El Eternauta
Encyclopedia
El Eternauta is a science fiction
comic created by Argentine
comic strip writer Héctor Germán Oesterheld
with artwork by Francisco Solano López. It was first published in Hora Cero Semanal from 1957 to 1959.
Oesterheld returned to El Eternauta with a remake and a sequel, published in 1969 and 1975 respectively. Both featured a more political script in tune with Oesterheld joining the Montoneros
leftist guerilla. After his kidnapping and disappearance, El Eternauta would continue in different versions by a plethora of writers and artists.
In 1969, Oesterheld rewrote El Eternauta, with changes to the story, more political references and more violent. It became an open critique of dictatorial regimes and United States' imperialism. This version featured artwork by Alberto Breccia
who drew the story in an experimental and unique style diverging from the original expression. It was first published on May 29, 1969 in the weekly Gente. The following years the series was also published in several European magazines such as Linus
, El Globo, Alter Alter, Il Mago, Charlie Mensuel
and Metal Hurlant
.
In December 1975, Eternauta II began publication for Ediciones Record in Skorpio, Oesterheld resumed the story, again with artwork by Solano López. Prompted by the disturbing political events
during the period, the script became openly critical of the current dictatorship and Oesterheld himself became a narrating
character within the story. Having joined the banned organization Montoneros
, Oesterheld wrote the chapters from hidden locations until his abduction in 1977.
The saga was since continued after Oesterheld's death. A third part, El Eternauta, Tercera Parte, published in 1983 was met with moderate success, and was critiziced for being just another sci-fi comic instead of a real continuation of the series. Later chapters El mundo arrepentido and El Eternauta, El regreso feature artwork by Solano López.
fall covers Buenos Aires
and the surrounding metropolitan area
, wiping out most life in a few hours. Juan Salvo, along with a couple of friends (Favalli, Lucas and Polski who were playing truco
at his house), his wife and his daughter remain safe from the lethal snowflakes thanks to the protection of Juan Salvo's home and the cleverness of Favalli. They soon get organized in order to survive the ordeal, making special suits to leave the house protected from the snow and gather supplies. During these trips they find Pablo, a twelve year-old boy, and realize that other, crazed or needy survivors have become as much of a threat as the deadly snow.
A few days into the snowfall they find out the true nature of the strange phenomenon
: an extraterrestrial invasion
to Earth
, and get enlisted into an improvised resistance army
to fight the invaders back. During this time, Salvo meets and befriends a few of his fellow enlisted soldiers, namely Franco, a lathe operator, and a journalist named Mosca. As the resistance marches towards the country's capital city they fight on different occasions against giant insects (cascarudos, "beetles"), a humanoid
species
with many more fingers than humans, especially on their right hands (Manos, "Hands"), giant elephantine beasts capable of knocking buildings down ("Gurbos"), and even fellow men who were captured (hombres-robot, "robot-men"). As it turns out, all of these beings are just pawns, remotely controlled through implant
s or fear devices by the real invaders, los Ellos ("Them"), eldritch creatures who remain hidden, controlling everything from the distance.
After managing a few victories, the resistance is finally ambushed and reduced to just a few men, whereupon Juan Salvo decides to return to his wife and daughter intent on going into hiding. However, a passing ICBM (which doesn't detonate much to their surprise) convinces Favalli and Franco that a bigger, even global, war is starting and that they can't return empty-handed now, Salvo reluctantly agrees to join them. After the trio manages to land a heavy blow to the aliens' HQ in Buenos Aires, taking down the "anti-nukes field", they flee and Buenos Aires is later leveled by a nuclear warhead.
Eventually, the aliens lure the pockets of survivors throughout the country to "snow-free zones" as part of an elaborate ruse. Salvo's group is forced to split, and he tries to escape with his wife and daughter using one of the alien spaceships
, but he accidentally triggers a time traveling apparatus
in the craft. As a result, the three are lost in separate time dimensions known as "continuums". Juan Salvo begins to travel through time seeking for them, eventually getting the name of Eternauta, a voyager of eternity.
who triumphs without any help from others.
The most frequent commentary refers to the invaders and their methods as veiled references to the various military-led coup d’états which occurred at the time in the country. In this regard, the three versions written by Oesterheld (the first part, its remake and the second part) coincided with the de facto
governments of Pedro Eugenio Aramburu
, Juan Carlos Onganía
and the Proceso de Reorganización Nacional respectively.
Is has also been highlighted that, except for the "Ellos", none of the invaders are truly evil, they are but noble beings forced to comply the orders of others. This aspect has been cited as a critique of war
in conceptual form or an allegory of class struggle
.
