The Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8

by Thomas Ott

Swiss horror master Thomas Ott returns with the first full-length, wordless graphic novel of his career. When clearing up the cell of a prisoner who has been sentenced to death and subsequently executed, a prison guard finds a small piece of paper with a combination of numbers on it. On the spur of the moment, he puts it into his pocket. As the guard lives a solitary, monotonous life, the numbers on the paper awake his curiosity.

Thomas Ott's O. Henry-esque plot twists will delight fans of classic horror like The Twilight Zone and Tales from the Crypt, or modern masters like filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan; his hallucinatory, hyper-detailed scratchboard illustrations will haunt you long after you've put the book down.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Horror, Fiction, Bande Dessinée, Graphic Novels Comics, Comic Book

144 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

"Thomas Ott was born in Zürich in 1966. He received training as a graphic artist at the School of Design in Zürich and has been a free-lance comics artist and illustrator since 1987. From 1998-2001 Ott attended film studies at the University of Art and Design (HGK), Zürich. He currently lives and works in Zürich and Paris. Ott is also the lead singer of The Playboys." -Fantagraphics Books

Reviews

[Jan Philipzig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thomas Ott's black-and-white, scratchboard-style graphic novel The Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8 tells the story of a prison executioner's gradual descent into madness, that is, of his growing inability to cope with a world that defines his grim occupation as perfectly normal and acceptable. The plot itself is not terribly original but unfolds irresistibly in circular, hypnotic fashion.

Rooted in the tradition of German Expressionism, specifically in its woodcut novels and silent films from the 1920s and 1930s, The Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8 does not need any words to invoke an emotional roller-coaster ride from sadness to confusion, obsession, hope, joy, fear, anger, and finally despair.

[Fátima Linhares · Rating 5 out of 5]

Será que podemos considerar um livro só com desenhos uma leitura?
Este livro é a prova de que tal é possível. As imagens são tão vívidas e transmitem na perfeição os sentimentos das personagens. É uma história que nos faz questionar sobre o destino e o controlo que temos sobre ele. Será que o que nos acontece está predestinado? Ou será que nós temos o controlo quase total das nossas vidas e do que nos acontece? De qualquer das formas, temos de viver.

O que também me impressionou nesta obra foi a forma como os desenhos são feitos, utilizando uma técnica de scratch board, ou seja, são elaborados através da raspagem de uma placa negra com uma lâmina que vai revelando o fundo branco. Haja paciência e habilidade.

[Lúcia Fonseca · Rating 5 out of 5]

A forma como um conjunto de algarismos afeta a vida da personagem é genial.
Adorei a arte e a história.
Mais um caso de sucesso em que não são necessárias palavras para se fazer uma boa história.

[Leonor · Rating 5 out of 5]

O Número 73304‑23‑4153‑6‑96‑8 é uma novela gráfica sem palavras, em que Thomas Ott usa o silêncio e o visual como linguagem narrativa. O livro explora obsessão, destino, azar, violência e consequências das escolhas humanas, num estilo sombrio e perturbador. Ott constrói uma atmosfera pesada através de scratchboard, com alto contraste, sombras densas e detalhes que fazem cada quadro carregar tensão e significado.

O facto de ser silent book esta obra colocou-me com duas situações:
- liberdade de interpretação;
- peso no silêncio — num tema de morte, destino e acaso, o silêncio amplifica o desconforto.

A história começa numa cela do corredor da morte. Um prisioneiro aguarda a sua execução na cadeira eléctrica; as cenas detalham a preparação, o ambiente frio e o peso da iminência da morte. Após a execução, o guarda da prisão encontra um bilhete com uma sequência de números — “73304‑23‑4153‑6‑96‑8”.

O guarda, uma pessoa solitária e metódica, rapidamente se deixa fascinar pelo número. Ao longo da narrativa, o número aparece em coincidências e situações do quotidiano: no cão Lucky, que já tinha encontrado antes; nos resultados de uma maratona; no telefone da dona do cão, Mrs Price. O número transforma-se em algo quase sobrenatural, um sinal que guia a vida do guarda.

O guarda consegue ganhar dinheiro seguindo o número. Esse sucesso inicial rapidamente se torna trágico, mostrando como a obsessão pelo número o empurra para escolhas perigosas e moralmente questionáveis.

