Adrian Matejka y Yousef Daoudi They present us in the ring to attend Jack Johnson’s struggle against a racist society in a magnificent edition published by the editorial rule
It is fantastic when a comic dares to go beyond the car limits -set by the same means to tell a story from an unconventional narrative point of view that the authors have considered appropriate and reaches it successfully. This is the case of the proposal with which Editorial standard The story of a boxing pioneer and a key figure in the history of sport and civil rights move. The volume has the title of The last man standing: Jack Johnson and the struggle of the century.
Who was Jack Johnson?
If this volume can be used for something to appreciate the fantastic and bold work of its authors, it is learning some boxing history and the struggle for civil rights. Jack Johnson was born in 1878 in Galveston, Texas, and was the first Afro -American to become a world champion of the heavyweights (1908) at a time when racism was extremely strong in the United States.
Defeated in 1910 a James J. JeffriesNicknamed “The Great White Hope”, in a symbolically highly loaded reindeer combat. His victory caused racist disorders in the United States. This is the struggle mentioned in the title of this comic. In a sport dominated by White, Johnson broke racial barriers not only to win, but to do it with a safe and stimulating attitude and without apologizing for his success.
In 1913 he was sentenced under the Mann’s lawA law presumably against female traffic for immoral purposes, but used to pursue him for his relationship with a white woman. He flew from the country and lived several years in exile. In the end he returned to the United States and turned into prison, and in 1946 he died in a road accident. In 2018, it was graced posthumous by the President Donald Trump After years of requests from sport and politics.
The poet and the artist
The fact that Adrian Matejka Figure on the coverage of the volume in the “Poetry” section and not in the “script” is already a declaration of intentions. Matejka meant that Johnson not only throws blows with fists, but also with words. There is a constant use of monologues and internal reflections that make the text flow like a rhythmic narrative, almost like a verbal struggle between the boxer and its inheritance.
Matejka does not just count the facts (although it presents them well documented) but reconstructs the psychological and cultural dimension of the character, revealing the obvious tensions originating from his challenge open to the racist rules of his time.
In the graphics section the art of Yousef Daoudi It is spectacular. Has a expressive style very influenced by the classic black and white (to which it adds a tremendously explicit blood here) in which the Noir and the comic subway From the seventies they hold their hand. Its stroke sometimes seems almost unfinished or nervous, which strengthens the feeling of constant tension.
Daudi alternates between very realistic and more symbolic scenes, always using the mastery of their ability to create truly original and shocking page compositions. It is sufficient to keep an eye on the pages of this volume to marvel at the visual proposal of this artist, since this aspect is a good voice for a comic that ends up convincing in the rest of the elements that make it up.
This Escición Presented by Editorial standard It is provided in a difficult coverage format without jacket with an 18 x 24 cm Bito page. and contains the translation of the original edition of Last standing: Jack Johnson and the battle of the century. The volume contains 256 pages color. The recommended sale price is 38 € And it was on sale in March 2025.
The last man standing: Jack Johnson and the struggle of the century
A revolutionary portrait in Graphic Novel of the Jack Johnson Boxing Legend
On the morning of July 4, 1910, thousands of boxing fans hurried to enter a newly built stage, in Nevada, in order to attend an epic clash. Jack Johnson, the first world champion of the heavyweight weights, was about to fight against Jim Jeffries, the former champion of the heavyweights called to be “the great white hope”. Racial segregation was the standard in most of the United States. And the spectators could not wait for Jeffries to raise the barriers that Johnson had shot down with his fists again.
The poet Adrian Matejka and the artist Yousef Daoudi They transport us inside the ring, to closely live the dramatic action of combat and show us the life of a son of Schiavi Liberati, to see him achieving success in the world of sport and face a racist judicial system.
Authors: Adrian Matejka y Yousef Daoudi