GROTESQUE (2009)

"Three men become aware of the existence of a mysterious island that may or may not be the sum total of all the information stored in their mind. Did they decide to seek it out. or were they brought there by the mysterious 'Mr. O'Blique'? With an art style that's half European-classic and half Roger Langridge-surreal, Sergio Ponchione offers up one eye-popping moment after another as we plunge down the rabbit hole of Grotesque! "

"Another surreal masterpiece from Sergio Ponchione! A long time ago, a devious late-night pact altered the destiny of small community, its inhabitants forever cursed to live as mere clay in the hands of the capricious Mister O'Blique and the Wicked Barons. But is change finally afoot? Professor Hackensack journeys to the town in order to wrest from the Barons the secret of their power. He will be helped (or hindered) on this quest by Inspector Demifayce, Lady Puzzle, the Encephapolyp, the Taxmen and other players in the complex, not always human mosaic that forms the strange and twisted architecture of the Cryptic City."

"In the second half of the two-part 'Cryptic City' epic, Professor Hackensack continues his battle against the Wicked Barons alongside Inspector Doppiofaccio, the mysterious Lady Puzzle, and an unexpected ally from beyond the grave -- with the enigmatic Mr. O'Blique on the sidelines. This amazingly inventive work of fantasy from one Italy's hottest new talents is proving to be a sleeper hit!"

"In the concluding chapter of Sergio Ponchione's dreamworld masterpiece, the mysteriously omnipotent O'Blique and the inquisitive Professor Hackensack wrap up all the loose ends, as we see what happened to the three protagonists of the first issue, and what Cryptic City is now like after the cataclysmic events of #2-3. Oh, and we also learn the meaning of life - all in Ponchione's wildly inventive, super-detailed graphics."