Andrea Pazienza
Zanardi

And thank goodness we don't stop talking about dear Paz with the review of “Cannibale,” given the presence of so many other masterpieces. There’s the illuminated debut of “Pentothal,” the very famous “Pertini,” but how can we not consider the high schooler Massimo Zanardi?

He and his friends Colas and Petrilli make their first appearance in issue 5 of Frigidaire in March 1981 with “Giallo Scolastico.” On the same magazine, “Pacco,” “Notte Di Carnevale,” and “Verde Matematico” soon follow. In 1983, Paz's last work for Frigidaire, “Zanardi l’Inestistente,” arrives, while the following year Zanardi appears again with “Lupi” in the magazine “Corto Maltese.”

In 1981, Paz is twenty-four years old, and his innate talent is already quickly showing. His artistic evolution grows along with the characters created by his mind and hand. Zanardi is a completely alienated high school student, subversive, capable of magically seducing both with words and looks. With all these characteristics, he perfectly manages his life, his enjoyment, his free time.

The theme that Paz centers on the figure of Zanna is the emptiness of his mind, which is filled by the presence of his two friends, the charming Colas and the loser Petrilli. Zanardi, however, has a specific weight compared to all the other kids in Bologna; he is the so-called black sheep, wanting to live and win on his own.

Everything he does inevitably has a certain charm. He is a wolf disguised as a man. He blackmails dealers trying to trick him by stealing his money instead of giving him heroin, like the Hanged Man in “Pacco.”

The brick used by Zanna to hit the Hanged Man isn’t drawn by Paz, as if this gesture were too banal to represent within Zanna's indecipherable void. The empty panel is the one that best manages to portray his character. Paz exits from the director’s booth, sits with the spectators, and shares their amazement.

In short, Zanardi is a calculator who manages to strike at the right moment, always appearing invulnerable. Paz doesn’t shy away from the gravity of hitting someone with a brick, but from the purity of instinct. Another episode to mention is when Zanna has the school principal killed with a heinous plan in “Giallo Scolastico.”

This character seems to be above everything else: sex, drugs, frivolous fun, empty people. He is a master of passions and freedom. His absolute zero creates an absurd disparity, especially for Paz.

“Verde Matematico” shows the difference in ideas between young people and parents, while “Notte Di Carnevale” highlights both the boisterous spirit and the affection among Colas, Petrilli, and Zanardi. When they set a fire at the nuns' boarding school, they can't remain indifferent in front of the murderous blaze. Petrilli unbelievably dives in and manages to miraculously save a nun. But there’s nothing to be done for him; he remains trapped and is burnt to ashes.

The rest of the works, like “Cenerentola” and “La Prima Delle Tre,” fully symbolize the life of excesses of Zanna and his friends, always in conflict with someone and eager to get high. The unmistakable style of Paz is, of course, surprising, both in color and in black and white panels. What I like the most is the realism of the figures, their expressions, and certainly the phrases, never obvious and ready to make you think.

However, don’t just stay here reading these lines, go feast your eyes on this historical phase of Italian comics, which unfortunately has left few heirs.