" is not used.
had been tossed around for years, with several interested directors, such as Adolfo Aristarain
, Fernando Solanas
or Gustavo Mosquera, but due to excessive production costs the project never materialized.
Nowadays, an Italian production company is working, under supervision by Elsa Oesterheld, on a movie adaptation of the original comic. The story would take place in Buenos Aires and the Italian producers are in discussion with the INCAA
over the possibility of co-producing the film.
Lucrecia Martel
was slated to direct the film, having stated that production was already past the "embryonic stages", but she was later removed from the project due to conceptual differences with the producers.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
comic created by Argentine
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
comic strip writer Héctor Germán Oesterheld
Héctor Germán Oesterheld
Héctor Germán Oesterheld , also known as his common abbreviation HGO, was an Argentine journalist and writer of graphic novels and comics who has come to be celebrated as a master in his field....
with artwork by Francisco Solano López. It was first published in Hora Cero Semanal from 1957 to 1959.
Oesterheld returned to El Eternauta with a remake and a sequel, published in 1969 and 1975 respectively. Both featured a more political script in tune with Oesterheld joining the Montoneros
Montoneros
Montoneros was an Argentine Peronist urban guerrilla group, active during the 1960s and 1970s. The name is an allusion to 19th century Argentinian history. After Juan Perón's return from 18 years of exile and the 1973 Ezeiza massacre, which marked the definitive split between left and right-wing...
leftist guerilla. After his kidnapping and disappearance, El Eternauta would continue in different versions by a plethora of writers and artists.
Publication history
The Eternauta first appeared in Hora Cero Suplemento Semanal on September 4, 1957. Quickly becoming a success, the serial publication ran until 1959 and was reissued in 1961 in a dedicated magazine, Eternauta, published by Editorial Emilio Ramírez.In 1969, Oesterheld rewrote El Eternauta, with changes to the story, more political references and more violent. It became an open critique of dictatorial regimes and United States' imperialism. This version featured artwork by Alberto Breccia
Alberto Breccia
Alberto Breccia was an Uruguay-born Argentine comics artist and writer.-Biography:Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Breccia moved with his parents to Buenos Aires, Argentina when he was three years old...
who drew the story in an experimental and unique style diverging from the original expression. It was first published on May 29, 1969 in the weekly Gente. The following years the series was also published in several European magazines such as Linus
Linus (magazine)
Linus is an Italian comics magazine. The first number was published in April 1965 by Milano Libri, a subsidiary of Rizzoli. It is currently published by Baldini & Castoldi in monthly issues....
, El Globo, Alter Alter, Il Mago, Charlie Mensuel
Charlie Mensuel
Charlie Mensuel was a French monthly comics magazine. Its publication began in February 1969, and ceased in February 1986.-History:...
and Metal Hurlant
Métal Hurlant
Métal Hurlant is a French comics anthology of science fiction and horror comics stories, created in December 1974 by comics artists Jean Giraud and Philippe Druillet together with journalist-writer Jean-Pierre Dionnet and financial director Bernard Farkas.The four were collectively known as "Les...
.
In December 1975, Eternauta II began publication for Ediciones Record in Skorpio, Oesterheld resumed the story, again with artwork by Solano López. Prompted by the disturbing political events
Dirty War
The Dirty War was a period of state-sponsored violence in Argentina from 1976 until 1983. Victims of the violence included several thousand left-wing activists, including trade unionists, students, journalists, Marxists, Peronist guerrillas and alleged sympathizers, either proved or suspected...
during the period, the script became openly critical of the current dictatorship and Oesterheld himself became a narrating
Narrator
A narrator is, within any story , the fictional or non-fictional, personal or impersonal entity who tells the story to the audience. When the narrator is also a character within the story, he or she is sometimes known as the viewpoint character. The narrator is one of three entities responsible for...
character within the story. Having joined the banned organization Montoneros
Montoneros
Montoneros was an Argentine Peronist urban guerrilla group, active during the 1960s and 1970s. The name is an allusion to 19th century Argentinian history. After Juan Perón's return from 18 years of exile and the 1973 Ezeiza massacre, which marked the definitive split between left and right-wing...
, Oesterheld wrote the chapters from hidden locations until his abduction in 1977.
The saga was since continued after Oesterheld's death. A third part, El Eternauta, Tercera Parte, published in 1983 was met with moderate success, and was critiziced for being just another sci-fi comic instead of a real continuation of the series. Later chapters El mundo arrepentido and El Eternauta, El regreso feature artwork by Solano López.
By Oesterheld
- El Eternauta (1957) by H.G. OesterheldHéctor Germán OesterheldHéctor Germán Oesterheld , also known as his common abbreviation HGO, was an Argentine journalist and writer of graphic novels and comics who has come to be celebrated as a master in his field....
(script) and F. Solano López (art) - El Eternauta, segunda parte (1976) by H. G. Oesterheld (script) and F. Solano López (art)
- El Eternauta, remake (1969) by H. G. Oesterheld (script) and A. BrecciaAlberto BrecciaAlberto Breccia was an Uruguay-born Argentine comics artist and writer.-Biography:Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Breccia moved with his parents to Buenos Aires, Argentina when he was three years old...
(art)
By others
- El Eternauta, tercera parte (1983) by Alberto OngaroAlberto Ongaro-Biography:Born in Venice, he lived for a long time in South America and England, before returning to his birth city in 1979.A friend and collaborator of Hugo Pratt, he also worked for Il Corriere dei Piccoli...
(script), Mario Morhain and Oswal (art) - Eternauta, el mundo arrepentido (1997–1998) by Pablo Maiztegui (script) and Solano López (art)
- El Eternauta, el odio cosmico (1999) by Pablo Muñoz, Ricardo BarreiroRicardo BarreiroRicardo Barreiro was an Argentine comic book writer.-Biography:Barreiro was born in the barrio of Palermo in Buenos Aires. At a very early age he published articles and short stories on the underground magazine Sancho. His first comic book as writer was SlotBar, with art by Francisco Solano Lopez...
(script), Walther Taborda and Gabriel Rearte (art) - El Eternauta, el Regreso (2003–2006) Pablo Maiztegui (script) and F. Solano López (art)
- El Eternauta, 50 aniversario (2007)
- El Eternauta, Odio Cósmico Libro (2008)
Plot
The story begins as a deadly snowSnow
Snow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...
fall covers Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
and the surrounding metropolitan area
Greater Buenos Aires
Greater Buenos Aires is the generic denomination to refer to the megalopolis comprising the autonomous city of Buenos Aires and the conurbation around it, over the province of Buenos Aires—namely the adjacent 24 partidos or municipalities—which nonetheless do not constitute a single administrative...
, wiping out most life in a few hours. Juan Salvo, along with a couple of friends (Favalli, Lucas and Polski who were playing truco
Truco
Truco is a variant of Truc and a popular trick-taking card game originary from Valencia and Balearic Islands and played in Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Italy , Uruguay, southern Chile and Venezuela...
at his house), his wife and his daughter remain safe from the lethal snowflakes thanks to the protection of Juan Salvo's home and the cleverness of Favalli. They soon get organized in order to survive the ordeal, making special suits to leave the house protected from the snow and gather supplies. During these trips they find Pablo, a twelve year-old boy, and realize that other, crazed or needy survivors have become as much of a threat as the deadly snow.
Phenomenon
A phenomenon , plural phenomena, is any observable occurrence. Phenomena are often, but not always, understood as 'appearances' or 'experiences'...
: an extraterrestrial invasion
Alien invasion
The alien invasion is a common theme in science fiction stories and film, in which extraterrestrial life invades Earth either to exterminate and supplant human life, enslave it under a colonial system, harvest humans for food, steal the planet's resources, or destroy the planet altogether.The...
to Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, and get enlisted into an improvised resistance army
Resistance movement
A resistance movement is a group or collection of individual groups, dedicated to opposing an invader in an occupied country or the government of a sovereign state. It may seek to achieve its objects through either the use of nonviolent resistance or the use of armed force...
to fight the invaders back. During this time, Salvo meets and befriends a few of his fellow enlisted soldiers, namely Franco, a lathe operator, and a journalist named Mosca. As the resistance marches towards the country's capital city they fight on different occasions against giant insects (cascarudos, "beetles"), a humanoid
Humanoid
A humanoid is something that has an appearance resembling a human being. The term first appeared in 1912 to refer to fossils which were morphologically similar to, but not identical with, those of the human skeleton. Although this usage was common in the sciences for much of the 20th century, it...
species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
with many more fingers than humans, especially on their right hands (Manos, "Hands"), giant elephantine beasts capable of knocking buildings down ("Gurbos"), and even fellow men who were captured (hombres-robot, "robot-men"). As it turns out, all of these beings are just pawns, remotely controlled through implant
Implant
Implant can refer to:*Implant , or specifically:**Brain implant**Breast implant**Buttock implant**Cochlear implant**Contraceptive implant**Dental implant**Mini dental implant**Extraocular implant**Fetal tissue implant...
s or fear devices by the real invaders, los Ellos ("Them"), eldritch creatures who remain hidden, controlling everything from the distance.
After managing a few victories, the resistance is finally ambushed and reduced to just a few men, whereupon Juan Salvo decides to return to his wife and daughter intent on going into hiding. However, a passing ICBM (which doesn't detonate much to their surprise) convinces Favalli and Franco that a bigger, even global, war is starting and that they can't return empty-handed now, Salvo reluctantly agrees to join them. After the trio manages to land a heavy blow to the aliens' HQ in Buenos Aires, taking down the "anti-nukes field", they flee and Buenos Aires is later leveled by a nuclear warhead.
Eventually, the aliens lure the pockets of survivors throughout the country to "snow-free zones" as part of an elaborate ruse. Salvo's group is forced to split, and he tries to escape with his wife and daughter using one of the alien spaceships
Spacecraft
A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....
, but he accidentally triggers a time traveling apparatus
Time travel
Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
in the craft. As a result, the three are lost in separate time dimensions known as "continuums". Juan Salvo begins to travel through time seeking for them, eventually getting the name of Eternauta, a voyager of eternity.
Trivia
- The Italian comics magazine L'Eternauta, started in 1982, took its name after the character and initially featured Ongaro's run on the series.
- The Italian pop-rock band Eternauti took its name from this science fiction comic.
Analysis
The most remarked characteristic by different comic book artists and members of the specialized press is the amplitude of subtle interpretations, veiled references and double readings (many being involuntary by the author) which can be made into the comic. Oesterheld himself, for instance, indicates that the protagonism of the work always befalls a group of people - sometimes bigger, sometimes smaller - something he terms a "group hero" or "hero-in-group" and which he considers more valuable than the traditional individual heroHero
A hero , in Greek mythology and folklore, was originally a demigod, their cult being one of the most distinctive features of ancient Greek religion...
who triumphs without any help from others.
The most frequent commentary refers to the invaders and their methods as veiled references to the various military-led coup d’états which occurred at the time in the country. In this regard, the three versions written by Oesterheld (the first part, its remake and the second part) coincided with the de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
governments of Pedro Eugenio Aramburu
Pedro Eugenio Aramburu
Pedro Eugenio Aramburu Silveti was an Argentine Army General. Born in Río Cuarto, Córdoba on May 21, 1903. He was a major figure behind the military coup against Juan Perón in 1955. He became de facto president of Argentina from November 13, 1955 to May 1, 1958...
, Juan Carlos Onganía
Juan Carlos Onganía
Juan Carlos Onganía Carballo was de facto president of Argentina from 29 June 1966 to 8 June 1970. He rose to power as military dictator after toppling, in a coup d’état self-named Revolución Argentina , the democratically elected president Arturo Illia .-Economic and social...
and the Proceso de Reorganización Nacional respectively.
Is has also been highlighted that, except for the "Ellos", none of the invaders are truly evil, they are but noble beings forced to comply the orders of others. This aspect has been cited as a critique of war
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
in conceptual form or an allegory of class struggle
Class struggle
Class struggle is the active expression of a class conflict looked at from any kind of socialist perspective. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels wrote "The [written] history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggle"....
.
Cultural references
One the most notable characteristics of the comic book, is an accentuated use of local imagery, specifically to the city of Buenos Aires during the fifties. In spite of this, Buenos Aires characteristic form of "voseoVoseo
Voseo is the use of the second person singular pronoun vos in many dialects of Spanish. In dialects that have it, it is used either instead of tú, or alongside it....
" is not used.
- TrucoTrucoTruco is a variant of Truc and a popular trick-taking card game originary from Valencia and Balearic Islands and played in Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Italy , Uruguay, southern Chile and Venezuela...
is a trick-taking card gameCard gameA card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games...
, popularly played in the Río de la PlataRío de la PlataThe Río de la Plata —sometimes rendered River Plate in British English and the Commonwealth, and occasionally rendered [La] Plata River in other English-speaking countries—is the river and estuary formed by the confluence of the Uruguay River and the Paraná River on the border between Argentina and...
basin. It is used at the beginning of the story to represent the normal home peace suddenly broken by the invasion, and at the end, bestowing the story a cyclic nature. - The short wave really permitted to receive transmissions from other countries. It should be noted that, during its original run, television was still not common in Argentina.
