Telling the story of a man’s life is nothing new in any medium, be it film, television or comics. The concept of finding out who a man is by viewing the days of his life has been done before, and continues to be a source for stories to this day.

What changes from story to story is not the idea, but the man being highlighted. More importantly, the best stories find a way to put a unique spin on the old idea in order to create something new. In 2010, brothers Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá managed to bring something fresh to the table in their Vertigo miniseries Daytripper.

Daytripper tells the story of Brás de Oliva Domingos, an obituary writer in Brazil. The series follows Brás as he experiences the most important days of his life – everything from his first kiss to the death of his father – and the reader is given glimpses of how all of these events affect Brás.

What sets Daytripper apart from other stories is that each issue, which all follow Brás during one of his important days, ends with the character’s death. This moment is also accompanied by the obituary that runs following this incident.

The death of the main character at the end of each issue may sound odd, but it allows Moon and Bá to dissect Brás’ life in an original way. When the reader first meets Brás, he is a rather aimless thirty-two year old man contemplating his place in life. By the end of the first issue, the reader knows a great deal about who Brás is at that particular point in his life.

When Brás is killed, therefore, the obituary reflects this. It shows the impact Brás has made on the world, his entire life condensed into a short blurb, and reflective of what the reader knows about him so far.

As the series continues, though, and as more moments of Brás’ life are exposed to the reader, his death becomes more effective and tragic. The audience sees Brás at all different ages and is able to get a greater sense of him as a fleshed-out human being. However, even though readers are now at a point where they could write a long and compassionate obituary for Brás, the authors choose to keep the obituaries brief and emotionally distant.

The theme that can be drawn from this is that a person is always changing, and no two points in life are the same. As Brás continues to develop in the reader’s mind, it gives the reader reason to reflect on their own life and remember the different people that they’ve been, no matter how young or old they may be.

Further, Brás’ deaths become more important as the story goes on. In the later issues of the series, moments that occur beyond Brás’ deaths are shown, illustrating who he is important to, and how his death affects them.

Beyond the originality of the presentation, Daytripper also manages to be a solid work of both writing and art. Even if the story were told in a purely chronological order, it would remain an interesting one. Brás is a compelling character, as are the members of his family and his friend Jorge. Moon and Bá are able to breathe life into all of their cast, no matter how small of a part each character plays. Certain characters are even given their own subplots, all of which tie back into Brás’ development.

The story is further strengthened by the gorgeous artwork. All of the characters are drawn in a unique way, and the facial expressions are clear and full of appropriate emotion.

The same level of detail and attention is put into the environments. Beaches feel warm and inviting, while mountainous landscapes feel vast and dizzying. Further, when the story takes turns into darker moments, the backgrounds shift to match, changing to darker, more malevolent tones.

All-in-all, Daytripper provides an engaging story accompanied by wonderfully expressive art. The unique twist given to the storytelling method allows Moon and Bá to tell a somber tale about how a man changes as he goes through life.

In the end, the reader is likely to take stock of the path they have taken through their own life, and figure out what impression they have made on the people around them.

The way Moon and Bá are able to inspire this reaction is commendable on its own. The fact that they are able to do it while also telling a fantastic and moving story is amazing. Daytripper is a work that is easy to recommend to anyone who has ever reflected on life and wondered what could still be ahead.