This year, I discovered a passion for soccer, and with that comes a passion for figuring out your favorite clubs in the various leagues (MLS, Premier League, UEFA Europa League). While I’ve got the MLS one figured out (Charlotte FC – – and holla to the best supporters group around, the Mint City Collective!) I’m still trying to find my favorite Premier League team. Will this graphic novel from Titan Comics about the history of the third most successful club in English football, Arsenal, make me a Gooner?
Cover by Philippe GlogowskiWritten and Illustrated by Philippe Glogowski
Colored by Francois Cerminaro
Translated by Emma WilsonAndrew, 35 years old, decides to take his new girlfriend’s 10-year-old son to see the Gunners play. For Nathan, it’s the first time in his life stepping foot inside a football stadium. He should be thrilled—but he can’t help wondering about Andrew’s motives. If there’s one thing that can break the ice and bring the two together, it’s Andrew’s passion for the Arsenal Football Club and its rich history.
The love of sport is one that is easily passed down from generation to generation. It was my late father that made me a baseball fan, and even though we rooted for different teams (him New York Yankees, me New York Mets), he always answered my questions and took me to Mets games. And those memories keep me grounded and bring me comfort in adulthood, nearly eight years after his passing.
That kind of family bonding makes the perfect lens to tell the story of the recent history of Arsenal FC, focusing on the time that manager Arsène Wenger was with the team (1996 – 2018), and the changes he put in place that revolutionized the sport and made Arsenal one of the most well-known and successful Premier League teams in the world. This history comes courtesy of Arsenal fan Andrew, who is taking his partner’s son Nathan to his first ever game in Emirates Stadium. Nathan is rather cool towards mom’s new boyfriend, and Andrew hopes that a shared love of the team can break down the walls between the two
Philippe Glowgowski moves seamlessly through the past 20 years of history with simple language and explanations (this is being told to a child, after all). And while it does miss some context that I’m sure young Nathan would have asked (like, why are Arsenal fans called Gooners), there’s plenty of history to explore, with footnotes and suggested reading for those that want to go even a bit further. At times, it does feel rather rushed, for 20 years of team history is covered in 66 pages.And there are aspects of this history missing, such as the Arsenal women’s team, who are the most successful team in English women’s football, winning championships before the men’s club. There’s certainly potential here for a miniseries that explores the entire team’s history from 1886 to present, or even a deeper look at some of the pivotal events presented here. But if what’s here has you wanting to learn more, there’s plenty of footnotes with suggested reading.
(As for the answer to that Gooners question: it’s a derivation of the team’s nickname, the Gunners.)
The book leans more toward team history than supporter group history, which does make sense. But if there is one thing I have learned in my brief time as a soccer fan, it is how closely linked supporters groups are with their parent clubs, and the relationships that get formed there. It’s certainly touched on in how Arsenal became a worldwide success, but it doesn’t take that deep dive into how they got there: the fans. Where are the stories of the chants, the tifos, the traditions? Again, if Glowgowski is looking for inspiration for a follow up, the history of the Gooners could prove fertile fruit.
The foreword of this book mentions that writer/artist Glowgowski is a passionate Premier League fan (though it doesn’t specify which team) and it shows not just in his script, but in his artwork. He takes great care to convey a sense of size and scope of Emirates Stadium in just the right way to capture that awe of attending your first ever sporting event. He’s done his homework on players as well, sticking to a photorealistic art style to any real-world figure. There’s no shortage of detail throughout this entire work, which is right in line with the European comics style. It doesn’t overpower the story it is here to tell.
Continued belowThis isn’t to say that the supporting characters of Andrew, Nathan, and the others in their world (Andrew’s school friends, Nathan’s father, for example) get short shrift. There’s less photorealism in these looks than with the Arsenal team, which makes sense: these are fictional characters. And that change in art style, to look just a bit more cartoonish, helps with shifting from team history to the secondary story of family bonding in a smooth, controlled manner.
By the end of the story, Nathan is a full on Arsenal fan, finding common ground with Andrew and his father over their favorite football team And there’s peace between the two men in Nathan’s life, his biological father and Andrew, knowing that neither can compete with the other, but bring their own special connections to this child.
Has this book won me over as a Gooner? Perhaps. (There are some friends of mine who could lay claim to that fact, actually – – they’ve been trying since 2017!) Has this book reminded me of the bonds sport can bring between friends and family, particularly the latter as I read it on Father’s Day? Absolutely.
