Xoth! Die Unaussprechliche Stadt (2007) by Anna-Maria Jung

An einem seiner vielen ereignislosen, langweiligen Abenden beschließt der junge Jacop O’Damsel, freiberuflicher Nerd, sich besoffen in einem Hinterhof schlafen zu legen. Blöd, wenn ausgerechnet da plötzlich ein intergalaktischer Dimensionsschlürfer auftaucht. Bevor Jacop überhaupt die Chance bekommt, einen Kater zu haben, nimmt in das Ding auch schon einfach so mit. Jacop wacht in Xoth auf, einer fremden Welt voller abartiger Kreaturen – oder solite man sagen: geradezu unsagbar grauenhaft? Auf jeden Fall sind da noch die »Humanisten«, eine Bande von stinkigen Fischköpfen, die Menschen kultarig verehren, und die Jacop angeblich für eine Mission brauchen. Und gäbe es niche genug an Wahnsinn zu verkraften, setzt der Bürgermeister der Stadt, der mächtige Cthulhu, seine besten Killer auf den Fall an. Den großen Alten sei Dank gibt es da noch Yen Niggurath, ein hübisches Ziegenmädchen, Des Gefallen an dem hilflosen Menschlein findet. Zusammen mit ihr get Jacop dem »Ordus Humanus« auf den Grund, Dennis – bei Cthulhus fettem Arsch! – er hat keine Lust, ständig um sein Leben zu rennen. Vor dem Hintergrund von H. P. Lovecrafts Cthulhu Mythos entwirft Anna-Maria Jung eine Geschichte voller Monster, Nerds, Monsternerds und Nerd monster. Und der Mann aus der Angell Street kommt auch drin vor.

On one of his many uneventful, boring evenings, young Jacop O’Damsel, a freelance nerd, decides to get drunk and sleep in a backyard. Too bad when an intergalactic dimensional shambler suddenly turns up. Before Jacop even gets the chance to have a hangover, the thing takes him with it. Jacop wakes up in Xoth, a strange world full of disgusting creatures – or should we say, downright unspeakably horrible? In any case, there are also the “Humanists”, a gang of smelly fishheads who worship humans in a cult-like manner and who supposedly need Jacop for a mission. And when there isn’t enough madness to deal with, the mayor of the city, the mighty Cthulhu, sets his best killers on the case. Thank the Great Old Ones, there is also Yen Niggurath, a pretty goat girl who takes a liking to the helpless little human. Together with her, Jacop gets to the bottom of the “Ordus Humanus”, Dennis – by Cthulhu’s fat ass! – he doesn’t want to constantly run for his life. Against the backdrop of H. P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos, Anna-Maria Jung creates a story full of monsters, nerds, monster nerds and nerd monsters. And the man from Angell Street appears in it too.

Back cover copy, 2010 edition

English translation

Xoth! Die unaussprechlichen Stadt (“Xoth! The unspeakable City!”) is a 2007 graphic written and drawn by Anna-Maria Jung ( https://www.annamariajung.com/ ), an Austrian illustrator with a penchant for monsters and nerds. The publication history is a little difficult to piece out, because part of the history has been eaten by the web, but the Internet Archive maintains a copy of (most) of the old website, which offers some background:

Xoth! ist ein 70 seitiges Farbcomic, das auf dem “Cthulhu-Mythos” von Howard Philips Lovecraft beruht. Die Idee für Xoth! kam Anna-Maria Jung 2006 in New York, als sie ein Buch zu H.P. Lovecrafts Cthulhu Mythos entdeckte. Beruhend auf diesem Mythos entstand die Idee, eine einzige Heimatwelt für Lovecrafts Kreaturen zu kreieren. Anna-Maria diplomierte 2007 mit einer Arbeit über »Lovecraft in den Medien«. Diese Diplomarbeit wurde eine konzeptuelle Vorarbeit für ihren Comic sie erforschte Lovecrafts Vergangenheit, den gesamten Mythos und seine Einflüsse auf die Medienwelt. Auf Wunsch kann man diese Diplomarbeit bei mir als PDF kostenlos bestellen. Als praktischen Teil entwickelte sie die Charaktere, Hintergründe, Gegenstände, Zusammenhänge, Beziehungen und Verhältnisse einer Welt, die sie, inspiriert von Sci-Fi Autor Lin Carter, Xoth taufte.

