MAC TIN TAC is the product of Marc Tessier and Stéphane Olivier. The series was written primarily by the two and is made up of many short stories about the main character Mac Tin Tac or the inhabitants of the strange Kuskus city in which they live. The comic was produced irregularly over five issues from 1990 until 1995, the last of which was published in Mirrors, by Gogo Guy Publications.
This cover won the Pixel D'Or for Best Book Cover
The story is largely existential and sociological and effectively applies satire on the way we perceive substance abuse, life, death, work, tradition and ceremony. This dystopian narrative is largely reflective in the artwork as well. Created in Montreal, Tessier and Olivier hired many burgeoning and underground artists to illustrate their ideas. Some of these artists included Olivier himself, Simon Bossé, Siris, Rupert Bottenberg, Jean-Pierre Chansigaud, Caro Caron, Richard Suicide, G.B. Edwin, Helge Reuman, Hélène Brosseau, Phil Angers, Jean-Claude Amyot and Alexandre Lafleur.
More than ten years after the first comic book was published, MAC TIN TAC was compiled by and reproduced as a graphic novel by Conundrum Press in 2004. Although this made the work more accessible to a new generation of readers, many of the short stories from the singles were lost including the entire contents of the first issue. Some artists that produced chapters in the comics didn’t make the cut for the book including Alain Gosselin, Mario Tremblay, Michel Rabagliati, Gilles Boulerice, Martin Lemm and Matthew Brown.
Conundrum cover by Chansigaud.
I do recommend the graphic novel. The book takes from the singles and makes a more linear story line which is easier to read. That, and the singles are harder to find. They also include side stories and more alternative art and storytelling methods which may be more difficult or more alienating to read. If that is your thing, some of the singles can be ordered online, but are still difficult to find. You can Mile High Comics which usually has a pretty good selection. To see more of Marc Tessier’s work in both his publishing company Gogo Guy Publications, you can go here. You can see a review done by Montreal Review of Books here.
Comic Syrup Press 