- Regarding the use of snowSnowSnow is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by...
as a science fiction weapon: in Buenos Aires snowing does not regularly happen. The last snowfall had occurred in 1918, and the subsequent one occurred 89 years later. - The different ads drawn reference real brands or organizations - such as YPF or CinzanoCinzanoCinzano is an Italian brand of vermouth, a brand owned since 1999 by Gruppo Campari. It comes in four versions:*Cinzano Rosso, which is amber-coloured;*Cinzano Bianco, which is white and drier than Rosso, yet still considered a sweet vermouth;...
. Graffiti are also shown, like "Vote for Frondizi", referencing then-elected president Arturo FrondiziArturo FrondiziArturo Frondizi Ercoli was the President of Argentina between May 1, 1958, and March 29, 1962, for the Intransigent Radical Civic Union.-Early life:Frondizi was born in Paso de los Libres, Corrientes Province...
. - Every reference to streets or places are veridic (except for those specifically created for the story).
- The first battle takes place at Avenida General PazAvenida General PazAvenida General Paz is a beltway freeway surrounding the city of Buenos Aires. Roughly following the boundary between the city and Buenos Aires Province, it is one of the few motorways in Argentina that is toll-free...
, a beltway freeway surrounding the city of Buenos Aires. It is shown the same as it was during the time, having changed severely since then. - The resistance is headquartered at the Monumental StadiumEstadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio LibertiEstadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti, is a stadium in the Belgrano district of Buenos Aires, Argentina at the intersection of Figueroa Alcorta and Udaondo. It is the home venue of Club Atlético River Plate and is named after former club president Antonio Vespucio Liberti...
, of Club Atlético River PlateClub Atlético River PlateClub Atlético River Plate is an Argentine sports club based in the Nuñez neighborhood of Buenos Aires. It is best known for its professional football team, which currently competes in Nacional B, the second tier of Argentine football....
. The "CARP" acronym can be seen on several occasions. - The gazebo represented at the Barrancas de Belgrano, from which the Mano commands his forces, is a true representation of the real one present at the place, which is used for small musical events.
- Plaza Italia is a semicircular plazaPlazaPlaza is a Spanish word related to "field" which describes an open urban public space, such as a city square. All through Spanish America, the plaza mayor of each center of administration held three closely related institutions: the cathedral, the cabildo or administrative center, which might be...
, where several important streets come together. Avenida Santa Fe - a continuation of Avenida Cabildo (along which the resistance army marches towards the city centre) - borders this plaza, while "Avenida Las Heras" starts at the place (along which the resistance retreats). - On the same plaza, the homonymous subway station can be found, which is used by some characters to escape. The "Canning" station is furthermore mentioned, although it has since been renamed Scalabrini Ortiz in 1974.
- The Plaza de los Dos Congresos, where the invaders headquarters is placed, is located next to the Argentine National CongressArgentine National CongressThe Congress of the Argentine Nation is the legislative branch of the government of Argentina. Its composition is bicameral, constituted by a 72-seat Senate and a 257-seat Chamber of Deputies....
.
Film adaptation
The possibility of adapting El Eternauta to the silver screenSilver screen
A silver screen, also known as a silver lenticular screen, is a type of projection screen that was popular in the early years of the motion picture industry and passed into popular usage as a metonym for the cinema industry...
had been tossed around for years, with several interested directors, such as Adolfo Aristarain
Adolfo Aristarain
Adolfo Aristarain is an Argentine film director whom Variety has deemed a "master filmmaker."After leaving Argentina Aristarain started working as assistant director in the Arcente cinema, and then in Europe during his short exile for Mario Camus, Giorgio Stegani and Lewis Gilbert before...
, Fernando Solanas
Fernando Solanas
Fernando Ezequiel 'Pino' Solanas is an Argentine film director, screenwriter and politician....
or Gustavo Mosquera, but due to excessive production costs the project never materialized.
Nowadays, an Italian production company is working, under supervision by Elsa Oesterheld, on a movie adaptation of the original comic. The story would take place in Buenos Aires and the Italian producers are in discussion with the INCAA
INCAA
The National Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts is an Argentine government film production company in Buenos Aires. It promotes the Argentine film industry by funding qualified Argentine film production companies.-Ratings:...
over the possibility of co-producing the film.
Lucrecia Martel
Lucrecia Martel
Lucrecia Martel is a film director, screenplay writer, and producer.According to film critic Joel Poblete, who writes for Mabuse, a cinema magazine, Lucrecia Martel is one of the members of the so-called "New Argentina Cinema" which began c...
was slated to direct the film, having stated that production was already past the "embryonic stages", but she was later removed from the project due to conceptual differences with the producers.