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Goliath
96 pages
A bleakly funny and quietly tragic reimagining of a mythic battle, told from the perspective of a reluctant giant who would rather be doing paperwork.
What it feels like
Reading this graphic novel feels like stepping into a quiet, melancholic waiting room right before a mythic event. The pace is leisurely and reflective, lingering on the mundane isolation of a reluctant soldier who would much rather be doing administrative work than fighting. It wraps the reader in an atmosphere that is simultaneously tragic and bleakly funny, finding sensitive wit in the absurdity of bureaucracy pervading ancient legends. The visual storytelling drives the mood, contrasting minimalist, near-geometric character designs with densely crosshatched, Gorey-esque backgrounds that emphasize the vast, quiet beauty of the surroundings. It is a perfect read for those who delight in wry, subversive takes on traditional narratives, offering a deeply humanizing and gentle texture to a famously violent myth.
- Mood
- quiet
- reflective
- melancholic
- absurdist
- Tone
- wry
- bleakly funny
- sensitive
- tragicomic
- Pace
- leisurely
- Themes
- reluctant duty · absurdity of bureaucracy · subverted mythology · quiet isolation
- The writing
- Told through sensitive wit and a bold drawing style that contrasts minimalist, geometric figures with densely crosshatched, Gorey-esque details.
- The arc
- A journey from quiet, mundane reluctance and gentle banter to an inevitably tragic conclusion.
- Who it's for
- Readers who appreciate bleakly funny, quiet subversions of classic myths and minimalist graphic storytelling.
Content notes
- combat
- tragic death
About the book
This story reworks the David-and-Goliath myth. Goliath of Gath isn't much of a fighter. Given half a choice, he would pick administrative work over patrolling in a heartbeat, to say nothing of his distaste for engaging in combat. Nonetheless, at the behest of the king, he finds himself issuing a twice daily challenge to the Israelites: "Choose a man. Let him come to me that we may fight. If he be able to kill me then we shall be your servants. But if I kill him, then you shall be our servants." Day after day he reluctantly repeats his speech, and the isolation of this duty gives him the chance to banter with his shield-bearer and reflect on the beauty of his surroundings. This is the story of David and Goliath as seen from Goliath's side of the Valley of Elah. Quiet moments in Goliath's life as a soldier are accentuated by the author's drawing style, which contrasts minimalist scenery and near-geometric humans with densely crosshatched detail reminiscent of Edward Gorey. Goliath's battle is simultaneously tragic and bleakly funny, as bureaucracy pervades even this most mythic of figures. Goliath displays a sensitive wit, a bold line, and a traditional narrative reworked, remade, and revolutionized.
Description from Open Library.
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