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Emanuelle
Emmanuelle, Bianca and Venus in Furs
Hardcover with unclipped dust jacket. Watermark to lower leading corner of jacket, slight bump to board spine end. A couple of minor marks to page block. No other notable flaws, contents clean and unmarked. AD
464 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 2000
About the author
Guido Crepax
418 books86 followersGuido Crepax (born Crepas, 1933-2003) was an Italian illustrator and comics author, considered one of the most influential cartoonists of the second half of the 20th century. He is notably remembered for his sophisticated black and white art, as well as his dreamlike storylines, often involving a significative dose of erotism.
Crepax was born and raised in Milan, the son of famed cellist Gilberto Crepas. He graduated in Architecture in 1958, then started a successful career in illustration, mostly for advertisement and record covers.
Crepax began making comics in the middle of the 60's, particularly for the Italian magazine 'Linus'. He is best known for the Valentina series of stories. Originally introduced as a side character in the sci-fi story The Curve of Lesmo (1965), Valentina is a fictional photographer from Milan. She is a cultured strong woman, with sophisticated art and fashion tastes, left-wing political ideals and a marked sexual curiosity. Valentina quickly became a staple of European counterculture of the late 60s and early 70s. The series run for thirty years, until 1995, with the titular character aging in real time.
Over the decades Crepax created other female characters, such as Belinda, Anita, Bianca, Giulietta, usually used as protagonists of erotic comics. His other works include a number of comic book adaptations of erotic novels, like Emmanuelle, Justine, Venus in Furs, Story of O, as well as horror classics Dracula, Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Crepax was born and raised in Milan, the son of famed cellist Gilberto Crepas. He graduated in Architecture in 1958, then started a successful career in illustration, mostly for advertisement and record covers.
Crepax began making comics in the middle of the 60's, particularly for the Italian magazine 'Linus'. He is best known for the Valentina series of stories. Originally introduced as a side character in the sci-fi story The Curve of Lesmo (1965), Valentina is a fictional photographer from Milan. She is a cultured strong woman, with sophisticated art and fashion tastes, left-wing political ideals and a marked sexual curiosity. Valentina quickly became a staple of European counterculture of the late 60s and early 70s. The series run for thirty years, until 1995, with the titular character aging in real time.
Over the decades Crepax created other female characters, such as Belinda, Anita, Bianca, Giulietta, usually used as protagonists of erotic comics. His other works include a number of comic book adaptations of erotic novels, like Emmanuelle, Justine, Venus in Furs, Story of O, as well as horror classics Dracula, Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 15, 2008
This is a compendium of three works, and their individual quality varies greatly. If I were to rate Emmanuelle as a separate work, I'd give it at least four stars.
Bianca, on the other hand, I would give one. And feel generous.
Venus In Furs. Maybe two.
The difference isn't so much the art, although it does contribute, as I feel Crepax most loved working on Emmanuelle, and that some of that devotion shows in the work---but the real difference is how the other two stories, Bianca in particular, are really nothing more than a series of bizarre encounters, none of them with any eroticism or cohesion, just fragments of thought. Bianca mostly feels like somebody decided to write an erotic story, sat down to read a bunch of classic erotic stories to get in the mood, touched his pen to paper, and then did forty eight pounds of hashish before he began writing.
Sometimes that works.
Sometimes...not.
Bianca, on the other hand, I would give one. And feel generous.
Venus In Furs. Maybe two.
The difference isn't so much the art, although it does contribute, as I feel Crepax most loved working on Emmanuelle, and that some of that devotion shows in the work---but the real difference is how the other two stories, Bianca in particular, are really nothing more than a series of bizarre encounters, none of them with any eroticism or cohesion, just fragments of thought. Bianca mostly feels like somebody decided to write an erotic story, sat down to read a bunch of classic erotic stories to get in the mood, touched his pen to paper, and then did forty eight pounds of hashish before he began writing.
Sometimes that works.
Sometimes...not.
August 11, 2022
This German-published English edition lacks "Emmanuelle 3"
Emmanuelle:
is charming and femmexploratory jet-set action that exudes class with all the refinements Guido places on and around all the characters. Everything is so chic and he even makes it all look so wonderfully daring and promiscuous.
I absolutely love his subtle underbite look which, instead of making characters look the mongoloid, somehow gives them an even haughtier air! I've never seen the "Crepax chin" more jutty than this story. Did he not like the way he drew prominent top teeth? It sure works out to look the part in this treatment.
Bianca:
is one of the few stories that he wrote in full instead of adapted. It's "out there" to the max and he's not scared of his readers not knowing where he is going with the script. The dream scenery is spectacular but trying to follow a plot is frustrating and futile. That's why it gets annoying when, in the final chapters, he tries to tie it all to what happened in reality. I do not recommend trying to on your own- it doesn't work and makes him look silly as an author.
Bianca is the main reason the rating is not *****.
Venus in Furs:
has more blank and title pages per total than I've ever seen. His chapters are mostly single digits- I think the longest is 16 pages. A bunch are under 5. It somehow works but more would for sure work better to grasp the characters and scenes- in most cases.
Nonetheless, it's still excellent and tells the story. Even though his treatment is not enough for my taste, it works to illustrate it in his own way. I can't fault him for it or use that against his rating. It's entertaining watching what the man handles for pleasure but mostly, like all Crepax, it's in the art and it's amazing details. His costumery and set design are second to none and tied with few- just like with every tale he tells.
Emmanuelle:
is charming and femmexploratory jet-set action that exudes class with all the refinements Guido places on and around all the characters. Everything is so chic and he even makes it all look so wonderfully daring and promiscuous.
I absolutely love his subtle underbite look which, instead of making characters look the mongoloid, somehow gives them an even haughtier air! I've never seen the "Crepax chin" more jutty than this story. Did he not like the way he drew prominent top teeth? It sure works out to look the part in this treatment.
Bianca:
is one of the few stories that he wrote in full instead of adapted. It's "out there" to the max and he's not scared of his readers not knowing where he is going with the script. The dream scenery is spectacular but trying to follow a plot is frustrating and futile. That's why it gets annoying when, in the final chapters, he tries to tie it all to what happened in reality. I do not recommend trying to on your own- it doesn't work and makes him look silly as an author.
Bianca is the main reason the rating is not *****.
Venus in Furs:
has more blank and title pages per total than I've ever seen. His chapters are mostly single digits- I think the longest is 16 pages. A bunch are under 5. It somehow works but more would for sure work better to grasp the characters and scenes- in most cases.
Nonetheless, it's still excellent and tells the story. Even though his treatment is not enough for my taste, it works to illustrate it in his own way. I can't fault him for it or use that against his rating. It's entertaining watching what the man handles for pleasure but mostly, like all Crepax, it's in the art and it's amazing details. His costumery and set design are second to none and tied with few- just like with every tale he tells.
June 4, 2008
oh how i love this sexy graphic novel.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews