MORE ABOUT BARBARELLA.

[Max Galli]

Here we are, folks! Barbarella strikes again. I'm talking about the very late edition, the Italian one. I'd start with saying that - despite growing popularity of the space heroine during the early 60s - Italian publishers weren't bothered too much about her. Milan-based comics magazine "Linus", that pioneered adult-oriented comics in Italy, was the first magazine to publish the strip, in 1967 (!), starting from the second episode, with the first one still unknown till the book came out (!!). We have to say that - by then - Italy was dominated by a wellthinker-gooddoer mentality, being the elderly more relevant in culture than the young. That said, Milano Libri Edizioni, that published the book in 1975, made our girl widely known to a public that was eager to know a little bit more about "sexy" comix. So, that was that, as italian readers - finally - were able to discover comics for grown-ups, and not just mickeymouses and stuff like that.

 

As psychedelia blended with a belated sexual revolution, Italians felt that it was time to leave old ideas behind and move on, with a growing needs for more "sexy" comics and more freedom of expression.