Category Archives: Reviews

Reviews

Canini, Brian – Airbag #1

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Airbag #1

Good news, people who read Brian’s comics! He’s settled on a title for his various short pieces that don’t fit anywhere else, and it’s Airbag. Probably it’s for the best. I’ve been rereading (and getting caught up on the ones I hadn’t read) Love and Rockets after reading the 40th anniversary collection, and there was a point after a few series with different names where they went back to calling their comics Love and Rockets. People just didn’t pick up the other series as much for whatever reason. Sure, to comics folks like you and me it would seem like seeing their name on a comic (or Brian’s name, to try and tie all this together) would be enough, but apparently there actually are casual independent comics fans. And these shorter, more personal and serious comics of his should not get lost in the shuffle. There are a few laughs to be found here, sure, but mostly these pack a harder punch than his lighter fare. Things start off with a quiet piece about a son meeting his estranged father for lunch, which reaches a boil of resentment slowly but surely. Next is a story about a breakup, how it causes the man (Mark) to reevaluate his life, but offers no easy answers as to how somebody can break out of a rut like that. Finally there’s a group of kids who sneak into a frat party in college to get some free booze and a conversation happens along the way that changes the whole dynamic. It also started with an unanswered phone call on 9/11 before flashing back to the party, and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out the connection. As always, blame a sleepy reviewer before blaming the artist in a situation like this, and either way it’s not like it blew up the story or anything. Finally there’s a wraparound piece which is grimly comedic, but I’ll leave that one up to you. I’ll just say that it involves that Bluto-esque dude on the cover and leave it at that. There’s also some encouragement from some of the best comics names around on his letters page, just in case you were clinging to the idea Brian was still your little comics secret. Here’s hoping Brian has enough stories to make these Airbag comics a fairly regular thing. Based on his insanely productive ability to produce comics so far, I’d bet on him for sure. $6

Finch, Scott – Travel Diary

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Travel Diary

Best to be blunt about this one up front, I reckon: it never really clicked for me. Which was surprising! The Domesticated Afterlife, his graphic novel from 2021, was one of my favorites of the year. That one also took some time to cohere into something really compelling, so I kept waiting for this one to do the same, but it never got there. Disclaimer time, and I’m aware that this is a message I’ve repeated a lot (but hey, every review is the first for somebody!), but the fact that this didn’t come together for ME has absolutely no bearing on how YOU respond to it. The premise here (explained in his afterward, and I’ve rarely been as thankful for an afterward as I was here) is that Scott was cutting out drawings from his sketchbooks onto postcards that he was sending to a friend, and he went with the idea and decided to let “some creative chaos into the project.” Judging by that metric, I’d say he succeeded wonderfully. Certain images repeat themselves, they occasionally get additional details added, he even includes number breaks to indicate chapters. If you’re a fan of more abstract art, it rarely gets as widely open to interpretation as this one, so in that case I’d recommend giving it a shot. And to be very clear, I still think Scott is somebody to watch going forward. It’s not like this comic is going to knock the incredibly positive feelings I have for The Domesticated Afterlife out of my mind. These things just happen sometimes, y’know? $25

Hernandez, Los Bros – Love and Rockets: The First Fifty: The Classic 40th Anniversary Collection

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Love and Rockets: The First Fifty: The Classic 40th Anniversary Collection

(With apologies to Fantagraphics, as I stole…er, borrowed this image from their website)

Hell no, I’m not going to review Love and Rockets! Are you kidding me? This is instead going to be half “hey, did you know that this collection existed?” and half “story about how I got into comics.” As for you, gentle reader, you now know the first half of my intentions, basically. This exists, it’s amazing, if you have the money of course you should get it. The rest is going to be fairly self-indulgent, so continue at your own risk. Oh, one more thing before I start rambling: if you’ve never heard of Love and Rockets, it’s not too hyperbolic to say that it’s a foundational piece of just about every alternative comic going today. Sure, there was the underground stuff before that, and various newspaper strips and EC comics before that, but anybody who’s been doing comics since the 90’s on owes a hell of a lot to Jaime and Gilbert. When did you start reading Love and Rockets? I started reading this with Volume 2 of the collected editions, way back when they were just starting to put out collected editions. The image of Luba, always and forever a striking character, on the cover holding a hammer, was irresistable. That volume had Heartbreak Soup in it and, like anybody else who read that story, that was it for me. Instant fan for life, right there. This would have been maybe 1990 or 1991 (I got the book in a bargain bin, so it wasn’t brand new). Got caught up on the collections available at the time, got the rest of the issues of the magazine sized series, then kept going with the various issues/books since. I stopped reading them several years back for no good reason I can think of, but after reading this sucker I’m going back and filling in any holes; yes, you’d better believe I’m reading the whole thing again. So if anybody is left reading this, what about this collection? After all, at $400 it’s far from a casual purchase. If you already have the graphic novels from that era, do you need this? Highly recommended, still, and if you can afford it, yes, but I guess you could make do with those editions. Reading this again reminded me of one thing: my preferred way to read Love and Rockets is like this, when they’re taking turns. Odd, I know, and not something I enjoy doing with any other creators. I’m perfectly content to read 10 pages of Poison River (Gilbert), followed by 8 pages of a Locas story (Jaime), followed by 6 pages of X (Gilbert), with a short story mixed in here and there. Probably because that’s how I started reading them, but it’s still true. Both brothers (although mostly Gilbert) were also big fans of adding panels or pages to the collected editions, and those pages aren’t in this set, so if you’re looking for the whole thing you probably do need both. One of the main attractions of this set is the 8th volume, or the “extras.” There are plenty of reviews from when they first started and following them as they evolved, along with a few short interviews. Some of their comics are in here from various sources, including things I’d never seen, and more comics from Mario Hernandez than I’d ever seen in one place. It went a long ways towards my more greatly appreciating the third brother (from the first issue of the series, I mean). My only quibble, which means it’s my only quibble with the whole collection, was that it sure seemed like they could have included one of their interviews from The Comics Journal. They’re the gold standard for interviews, after all, and they’ve done a few with them over the years. Maybe it was a space issue? They’re all in a TCJ archive online, but it would have fit nicely here. Yep, that proves it: I can never be completely happy with anything. One other reason to recommend this: since this reprints the issues exactly (ads, letters pages and all), you can see Fantagraphics grow as a company in real time. This was the first series they published, but by the 90’s they had just a ridiculous number of quality series going. Should I go back and edit this “review” into a more coherent whole? Eh, probably, but I’m not gonna. Bottom line time, I guess: if you’ve managed to never hear of these two and have some disposable income, you are in for quite a treat. Hell, you can maybe even get this from your local library, if it still has funding where you live. Aw, just use your tax return if you’re broke. That’s what I did! $400

Resnick, Chris – Marshmallows

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Marshmallows

(Note: the image above was swiped from Howling Pages, an amazing comic shop in Chicago. Buy the comic from them, won’t you? Or buy some other comics, their selection is unreal.)

This is one of those rare comics that’s too big for my scanner, which is why I provided the disclaimer above. Anybody looking to sue can have one of my cats, and that’s only after I’ve gotten him riled up with a laser pointer. Good luck! So once you get past the giant exterior, what’s going on in here? Chris calls this “half true,” so it’s open to interpretation as to which half he’s talking about. This is the story of a camping trip Chris took with his friend back when they were both 12. It was with Chris’ grandparents, but naturally the main goal of two 12 year old boys in that situation would be to escape having to deal with them. It’s a delightfully real tale of how obnoxious kids like that would be, with the very true disclaimer that 12 is a decidedly odd age; not a teenager, not really a small child either. They talk about girls (that they’re both aware they have no real chance with), make fart jokes and are eventually kicked out of the camper for farting excessively. The tent they’re given is too small for the both of them, and they’re still trying to figure out how to make that situation work when two girls who seem to be about their age come running out of the forest, asking the boys to hide them. No spoilers from there, and the next section seems to be surreal enough that that’s the fictionalized portion. But strange adventures seem more common when you’re that age, so who knows? This is a sweet comic, with real things to say about being a kid, and there are more than enough funny bits to keep things moving. I don’t know where you’d store something this large, but it’s worth a read. Hey, just do what I do: put the giant ones in an ungainly pile in the closet, where they’re forgotten about until the pile eventually collapses. It’s foolproof! $8

Hill, Dan – The Fifty Flip Experiment #31

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The Fifty Flip Experiment #31

