Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

(NBM)
™ and © NBM

But in this retelling of Robert Louis Stevenson’s story (scripted by Jerry Kramsky and illustrated by Lorenzo Mattoti), the reader soon realizes that there is much more to this tale than meets the eye.

Pulsing with a rainbow of pastel hues that follow the protagonist’s frenetic mood swings, the narrative follows a respected doctor’s descent into madness. Cast in what passes as Wiemar Germany, Jekyll takes a walk on the wild side by using himself as a guinea pig. The experiment goes awry, as unfettered desire combined with unacceptable behavior lead to Hyde, one of the earliest and most infamous serial killers.

Compared to traditional interpretations that focus on the Janus-faced aspects of human nature (id vs. ego, reason vs. emotion, man vs. animal), this adaptation aims for an arty edge. With a modernist’s eye for exaggerated faces, extreme angles, and expressive atmosphere, Mattoti depicts a stark raving lunatic who is disturbing, not simply because his deeds are reprehensible, but because his thoughts could arise from the minds of any of us.

— Oliver Chin

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