Começa a haver uma escalada da obsessão e caos com cenas que misturam realidade e alucinação.

O Número 73304‑23‑4153‑6‑96‑8 é uma obra que usa imagens para explorar obsessão, destino e consequência. Thomas Ott mostra como algo aparentemente banal — um bilhete com números — pode dominar a vida de alguém, levando à destruição e repetição cíclica do destino. É uma leitura perturbadora, intensa e visualmente fascinante.

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

73304-23-4153-6-96-8, scrawled on a piece of paper by an inmate sentenced to death. The guard picks up this scrap of paper and finds out why it was written. Worth a read (or a glance? given that it is a wordless graphic novel).

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wordless graphic novel, scratchboard pen and ink, a kind of roller coaster of a book. If you have seen Lost, it resonates with that TV series' concern with numbers and their potential meaning and with people's obsession with their possible prophetic meanings. Kafka is more central to understanding this tale than Lost, though, which has those time travel, different dimensions, Wrinkle in Time things going for it, and all those pretty (and sometimes creepy) people. This is darker, possibly, with more fearful and horror content, and far simpler. Wonderful art, and successfully creepy.

[☾❀Apple✩ Blossom⋆｡˚ · Rating 3 out of 5]

A silent horror, a graphic novel about numbers, darkness and obsession.



The author uses his signature black and white scratched style, creating an unsettling atmosphere where light is defined with its negative, as a temporary absence of darkness. Without words, the story goes on entirely in the mind of the characters, in which we find ourselves trapped, victims of their same horrors. The dialogues are built with the character's eyes, the plot with their most hidden thoughts, and the inevitable end without escape.



If you are new to Thomass Ott, I don't recommend starting with this volume, I would suggest the short story collections, which I also found more interesting. The only flaw I can find in his graphic novels (and also with this one) is a certain predictability. It does not ruin the enjoyment of the story, but it feel a little anticlimactic. The build-up of the mystery in the first part points to something even more disturbing, and often the ending is a little less then expected. Still, one of my favourite graphic novelist. Very interesting volume!

[Paula Fialho Silva · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorei a arte e adorei a história!
Não há diálogos mas isso não impede que a história seja compreendida.
É uma história noir, mesmo ao meu gosto.

[Traveller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Argh. GR Swallowed my review, GRRR! Let's try again, though I've forgotten now what I'd said.

I gave this a 5 for my personal enjoyment of it. I loved the graphic style reminiscent of Van Gogh's strokes, and the wordless storytelling. (Yes, in this case a picture IS worth a thousand words.)

I loved the creeping feeling of foreboding, and how the almost-but-not quite predictable story unfolded just slightly off of what I expected with every turn.

[Forrest · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of Ott's better books (though not his best). Another wordless foray into the realms of the horrific. This work explores . . . well, The Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8. Who knows what mystic significance this number has to the author? It's probably some kind of inside joke. But it's no joke to the victims main characters. This is an exploration of luck, good and bad. This song kept flowing through my head as I read. Sometimes, I'm really glad I don't gamble. You don't always win with Ott's books, but this one is a sure bet.

[Eshaan Kabir · Rating 5 out of 5]

ফ্যান্টাগ্রাফিকস এর কয়েকটা সাইলেন্ট গ্রাফিক নভেল ডাউনলোড করেছিলাম। গতকাল একটা পড়েছিলাম বাট তেমন ভাল লাগে নাই তবে এখন যেটা পড়লাম, এক কথায় দুর্দান্ত। পুরাই টুইস্টেড সাইকো থ্রিলার। কাহিনী শুরু হয় এক টুকরো কাগজে লেখা অদ্ভুত এবং রহস্য জনক এক নম্বর দিয়ে যা এক মৃত্যুদন্ড প্রাপ্ত আসামীর হাত থেকে প্রিজন গার্ডের হাতে এসে পড়ে যা ঐ প্রিজন গার্ডের একাকী জীবনকে রাতারাতি বদলে দেয়। অদ্ভুত নম্বর লেখা ঐ এক টুকরো কাগজটিকে ঘিরে ঘটতে থাকে অদ্ভুত সব ঘটনা। যার সমাপ্তি ঘটে দারুন একটি টুইস্ট এর মাধ্যমে।

পড়া না থাকলে ১০-১৫ মিনিট সময় নিয়ে পড়ে ফেলতে পারেন। হতাশ হবেন না নিশ্চিত।

[Mewa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zero słów, a tak wiele uczuć. Chylę czoła.