Oh, what a journey we’ve been on together, as I’ve spent the last couple of months getting caught up on Dan’s comics so that I’ll be ready for the blockbuster #32, which should be coming out any time now. The things we’ve seen! This one starts off once again with Dan’s lengthy introduction, and just in case anybody reads “lengthy” and thinks that’s me taking a passive aggressive dig at the man for rambling, well, listen. For one thing, I have no standing to criticize anybody for rambling. That’s literally 85% (according to scientists) of what I do here. For another thing, his intros (and outros) are a joy, and you’d only think such a hurtful thing if you’ve never read one of his comics. Which is more of “you” problem than a “me” problem, hm? Anyway, this time around he really breaks down what exactly is happening in this issue, as well as what’s not happening, so if anybody occasionally gets lost in the narrative, he’s written a handy guide to lead you back. Honestly, I would have put that intro as the sample page but the print is too small. As for what you’re getting into this time around, the title is: Crazy Drag Racing Days During Dinosaur Times: Forced Ascension into the Crystal Dimension Because of a Spell from the Forest Witch. Kind of says it all, doesn’t it? Things start off, as all races did during dinosaur times, by a Fred Flintstone looking dude racing home at the end of his work shift, xylophone spine on a dinosaur’s back and all. From there the mayhem comes a pace that’s difficult for anybody to faithfully retell, but you will have the chance to put your picture in the story, further enmeshing yourself into this tale. Can you get out after that? That depends on your level of basis in reality at present. There are accidents, a cat puts a full fish into its mouth and pulls out a fish skeleton, an emergency ejection is needed, and a bird friend commits a betrayal most foul. Also the Fred analogue has odd eye stalks instead of regular people eyes. Again, I’m giving you a basic taste of the comic; the whole meal can only be found out by reading. Oh, and if you’re getting back issues along with this one, he suggests #23, as a character in that is similar to one in this issue. Makes sense to get a few at once, right? Right. $5 ($7 with shipping)

Steiner, Steve – Odd Clods #3

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Odds Clods #3

Steve’s been sending his books along for a lot of years now (I want to say at least a decade) and while I’ve always enjoyed them, I’d swear that the dude has hit a new level in recent years. These newspaper comics of his are absolutely hilarious. As in, I put the paper down a few times to wipe my eyes because I was actually laughing hard enough to be crying. That’s as funny as funny gets! Please don’t sleep on what a rarity this is, and do yourself a favor by grabbing a few to see whether or not I’m correct. Humor is subjective and all, but everybody could use a few more laughs in their lives, and these magazine comics are chock full of them. What’s this one about, anyway? I included a single page strips as a sample, because this one really takes you on a journey. Is Dragon Roommate funnier, and should I have included that instead? Maybe so, but that just means you still get to read it for yourself, totally unspoiled. Other stories include Goth Bot (her friend, her crush, and her parents; this one really took me on a journey), a set of trading cards (cut them out yourself!) with only the “greatest” skin ailments, The New and Improved Death Maze (what to do if you’ve made a fool of yourself with your previous death maze), Judge Alpha (not the most caring judge, and not one you’d want in charge of your trial) and Ham Goblins, of which I will say no more. There’s also a wonderful center spread of a new toyline (my favorite was Stained Glass Robot, but there were many fine choices), followed by a description of their creative process. Again: if you think that comics should be funny, whatever comics this man is putting out at the moment should be required reading. Also don’t be afraid of those numbers in the title, these aren’t connected in any way I can see. $10

Porcellino, John & Lorenzutti, Stefan – The Stoneware Jug

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Website for Stefan

The Stoneware Jug

There’s this disconnect in my brain, and I’m becoming more and more aware of it as I get older. I think of myself as somebody who doesn’t enjoy poetry, and I’m certainly not somebody who seeks it out. But when a book like this lands in my lap, and I enjoy literally every poem in it, with the only problem being that I wish that it was longer, well, what am I supposed to take away from that? But hey, this is not about me, even though my rambling in reviews may make that difficult to determine. These are poems written by Stefan and illustrated by John. If you’ve seen John’s work over the years (and I’m just assuming that everybody reading this has), then you’d know that his sparse, expansive artwork would be perfect for short poems like this. I’m not familiar with Stefan at all, but after reading this I’m thinking that maybe I should fix that. There are so very many books on his website, and I have no idea where to start, so maybe I’ll just do a blind buy one of these days. Anyway! These poems range from one to several panels (although none longer than a page), with the page title on the otherwise blank page opposite the image. It’s fair to say that “quiet contemplation” is the overall theme, but subjects include the right drink for the right season, the quiet walk to the cemetery, a silent fire on a hillside, tractors, peace in heat, and the various types of orange heat. These are intentionally vague descriptions, of course, as I could easily put all of the text from this comic in place of what I’ve written so far and it would probably be about the same word count. So basically if you already like poetry, well, here’s John Porcellino illustrating some of it, so you’re obviously ordering this right now. If you’re like me and think you don’t like poetry, read this one specifically. Maybe you’ll also either find out that you were wrong about that, or you should at least put more thought into that opinion. Oh, and the profits for this go towards children traumatized by the war in Ukraine, which is one more huge reason to support it. $8

Hill, Dan – The Fifty Flip Experiment #30

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The Fifty Flip Experiment #30

As these weekly reviews roll on, I feel like I’m telling you all less and less of the actual story. The subconscious reasoning is simple: these are a joy to read, with constant twists, turns and unexpected detours, so what kind of miser would I be if I took that experience away from you? Granted, as he admits in his outro, certain bits might get away from him or end up leading nowhere, but this is one of those cases where the journey is the thing. For example, could this story have survived without the line “My feet are changed to cheeseburgers!”? I suppose so; events would have barreled on without it. But oh, what a better experience for all involved, when that line and the subsequent image of it just there, waiting for anybody to pick this up. OK fine, so what’s going on this time around? Dan once again has his introduction, and I think (combined with the outro text that gets so small that it almost fades away) that this might be the most he’s written in this area. It’s fascinating stuff too, as he muses about money, how much more productive he’d be if he had more of it (but not TOO much more, as too much money makes people terrible), the general idea of the wisdom of enriching the artist, and how he feels like he’s really reached the top of his game lately. I’d agree with that assessment, especially now that I know that that impression holds true whether I’m reading his issues once or twice a year or all in a row like I’m doing currently. That’s scratching the surface (the man wrote A LOT), but I must move on to the comic. A woman named Gig Christmas has a plan to replace all the bug juice in middle school cafeterias with healthier kombucha. Chimbly Daddy is trying to stop her plan, but there’s more to the both of them than you’d expect, as we eventually take a detour to see that they area actually two parts that make up a whole, and an explanation of that idea is necessary, so off we go. Gig also has a team, and although each member could have used a bit more backstory (look, a complaint!), they did a lot with the page time that they had. One more suggestion, although I’m guessing cost would be a problem: I do wish that these comics could be magazine-sized, like the original Love and Rockets series. This art, in places, could use some room to breathe. Ah well, I can dream, can’t I? Yes of course you should check this out, and since he mentioned that he could put more of these out with more money coming in, that also sounds like a clue to pick up a few of this back issues. $5

Fazenda, Joao – Farewell

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Farewell

For the last of this current batch of mini kus comics we get a simple, heartfelt tale where the title does a wonderful job of summing things up. It’s the story of a family going back to their childhood home, which just so happens to be on a peninsula that’s soon going to be underwater. There’s a plan in place to use all of the materials from the house so that nothing is wasted, but what’s going to happen to the things inside of it, the items that might trigger memories from its former inhabitants? Three generations meet up to figure things out, and there’s the added factor of a possible tiger lurking in the woods. Joao does impressive work here with light and shadows, particularly the scene towards the end where they get lost in the woods in the dark on their way back to their boat. As for the story itself, it’s a thoughtful piece, where everybody has their specific things that they’d like to take back with them, but there’s also an overall acceptance of the state of things. Does this mean that I’d call this yet another solid mini kus book to add to the gigantic pile of them, and that anybody reading this could do a whole lot worse than to check this out? Reader, you know it does. $7.95 for the issue, but I still say the $22 offer for four of them is a much better deal.

Hill, Dan – The Fifty Flip Experiment #28

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The Fifty Flip Experiment #28

Have I mentioned yet that it’s alarming that my reviews of Dan’s work appear on a Google search way above his own website? The friends who set this website up oh so many years ago really knew what they were doing, but reviews should never come before the work itself. Do better, Google! Meanwhile, hey look, a comic! If you’re anything like me, you read that cover image and instantly thought “Marge’s hair… does he mean Marge from the Simpsons?” In which case you would have been completely correct, as the villains of the piece are… ooh boy. They have the bodies of turtles (with little wings on their shells) and crab claws instead of hands. And the heads of many a Marge Simpson. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Dan starts, as always, with an essay, this time about whether or not the company that made his new pen was historically terrible, and whether or not his depictions of birds, on some unconscious level, may have been based on awful racist cultural stereotypes. I don’t see it, but it’s an interesting essay, and nobody on this planet should consider me an authority on that subject. He also revealed a bit about his creative process, and had one line that was too good not to share: “I hope the fun of sitting down and writing nonsense comes across.” It does, Dan! It absolutely does. The comic itself shows the story of how the two creatures depicted in that statue managed to die at the exact same time, and yes, it does explain the quote about Marge’s hair on the column. It’s a sort of love story/training montage/drug run/brief musical montage/doomed final battle kind of thing, and it is as delightful as you might expect with all of those things blended seamlessly together. There’s also a kicking bazooka involved. Also, you may not expect a happy ending in a comic that starts of telling you that the main characters are going to die, but you know what? You just might get one anyway. Give it a shot, I say, and I also say you should send him enough money for a few issues so you can get some idea of the sheer range of ideas that passes through this man’s mind. One comic by itself is simply not enough to give you that context $5 (or $7 with postage through his website)

Forker, Nick – Eyeland #2

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Eyeland #2

I have got to find a way to review comics more quickly. Looking around the internet doesn’t reveal any available copies of this issue, and Nick himself doesn’t have anything available until #5. But what am I supposed to do, NOT read these in numerical order? Madness. So far in these Eyeland comics the title on the cover is a pretty big hint: the first issue was mostly funny, this issue is mostly introspective. Things start off with a fascinating color strip on the inside cover questioning what exactly moves people to make decisions. Experience, gut, or something yet undiscovered? Now that the possibility has been brought up, you’re thinking about it too, right? If that intrigues you, get ready for an issue of existential questions. From there we get a strip on the absurdities of modern life (with a special emphasis on doom rectangles) and a series of three panel strips on the basis of reality. The rest of the comic is presented as single or double page stories, but it’s really one continuing narrative about our hero wondering about how not doing anything frees him from having anything by which to judge his self worth, finding a way to accept himself, and building his own work on the work of others to make something new. Am I missing a meaning somewhere, or misinterpreting something? There’s a solid chance, as I find myself becoming less and less introspective as I get older. Which is maybe a bad sign, but it’s not the issue at hand. The rest of the issue depicts his philosophical journey as a physical trip, which does involve an actual wizard and ends with an extremely disquieting finale. I’m enjoying these comics, and I saw on his website that he made 10 of these issues in 2022, which is incredibly impressive. Give it a shot, and with these two issues you have a stark choice to make: do you want funny, or do you want philosophical? Keep in mind that neither issue is 100% of one or the other…

Hill Dan – The Fifty Flip Experiment #27

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The Fifty Flip Experiment #27

Here it is, the exciting conclusion to his three part extravaganza! Does it matter that I’ve mostly forgotten the first two parts, since it’s been at least a couple of years since I read them? It does not, because Dan was nice enough to put a little recap in the inside front cover. And also because this issue basically stands just fine by itself anyway, except for all that lovely context you get from reading the whole story. Basically there’s an android (whose story was told in the second part) who’s trying to get to Captain Loopback (whose story was told in the first part). He (the android) has hijacked a space bus to reach her (Loopback), which is where things kick off. First we get a listing of the characters on the bus, who just so happen to be dangerous space criminals. Not ideal travel companions, to be sure, but they’re all wrapped up tightly in saran wrap, so he’ll probably be fine. Oh no! The android, who was trying to drive the bus, accidentally released them all from their wrappings! Do you think that a melee is coming? Well, it is, and it does, and it leads to a crash, with only our hero and the flight attendant lady surviving. If you’re wondering whether this leads to a love connection, well, it absolutely does. Still, our hero only has roughly half of an issue left, and he still has to get to Loopback! Can he make it, and what’s likely to happen to them both if he does? Eh, you’ll figure it out when you read it. I’d also invite everybody to read that panel in the spacebus sample image, as there are jokes all over that thing. Another bonus is his essay about one of those “50 games in 1” dealies where you get 50 crappy games for a very low price. He’s put more thought into the concept than I ever did, and while I’m not sure if he ever came up with a satisfying answer, it sure did raise a lot of questions about the creators of the games, who they’re for, the religious angle of them, etc. And that’s just a bonus to the comic itself. As always, you’ll be happy that you read one of his comics, if you have the guts to do it. C’mon, what’s stopping you? C’mon. $5 (with $2 for shipping)

