A Guardian Book of the Year & Observer Graphic Novel of the Month
Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the Angoulême International Comics Festival 2021 & Germany's Max and Moritz Prize 2022
"A superhero like none you've seen before. Thrilling but also packs an emotional punch." —Ian Rankin
"Funny, sweet and emotionally true, it doesn’t so much tip toe on to fraught cultural territory as dance wildly across it...Appleby has torn up all the rules… It’s all marvellous fun." ―Observer
"Both a lively romp and a touching book about coming to terms with yourself, with juicy villains and a funny, likable supporting cast." ―Guardian
"Super heroes don't come more super than Steven Appleby's transvestite hero, Dragman. [Dragman is] neurotic, tender and very funny – and brilliantly drawn in Appleby's nimble, nubbly line." ―Posy Simmonds
From "Britain's most loved comics artist" comes a superhero epic like no other—an ordinary man gains superpowers by donning women's clothing, saving London and maybe even himself.
August
Crimp can fly, but only when he wears women's clothes. Soaring above a
gorgeous, lush vista of London, he is Dragman, catching falling persons,
lost souls, and the odd stranded cat. After he's rejected by the
superhero establishment, where masked men chase endorsement deals rather
than criminals, August quietly packs up his dress and cosmetics and
retreats to normalcy -- a wife and son who know nothing of his exploits
or inclinations.
When a technological innovation allows people to sell their souls,
they do so in droves, turning empty, cruel, and hopeless, driven to
throw themselves off planes. August is terrified of being outed, but
feels compelled to bring back Dragman when Cherry, his young neighbor,
begs him to save her parents. Can Dragman take down the forces behind
this dreadful new black market? Can August embrace Dragman and step out
of the shadows?
The debut graphic novel from British cartoon phenomenon Steven Appleby, Dragman
is at once a work of artistic brilliance, sly wit, and poignant
humanity, a meditation on identity, morality, and desire, delivered with
levity and grace.