Torpedo – the coolest comic book character ever
As you might have realized by now, I tend to write articles about stuff that is not that popular here in the States and the simple reason for that is that there is plenty written on all the DC and Marvel comics, with literally tomes written about the most popular of the characters, villains and epic moments in the history. However, as I had the fortune of checking out Euro comics as I was growing up and as I still do, I have a few personal favorites that I simply had to share with you. One of these is Torpedo or as it is also called torpedo 1936, a Spanish comic that has seen quite some success in its native Spain and in some other European countries but that never got the exposure it deserves here in the US, even though it is set in New York.
It is a comic about a low-to-mid level gangster in the Great Depression era and as far as the setting goes, there is nothing particularly astounding about this comic. However, once you check out a single page of this comic book, you realize that you are reading something that can never be matched. It is so raw, so gritty and so down and dirty that it is impossible to ignore the impact it makes on the readers. I still remember the first time I read it. It was in Spanish and I had my dad’s friend translate it for me, a big Spanish guy who loved translating it for me. It had naked ladies and plenty of curses and it was mesmerizing for the both of us, me a teenager and him an older guy who never really appreciated comics before.
And to this day, the character of Torpedo, or Luca Torelli as is his full name has remained the coolest comics character I have ever encountered. If you thought that Preacher was cool, if you thought that Wolverine is cool, then you are very much mistaken. I am talking about a guy who is a product of a long-time Sicilian vendetta who arranges the murder of his own father before he comes over to the States and starts his career from the bottom.
He is a suave gangster who knows the streets and who knows all the characters that he will come into contact with. He is also merciless, but in a way that you do not get in our comics, no matter how cutting-edge they are. I do not wish to share any of the details about what he does to get things done as it might actually put you off if you read about it out of context. Let’s just say that NOTHING is sacred and that everything that needs to be done in order to achieve something is going to be done.
It is an extremely mature content comic book with plenty of explicit sex scenes, tons of violence and curses that will put to test even those who do not get offended that easily. However, under all of that, it is still written and drawn with apparent love for the character that makes Luca such a memorable person. He truly is one of the greatest comic book characters of all times and I cannot stress enough how much you need to check it out.