Fikaris, Michael – SRY not Sorry

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SRY not Sorry

Who’s in the mood for a nice, quiet little meditation on the ways we communicate, why we communicate and the virtue of time saved? Or the idea of making and maintaining human connections? If you’ve said no, so long! I reckon there are plenty of shoot ’em ups available for you to watch/read instead. This comic does start off with an assumption, and since I’m one of the people who disproves it I’d like to remind everybody again that it’s not true for everybody. Michael starts by saying that “they say” that your age can be determined by how you use your phone, but I know from my friend group (generally mid 40’s and above, with plenty of exceptions) that it’s all over the place. I was an early adopter of texting whenever possible, basically as soon as I figured out that my phone could do it. Other people my age still call. Was I going somewhere with all that? Be careful of assumptions, I suppose. From there this becomes a comic that I really can’t say much about, even more so than usual, as there’s very little text. More of a message throughout, of conflict and grabbing tightly onto someone for comfort, living through cycles, doing what you need to survive, and the question of whether or not a new contribution to the world is possible. It’s fascinating overall, and the sort of thing that’ll lead to all sorts of questions popping up in your mind on a lazy afternoon. Which is fine by me, since I generally write these on Saturday or Sunday afternoon. Maybe don’t read this one on the bus, I guess is what I’m saying. But do give it a shot. $8 (or 22 for a bundle of the latest four issues)

Lay, Patrick – Screaming Mimi Kids Volume 1: Ghosted

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Screaming Mimi Kids Volume 1: Ghosted

I have to confess, I’m still a little confused on that title. Screaming Mimi is (in the comic) a possible urban legend, a ghost who only shows up at a specific time at a specific bridge. So it’s in reference to the kids on the cover? Screw it, I’m overthinking this, and I don’t want to get bogged down in nonsense, as I did enjoy the book overall. This starts out at the aforementioned bridge with Lisa, her brother Seth and their mutual friend Christine. They have to honk the horns at midnight near the bridge to get the ghost to appear (so the legend goes), but they arrive a little early, so there’s time for shenanigans. Lisa has a crush on Christine, and she’s told her brother Seth about it, so imagine her disgust when she gets back from a trip to pee just in time to see the two of them making out. Furious, they all leave, but since they’re there anyway, she honks her horn as they’re going. Behind them a spectral figure appears, which does a wonderful job of making them all forget the previous drama. The next thing we see is Seth waking up, where he immediately learns that one of the two other people at the bridge has died overnight. From there we get a bit of high school drama (and the phoniness of people who hated this dead student crying about her in front of an assembly) before Seth decides to head back to the bridge, just in case. One thing that struck me reading this was that it was a damned confident comic, by which I mean that Patrick really takes his time to let the story open up. I got this at a convention, so I know that he has a few more issues out already; that kind of slow pace would be a bad look if it petered out after one issue. But he clearly has more in mind, and after this I’m curious to see what that could be. It’s an intriguing start, and it also fits squarely in the “all ages but that doesn’t have to mean simple” category of comics that’s perfect for younger readers, for any of you who want to get your kids into reading comics. You monsters! $6

Hill, Dan – The Fifty Flip Experiment #29

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The Fifty Flip Experiment #29

I encourage every one of you to visit his website, as it’s the geocities-ing-est website around. That joke will make sense to very few of you, but I still think it’s worth it. Dan starts this one with his trademark wall of text, which starts off vaguely enough before breaking down into a detailed history of the characters we’re about to meet. He’s also back to doing single issue stories, if you’re warping here from my last review of his series (#26, another gap I have to fill some day). As always, I’d rather let his comic speak for itself, but it does concern the origins of the Jamboree. And frogs. A whole lot of frogs. Say, if I don’t want to talk about the comic, what am I going to mention in the review? Well, I’m going to go back on that statement immediately. Things start off with a positively joyful jamboree, then we learn about how the frogs took power based on their dominance of the three legged races. What does a pie eating contest have to do with this? Plenty! If you’ve ever wanted to go down the line in a pie eating contest to see what each contestant was thinking at that moment, Dan is your man. Do wooden arms help with pies? Unclear, but seemingly no. What about Landwhale Jeff, does he get the better of Skeleton Bear? As if I’d give something so important away here! That does it, I’m going back to not talking about specifics. There’s plenty more, including the cutest little sailor suit you ever did see on the back cover, but the next step in your journey is to buy your own copy to see what you make of all this. Dan also sent a very nice letter along with this comic (or possibly a later issue, as I’m reviewing more of these soon), but I did want to offer one gentle correction to him: this website is actually almost 22 years old, not 15. There have been a few crashes, so it’s kind of lost to history, but this all started in August of 2001. OK, go buy his comic. $7