[Silvéria · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5*
A arte é fantástica, ainda não me tinha deparado com nada desta técnica.
Mas a história (algo psicadélica!) não é o meu género, embora adore o facto de não ter qualquer diálogo e fazer-se entender assim mesmo!

[Drew Canole · Rating 3 out of 5]

This kind of story has been done so many times before. Man finds a series of numbers written down on a slip of paper, and then everything in his life seems to correlate with those numbers. For example, the final number is 8 and he finds the slip of paper at 8 o'clock.

The book sort of hints at the possibility that the protagonist is being paranoid, and therefore projecting the numbers from the slip of paper onto reality. Like, I could find something surrounding me right now that correlates with the number 8 - but, because I'm sane, I wouldn't attribute that to any crazy divine intervention/curse or what have you.

The art is very nice and there's a few pages that are interesting, but for the most part the story seems predictable and unoriginal.

[Ema · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilhante no tema, forma e desfecho. Penso que é das histórias em que o ponto de partida óptimo é aquele em que se sabe muito pouco. Há um número e um polícia que com ele se cruza. A partir daí, a experiência de "leitura" pode variar consoante os gostos, mas sendo uma história obscura, noir, horror (por aí) é das minhas favoritas. A própria narrativa, que é linear mesmo não o sendo, é de um dos meus estilos preferidos.

[Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely my favourite of his work. A intriguingly clever story with numbers. It is enjoyable being able to read a graphical story and become immersed in the story with such small in time investment.

[Xandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

For a story written in 2008, it's pretty unoriginal. It also takes about 2 minutes to read, unlike better wordless graphic novels like The Arrival.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

THE NUMBER kommt ohne Worte aus, auch ohne Farbe, und erzählt im Prinzip eine einfache, linear erzählte Geschichte:
Es ist die Geschichte des Henkers, der den als Doppelmörder verurteilten Joe Perez auf dem elektrischen Stuhl hinrichtet. Nach dessen Exekution findet der Henker einen Zettel mit der titelgebenden Ziffernfolge und stellt fest, dass die Zahlen ihm Glück bringen. Leider aber nur im ersten Durchgang, danach ändert sich alles...
Man mag hier viel Zahlenmystik entdecken (tatsächlich habe ich beim Lesen immer wieder alle möglichen Gegenstände auf den Bildern gezählt), tiefsinnige Überlegungen anstellen über die Berechtigung der Todesstrafe und über ausgleichende Gerechtigkeit, Schicksal etc., allerdings hat mich die Geschichte auch beim zweiten Lesedurchgang vor allem eines: deprimiert!
Ich mag düstere Geschichten und finde die Idee gar nicht schlecht, aber die "Grundhärte" von Artwork und Story sind wirklich sehr starker Tobak. Hinterher habe ich mich gefühlt, als hätte mir jemand eine wirklich, wirklich schlechte Nachricht überbracht.

(Und wenn ich eine kleinkarierte Randbemerkung anbringen darf: Ott muss die Geschichte wegen der Hinrichtung mittels elektrischen Stuhls in Amerika ansiedeln. Allerdings schreibt er die Ziffern 1 und 7 auf europäische Art, so hätte der Zettel in den USofA sicherlich nicht ausgesehen)

[Orbi Alter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Evo pokusaj dva. Odmah sam napisala komentar, ali sam nekako ostala bez teksta i sad mi tek rijeci dolaze malo.