Xoth! is a 70-page color comic based on the  “Cthulhu Mythos” by Howard Philips Lovecraft. Anna-Maria Jung came up with the idea for Xoth! in 2006 in New York when she discovered a book about HP Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos. Based on this myth, the idea of ​​creating a single home world for Lovecraft’s creatures was born. Anna-Maria graduated in 2007 with a thesis on “Lovecraft in the Media.” This thesis was a conceptual preparatory work for her comic; she researched Lovecraft’s past, the entire myth and his influence on the media world.  If you wish, you can order this thesis from me free of charge as a PDF. As a practical part, she developed the characters, backgrounds, objects, contexts, relationships and conditions of a world that she named Xoth, inspired by sci-fi author Lin Carter.

Was ist Xoth? (Deutsche)

What is Xoth? (English)

Lin Carter’s Mythos fiction was published in The Xothic Legend Cycle by Chaosium; Xoth was the star from which Cthulhu originated, and Carter’s fiction dealt with Cthulhu’s progeny. Cthulhu himself appears in Jung’s Xoth! as the mayor of the city.

Unfortunately, with the death of early web, stuff like Jacop O’Damsel’s MySpace page and the English translation of some of the comic pages are likely sadly gone forever.

A 2008 “exclusive preview” of Xoth for the Internationaler Comic Salon Erlangen 2008, where the book presumably premiered; Jung also wrote and drew a spin-off comic titled “Marie Jenkins Brown: Sechs ist Besser als zwei” (“Mary Jenkins Brown: Six Is Better Than Two”) published in Comicgate Magazin #3 (2008). Both Xoth! and the Marie Jenkins Brown spin-off were collected and published in the Xoth! Die unaussprechliche Stadt Extended Edition (2010, Zwerchfell Verlag).

There is a slightly cartoonish, early-2000s webcomic vibe to Jung’s art style, which might make some folks to confuse Xoth! for a comic intended for kids at first glance, but really this is aimed at a more mature audiences, with references to alcohol and sex, and some brief cartoon nudity that is designed to amuse rather than titillate. It’s a fun takeoff of the Mythos for grown ups, especially grownups who were monster enthusiasts in their youth.

Fans will appreciate the many references to Lovecraft’s Mythos (and the Call of Cthulhu Roleplaying Game) sprinkled throughout the story. It’s definitely played for humor more than horror, reminiscent of works like The Unspeakable Vault (of Doom!), but with more narrative and focus on characters. This is really the story of Jacop O’Damsel, the sole human in the city.

Fortunately, Jacop has help from Yen Niggurath, one of the Dark Young, who takes a shine to him. Their relationship has a meet-cute quality, and there’s a certain romantic frisson between the two almost from the start.

Lovecraft, “the Man from Angell Street.” does indeed make an appearance, although he spends most of the comic in the body of a Yithian he’s been mind-swapped with. Which is a fun way to include Lovecraft in what is otherwise a contemporary setting that includes cellphones.

It is a fun graphic novel. The plot isn’t very profound, but not all stories have to be epic. Some people just learn to accept where they are and who they’re with. To monsters, humans are ultimately just another monster.

The Mary Jenkins Brown spin-off comics are a bit more deliberately mature, even racy in parts. Mary is an occult detective in these brief strips, but seems more interested in getting laid than solving mysteries. They’re short and cute, played for laughs more than eroticism. It’s nice to have them collected somewhere.

There is no published English translation of Xoth!, and sadly probably never will be, which I feel is a pity because there was a time and place when I think it would have definitely found an appreciative audience. The German-language Extended Edition is still available for sale, and Anna-Maria Jung’s webstore has a lot of cool shirts.

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Bobby Derie is the author of Weird Talers: Essays on Robert E. Howard and Others and Sex and the Cthulhu Mythos.

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