Wynbrandt, Gina – You’re the Center of Attention

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You’re the Center of Attention

Thanks once again to mini kus, as they have introduced me to an artist I clearly should have already heard of by now. I desperately need to get back to Chicago one of these days to ransack Quimby and/or Chicago Comics. Assuming they both survived the pandemic, and I don’t even want to think of a world where that’s not the case. Anyway! This is the story of a fictionalized version of Gina (can’t really say how close it is to the real her, as this is the first comic of hers I’ve read) and she’s competing on a game show to win some money and become famous. The money is clearly an afterthought to becoming famous, which drives everything she does in the comic. Things start off with her fantasies of what famous life would be like before the actual show begins. She also meets a bug named George who encourages her, and yes, this is relevant information later, because we wouldn’t have one of the great comics finales of all time without him. Getting ahead of myself, I guess. The game show itself is a series of escalating embarrassments for Gina, seemingly designed to get people to give up. But she does the chicken dance, runs around on all fours and sings (poorly), all in good spirits. Still, things are just getting started. Will she have the willpower to read her most recent internet searches aloud in front of the studio audience and the world? What about… eh, that’s enough specifics. Let’s just say that she’s tested personally and professionally. It’s a hilarious peek into somebody who’s obsessed with fame without having the sense of shame that might tell them to slow things down before they do something that’ll haunt their lives forever. So it looks amazing, has more than a few funny bits and an all-time great final panel. What more do you need? $7.95 (or you could always get this in a set with the other three most recent mini kus issues)

Hamil, Brett – Slight Return

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Slight Return

I figured going into this that this is one of those comics that had the potential to end up going very wrong for me, or maybe I’d end up kind of liking it. Turns out that I loved it! Just another reminder in a lifetime full of them that it’s best not to assume anything based on an intentionally vague description. I was afraid that this was going to be one of those “aged punk and/or hippie returns to their hometown, wanders around aimlessly until the book eventually ends” kind of things, but I was wrong. There are elements of that, sure, but for good reason, and there’s a whole lot more going on with it. It’s a slow build, but things start off with our hero (Kevin) having sex with an old acquaintance after returning to his hometown. We gradually learn that he had had some success as a musician (enough that a large number of people recognize him when he’s walking around town) and that some great calamity has befallen society as a whole. Not bad enough to derail civilization entirely, but there’s no internet or phones, getting food is expensive and you have to “know somebody,” there was an incident where people were butchering a cow in the field right next to the other cows, etc. This is all an undercurrent to a fairly simple story, as Kevin really did come back to town to get away from everything and basically just wants to sleep, ride his skateboard, have sex and read comics. Armed fascists are also a constant underlying threat, so not too far off from our reality now, I guess. I loved the pacing of this book, as there’s no rush to do much of anything and nothing feels all that important, and the absence of constant cell phones and internet is always welcome in stories; it almost always feels like it opens up possibilities other than what you’re used to. The underlying story here, such as it is, is that Kevin gets talked into performing at an outdoor concert, but even that ends up being a very minor event. The ending shocked me, but it was one of those endings where you can’t really see things going any other way if you think about it. It’s a book that I wasn’t expecting to captivate me, but here I sit, captivated, and still thinking about various scenes hours after finishing it. If that’s not a solid endorsement, I don’t know what is. $15

Lehmann, Brandon – Womp Womp #3

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Womp Womp #3

If you’re wondering why so few comics are laugh-out-loud funny these days, I’d suggest that maybe Brandon has stolen all of the laughs and placed them into his comics. My usual plan of putting the funniest/most representative page in the review as the sample image took a real beating this week, as I could have chosen several of the single page strips. Hell, the three panel gag on the back cover might have gotten the biggest laugh out of me of the whole book. You probably have to be of a certain age for the sampled strip to hit, but for those lucky few (or most, I have no idea of the demographics of people who read this website), enjoy. So now I’ll get to the part of the review where I try not to spoil the jokes while still giving you little hints about what to expect in here. If you’re already a fan of Brandon’s work, this is maybe my favorite comic of his yet, so just leave this review entirely and get yourself a copy. If you need a bit more convincing, read on! Subjects in this issue include a spectacularly suspicious time traveler from the future, the inevitable narcissism of the Caterpillar Man, parents being a little too prescient in their warnings to their child against having parties while they’re gone, coming a long way for a joke, nobody knows the weather they’ve seen, an innocent question leading to a justified fit of rage, coming a long way up a mountain to meet a wise man, and the turtle room. There’s more, but if you’re not convinced I don’t know what to tell you. Actually, flipping through this again I’m leaving out two of my favorite stories (about the vampire and the house of the future, if you’re reading this after reading the book), but doing so just makes it easier for them to become YOUR favorite stories. I’m helping! $10

