Monday 13 February 2023

Trazo de tiza

by Miguelanxo Prado
preface by Álvaro Pons

Mysterious island that is not on the map; mysterious woman waiting for mysterious somebody. Given the pace of the story (spoiler: not much happens really), by the end of the comic the mystery stays practically intact. What not to love?

A perfect example of me totally judging a book by its cover. I took this comic from the library knowing nothing of it or its author. Trazo de tiza was first published in 1992; what I picked from the shelf is the “definitive” 30th anniversary edition. Well we all know by now how definitive the definitive editions are; expect even more definitive definitive editions in 2032 and 2042. But at the moment, the book I have next to me is absolutely gorgeous.

With all my dislike of “bonus tracks” as far as the music is concerned, I enjoyed a lot the Dosier gráfico, sort of “making of”, plus some interesting alternatives. I find some of illustrations there superior to those of the “final product”. In his notes, the author treats his heroes as if they were living their lives quite independently from him and muses what (could have) happened with them beyond the confines of the book.

In the original plan of the island, Prado wanted to include several abandoned houses:

Cover illustration of the 1992 Norma Editorial catalogue:

Original cover illustration for the first edition of the comic:

Cover of the fifth edition:

A rare moment when Ana does not show her annoyance with Raúl:

My favourite character is Sara. She may not appear as refined as Ana but is as mysterious. What’s her story?


A number of illustrations was created by Prado in order to give his heroes, in all combinations, an opportunity to have a drink in peace.

Digging deeper into the comic web site, I came across these post stamps that Prado designed in 2004.


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