Ovo je neobicno. Ima tako tih nekih djela koja su graficki wow - pomaknuti su, probijaju granicu stvarnosti, zid izmedju autora i konzumenta? (Ovdje ne kazem citatelj jer je graficka novela, ali bez teksta). Vise mi djeluje kao film na papiru. Nesto u stilu Izuma Hugoa Cabreta - samo sto su ilustracije ondje onako sanjive ili barem idu u tom smjeru, a ovdje su dosta darkish. Sve u svemu, crtez je mocan i doista je toliko dominantan da mu tekst ni ne treba. Slicno mi se desilo s Kucom listova koja je meni osobno najdraza jer me promijenila - jer nije to knjiga nego je projekt. I iako je izmedju zanrova, psiholoski je dosta mocna. No dobro, ovo nije (jos) komentar na Danielovskog. Podsjetio me i na film Pi i na Beskrajni dan. Nisam sigurna jesam li bila u ludilu nekog tko je u teskim kompulzijama pa je tesko razluciti jel izludjeni mozak ili osoba ima bozanske karakteristike ili je cijela radnja nesto tipa petlje iz Zone sumraka.

Zapravo me dosta zbunjuju takve stvari, jer mi se u zadnje vrijeme dogadja da mi u ruke dolaze djela koja su kreativno inovativna, ali to ide u smjeru graficke ili tehnicke izvedbe - a sam medij (knjiga, strip, film) prestaje biti knjiga, strip film i postaje bas projekt koja me angazira na vise nacina jer da bih nesto citala moram okretati sebe i knjigu, izvrtati, citati unatrag, citati napreskokce, vracati se ili pak tekst grafickim oblikovanjem oponasa radnju ili osjecaj ili kao u ovom slucaju upadnem u metafiziku brojeva, zapravo petlju - zbuni me to jer je to neosporno snazna izvedba i trazi od tebe malo vise angaziranosti premda prica kao prica ne nadilazi klasicnu naraciju iako bi se mozda bas to ocekivalo s obzirom na pristup izvedbi.

Svidjelo mi se iako ne mogu reci da je moj dojam nabijen pozitivnim ili negativnim emocijama kao sto obicno nesto vas potakne da se nekako osjecate. Izvedba je uzbudljiva, ali prica me nije emocionalno dotaknula. No ipak me dosta angazirala. Slicno sam se osjecala i nakon Odabranih djela T. S. Spiveta. Knjiga stvarno lijepo izgleda i od vas napravi da udjete u jedan genijalan um koji racuna apsolutno sve i na marginama crta grafove svega i koliko je on u tom nekom hiper raspolozenju da mu je mozak opterecen podrazajima, toliko ni vi ne mozete citati radnju jer je radnja u marginama, ispod i iznad ulomaka, u naslovu i sa strane i ima ih bezbroj. Sad mi misao skace na ovo djelce pa cu rec da je zgodan tripic ovaj stripic hahahah

Preporucam. Prolista se stvarno relativno brzo, pa mi se javite sa dojmom. Ako ni zbog cega drugog, onda zbog neobicnosti, a i zato da skuzite zasto sam tako nekoncizna i all over the place u ovoj hrpi vjerojatno nerazumljivih rijeci 🤣

[Nazım · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yine, yeniden bir Thomas Ott klasiği. Klasikleşmiş döngüsel anlatısının farklı bir örneğini görüyoruz bu kitapta da. Her Thomas Ott öyküsünü bitirdiğimde istiyorum ki elime bir kamera alayım ve tüm bu hikayeler birer kısa filme dönüşsün. Kelimeleri hiç kullanmadan, yalnızca kazıma çizgileri kullanarak hikayeyi anlatabilme gücü gerçekten hayranlık verici.

Kitapta Thomas Ott hikaye üslubuna alışanlar için şaşırtıcı bir son yok. Hatta bi noktada hikayenin varacağı sonu idrak edebiliyorsunuz. Adından da anlaşılacağı üzere numaralar üzerine mistik bir anlatı.

Flaneur tarafından 2013’te Türkçe baskısı limitli olarak yapıldı. Şu anda bulması epeyce zor. Fiyatı çeyrek altınla yarışacak düzeyde ilerliyor her geçen yıl.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thomas Ott's wordless graphic novel is a 'strange tale' about an executioner who finds a slip of paper with a long number written on it next to the electric chair he's just used to judicially murder a prisoner. The numbers on the slip start to have a strange significance, and the story proceeds to its predictable, but nonetheless well-told, end.
I've not come across Ott before, and found his art style well suited to his material.