Petre, Fake and Greg – Santos Sisters #2

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Santos Sisters #2

Huzzah, the “#1” on the first issue not being a cruel trick! #3 is also here waiting for review, and #4 is coming out in June. They’re unstoppable! If you didn’t read my review for the first issue, get to it; that’ll clue you in on the basic concept here. Now that you’re all caught up, there’s just so damned much to like about this series that I hardly know where to start. It’s all printed on newsprint, and it’s the size of “regular” comic books, which really contributes to the feel of the book. This issue also has more than a few ads, and while it would fit right in with the aesthetic to have fake funny ads throughout, that wasn’t the deal here. All of the ads are legit (unless they snuck a few in on the page full of tiny ads), and they’re all for other small press comics, publishers, shops or other things that might actually be useful to the type of person reading this. Just excellent work on the overall look of this comic. Oh, and they were also nice enough to send me a small poster of the centerfold, featuring all of the characters and a few that haven’t been introduced yet. Yep, I am easily bribed! So the comic looks great, which is nice I guess, but what about the stories? Oh no, it’s more excellent work! The first story deals with Weird A.I. Ankhovic (congrats to the people who get it) sending a couple of his minions (Spit and Shine, and I am very curious to see their origin story) out to infect as many people as possible. This will enable him to take over the town, and the people are infected by being shot by the villains and turned into what are basically purple zombies. No munching on brains in this one, just steadily increasing infections. An excellent touch is that Spit and Shine used to date but have since broken up, so they’re both being very mature in their interactions with each other. Their dynamic gradually falling apart was one of the highlights of the book, as was the use of poor Todd by our heroes. The other story deals with a baby dragon suddenly appearing in front of an old lady, which eventually terrorizes an anthropomorphic duck (think Howard, basically) and his pal. Our heroes have to fly to the rescue while being very drunk, which is the type of thing that should happen in more comics. I’m completely sold on this series (this is one of those reviews where I’m barely scratching the surface on all the small details that make it great) and might even review the next issue next week, even though they’re designed to be stand-alone issues. We’ll see! $4.20, but it seems to be selling out fast, so don’t dawdle!

Canini, Brian – Glimpses of Life #8

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Glimpses of Life #8

In this issue, Brian reveals the secret of how he’s been able to stay so productive while working a day job and having two kids (three by the time this issue is done. Spoilers!). I’ve got some bad news for the procrastinators out there who think it simply can’t be done: his secret is to work on comics whenever he can, panel by panel when necessary. So if you were hoping for the one neat trick to make it all simple, my apologies. This is a collection of autobio strips for February 2021, so two years ago as of this writing. Brian and his wife Amy are awaiting the imminent arrival of their third child, so this issue is mostly all about the few complications that came up and the general effect on their lives. Stories specifically deal with Brian driving a practice run to the hospital (to make things less stressful when she’s in labor), trying to have quiet time at home to work on comics, reckoning with the knowledge that the new baby is going to take up most of his free time and trying to plan accordingly, fun with their cat and dog, a few scares with early contractions, having a baby shower basically online because of covid, sending the kids and the pets to their assigned destinations when the moment came (this all seemed spectacularly organized to me, so kudos to them), and drama with his parents not contacting them for months up until just about the single most inconvenient moment. Everything went fine with the baby, so don’t worry about him sneaking a tragedy into this comic. Unrelated, but since his baby was born a few months before I adopted my cat Miles, technically it’s a human name that I stole for use as a cat name. Unintentional, but linear time remains hard to beat. I keep wanting to say “pregnant pause” but it seems so cliche, but screw it: this comic is the pregnant pause in his life while waiting for the inevitable to happen. They’re both a little on edge throughout, for good reason, but it’s a tenser read than I’m used to with his autobio stuff. Still worth a look, obviously, so give it a shot why don’t you? Especially if you have small children or have a kid on the way. Lots of good tips/lived experiences in here for people in that position. $6