Pablo Escobar's son publishes a comic book about his childhood: Netflix glorifies the drug world, I raise awareness'

"It's a legacy marked by violence and the staggering 5,500 deaths recorded during the peak of the Medellin cartel between 1989 and 1993. The weight of the name follows him in films, TV series, and books. In his effort to confront his past and tell his side of the story, he now turns to comics. Escobar, una educacion criminal (in English, Escobar: A Criminal Education), published by the Catalan publisher Norma, explores his childhood in an atmosphere of fear and secrecy."

"Even though I'm a writer, I had never spoken so much about myself. I had to learn how to write a comic; I didn't know each scene had its own script, said the author, who has also produced some of his works under the pseudonym Juan Sebastian Marroquin."

Juan Pablo Escobar confronts his father's violent legacy by turning to a comic format to portray childhood experiences lived amid fear and secrecy. The Medellin cartel's peak between 1989 and 1993 resulted in around 5,500 deaths and left the family name embedded in popular media. The comic aims to dismantle the myth of Pablo Escobar as a successful figure, to connect with young readers, and to avoid glorifying drugs and violence. The narrative highlights life with hitmen acting as babysitters, constant bodyguards, persistent anxiety, and reflections formed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read at english.elpais.com