[Raina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Creeptastic, dark, and fast. An executioner finds a slip of paper on the ground after an execution, and soon finds the numbers on the slip popping up in strange ways all over his life. At first he thinks this is lucky, soon, however, he's not so sure.

Wordless, striking, check out the author's very creepy website. Obvious comparisons to the Lost plotline. Though I always wished that the Lost thing was explained more, and this follows the concept through much better, with a nice sense of full circle.

[Nelson Zagalo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adorei a ilustração, com um toque noir, jogando pelo lado sombrio que coaduna muito bem com as motivações dos personagens, contribuindo para criar uma atmosfera Twilight Zone. Por outro lado a história, de tão cliché não traz nada de novo, ficando-se apenas pela gratificação gráfica.

3.5/5.0

[Marc Bosch · Rating 5 out of 5]

La historia es hipnótica y absorbente, como si Thomas Ott nos arrastrara junto al personaje a través de la famosa cinta de moebius, sin alcanzar nunca el final y sin saber si estamos arriba o abajo, si es de día o de noche, si nos cruzamos con la suerte o con el diablo. Y sin palabras!

[Audrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite of his--by far!

[Goran Gluščić · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maratonski sam pročitao nekoliko radova ovog autora, ali komentirat ću samo ovaj jer bi ionako sve komentirao na sličan način.

Čitao sam Enkija Bilala prije par godina, autora stripova koji su mi bili fantastični na svim razinama osim na onoj najglavnijoj - priči. Enki svojim vrhunskim crtežima tvori fantastičnu atmosferu, sve je to prekrasno i svaki kadar htio bih pretvoriti u poster, uokviriti ga i staviti na zid. Enki je baš - toliko - dobar. Ali ni jedan njegov strip nije imao ni najmanjeg smisla što se radnje i likova tiče. Bilo je tu pretencioznih artsy fartsy trenutaka koji su bili donekle zanimljivi, ali generalno, sve je to bilo nepovezano i beznačajno. To nije ni čudno uzevši u obzir da je Enki i sam rekao da prvo crta i tek onda po tome radi priču.

Previše pričam o Enkiju, pogotovo kad se uzme u obzir to da on i Ott nemaju puno toga zajedničko. Odnosno, imaju jednu važnu stavku - oboje crtaju i pišu svoje stripove.

Čakšto, obojica stvarno vrhunski crtaju svoje stripove. I isto tako, obojica ih nemaju pojma pisati.

Enki je barem toliko surealan i neshvatljiv da se može pomisliti kako se u njegovoj priči krije nešto veće (ne krije se), ali Ott je tako jednostavan da se već prije pročitane polovice može znati što će se dogoditi (jedino njegov 'Greetings from Hellvile', zbirka kratkih stripova, je uspio pobjediti u borbi protiv klišeja).

Ott ne daje odgovore, Ott ne daje zanimljive i neočekivane preokrete... Ott samo crta toliko dobro da ćete kvalitetnu atmosferu zamijeniti za dobru priču.

Zaključak: Kvalitetni crtači trebaju kvalitetne pisce. To je razlog zašto je 'From Hell' jedan od najboljih stripova svih vremena.

[Kayla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thomas Ott's artwork always leaves me speechless. The story line was interesting. Although I assumed the character would die in the end, I was unsure of his pathway to death.

In the beginning a person who committed double homicide was sent to the electric chair. The person held the number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8 in his hand while waiting for death. When the prisoner was killed, a man picked up the number and walked home. He saw the numbers everywhere, haunting him like a nightmare but seeming to be a gift from heaven. The man met a dog named Lucky which led him to an attractive woman's apartment. The man went to the casino to win big since the numbers seem to follow him everywhere. He gets lucky and wins big.... but does he really win?

The story ends where it begins, but with a different man. The story reminds me of The Monkey's Paw, where something that seems like a blessing can be actually the devil in disguise.

[Sooraya Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinated with the art. white lines over mostly black canvas.
Seems like this kind of story has already been done before.

[Rockito · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genial historia de terror muda, enmarcada en el "realismo mágico", sobre el descenso a la locura de un hombre cuya vida parece dictada por un extraño número que cae en sus manos.

[Pedro Alhinho · Rating 5 out of 5]

Narrativa sem legendas mas impressiva contando um capitulo de uma história interminável. Negro total.