse Malassagne
Publisher: FirstSecond
Price: $19.99
In Kairos, French graphic novelist Ulysse Malassagne turns the typical damsel-in-distress narrative on its head. With stunning art, epic battle scenes, and unexpected plot twists, Kairos forces you to question where to draw the line between hero and antihero. Nills and Anaelle are looking forward to their first night in their rustic cabin in the woods. But the couple’s idyllic vacation is suddenly thrown into turmoil when a strange flash of light bursts from the fireplace. A portal appears, and out of it spill dragon-like creatures that are armed to the teeth. They grab Anaelle and flee back through the portal, leaving a distraught Nills with a sudden decision: stay behind, or leap through after her? He leaps. And that’s when things get really weird.
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Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as Comics Bookcase.