Comicsgirl

Archive for October, 2008

Variety has the story.

I know nothing of Thor Freudenthal, except he’s directed a movie called Hotel for Dogs that has an annoying, flash-heavy site. But I do think this is really awesome.

“Being sixteen is officially the worst thing I’ve ever been.”

I was not fond of Mariko Tamaki’s story for Emiko Superstar for the Minx line. It just struck me as false — oooh! Secret suburban lesbians! Roughly sketched performance artists! It felt like an adult’s conception of what a teen girl would find “edgy.” Some of the emotions were there but it didn’t strike me as being genuine.

But I still decided to give Skim a try, though. And I’m glad I did.

This is probably one of the most realistic portrayals of what it’s like to be a teenage girl anywhere — film, prose, comics, anywhere.

Kim, called Skim by her friends (because, as she puts it, she’s not) is a slightly overweight, half-Asian Canadian teenager attending an all-girls Catholic school. She and her best friend Lisa are studying Wicca. She is, for the most part, a non-distinct teenage girl. She’s not a cheerleader. She’s not popular. She’s not entirely an outcast — she’s just sort of there. She’s both too smart for her own good and innocently naive.

After a classmate’s ex-boyfriend kills himself, the school is covered in a veneer of sensitivity as Kim also develops a questionable relationship with drama teacher Ms. Archer. In someone else’s hands, this could cross into the territory of melodrama, but in Mariko Tamaki presents these events as just being a part of Kim’s life. The highs and lows are just matter of fact. Both the pain and the joy here are very real.

Jillian Tamaki’s art is one part ukiyo-e and one part hyper-real caricature. It follows the shifts of Kim’s story from dreaminess to unfortunate reality. The changes are done subtly but beautifully and illustrates the forever-fluctuating life of a teenage girl.

I don’t really want to talk too much about the story, because for me, part of the joy is the way it unfolds. On the other hand, what happens isn’t as important as who it is happening to. While Kim isn’t always likable — she can certainly be bratty and selfish — she’s easy to relate to. She shows what it’s like to be a teenage girl.

Why the comics in the Minx line (even Mariko Tamaki’s one) couldn’t be more like this, I don’t know. I’d put this in the hands of any teenage girl I’d meet, or in the hands of anyone who wanted to know what it’s like. This is probably the best — or at the very least, the most surprising — graphic novel I’ve read this year.

I have a few reviews to write and post, but my computer died on me this morning (if it’s just the power supply, I am happy. If it’s the motherboard, I am not). We have other computers I can use, but they’re not my computer.

So posting will be more sporadic than usual.

Coming up are reviews of Skim, Zot!: The Complete Black & White Collection and Kinderbook by Kan Takahama. Possibly not in that order.

I know you can’t wait.

Deb Aoki at About.com has a great interview with Wendy Pini about all kinds of things, but mostly comics. She was ahead of her time.

(Elfquest is the grandmother of all comics that get recommended to women and I personally wouldn’t have it any other way. I will defend Elfquest always.)

And I stopped keeping up, but it does seem the Elfquest movie may actually happen. I will go see it. There is no doubt in my mind about that.

Shaenon K. Garrity says Minx failed because none of the men/boys in the books were “hot” and then asks the people hanging out in her apartment who they think draws hot guys.

It’s something I didn’t think about, but she’s definitely right — teenage girls like fantasy, they like dreaming the hot boy will fall for them. They want hot boys in their fiction.

(The lists of artists her “panel” comes up with is fun — I definitely agree about Mike Mignola and Wendy Pini.)

This will be the last SPX post, I promise. I have one more book to review, but it will deserve its own post and I also need to finish it.

The Ride Home — Joey Weiser

I forgot to mention AdHouse Books in my Richmond Zine Fest post. They also fill me with hometown pride. And they are one of the most interesting comics publishers today.

Weiser’s story about a van gnome searching for his lost home is funny and sweet with all kinds of wonderful creatures like sewer dragons and junkyard goblins. This is silly and cute fun, but the deeper message that home is where you feel loved is still important and lovely. This was surprisingly wonderful.

Kaguya — Sakiko Judge

Sakiko Judge was wearing a kimono and looked absolutely beautiful at SPX, so I just had to buy something from her. This isn’t so much a comic — it’s more an illustrated story — and while I didn’t love it, I did find it to be an interesting experiment. Judge’s artwork is solidly expressive and reflects the tale she’s retelling here well. While it’s not my favorite thing that I bought at SPX, it’s probably one of the more intriguing.

Patches — Amy Stoddard

Published by Strawberry Comics, Stoddard seems to understand the conventions of shoujo manga in a way a lot of Westerners don’t. While her art seems to go through a few growing pains — it’s a little uneven in sections — there is a touching beauty here. The concept of a patch matching people with their true loves is pure shoujo, as is the vaguely European-meets-Japan village the story takes place in. This was joyfully engrossing and I was happy to see Strawberry Comics at SPX. If the rest of their comics are of a similar quality (and the others I glanced at tell me they might be) I think they will quickly be a publisher to watch.

I grew up in Richmond. Although when I tell people that, I usually have to amend it with “well, the suburbs of Richmond” because to me saying I grew up in Richmond implies this sort of edgy coolness I don’t really have.

Most people proclaim dislike for their hometowns and I certainly did this while I was there (did I mention the suburbs part?). I was convinced absolutely nothing cool was ever going on there. But the longer I’m away, I see how wrong I was about Richmond. There are plenty of cool things going on there (Virginia Commonwealth University’s art department has produced both Charles Vess and GWAR and the German department offers up translations of the original Shockheaded Peter).

So this weekend when I was pointedly failing to go to my high school reunion, I went to Richmond Zine Fest. It was totally cute and I don’t mean that in any sort of condescending way. I really liked it and spent a bunch of money really quickly (here’s a conversation I had with myself: “Weren’t you at Small Press Expo last weekend? Didn’t you buy a bunch of stuff there?” “Yes, but … wait, what’s your point?”). While I love that SPX was as crowded as it was, I found it easier to shop here. I bought more minicomics, a few zines and the first compilation of Nicole J. Georges‘ “Invincible Summer” zine, which is a combination of both comics and zines.

I also saw a lot of the usual suspects there — I’m not saying this is bad, but just that it indicates that perhaps I go to too many small/indie press shows in the Mid-Atlantic. (Of course I’m kidding. You can never go to too many small/indie press shows!)

I would’ve loved stuff like this a teenager (although I didn’t have a car, so getting there would’ve been an issue) So yay for Richmond. I am proud to say it’s my hometown. Even if I do have to thrown in that suburbs part.

These are basically the ones in the photo set I posted over the weekend, but I managed to make them slightly better in Photoshop. Slightly.

Check them out on Facebook or Flickr.

I didn’t buy that much this year, due to lack of funds, but my stack is not insignificant. This is slightly overdue, but I had non-functioning Internet for most of the week.

Like I said, there was a lack of your typical autobiographical, navel-gazing minicomics here. I’m sure they still exist, but I was pleased to see how few I came across.

In no particular order ..

The Ghosts – Matt Wiegle

Easily the most disturbing of the minicomics I bought, this retells an Inuit folktale. Wiegle’s scratchy art gives mood and atmosphere to the story. I can’t say I liked it – this isn’t really my thing – but I admire it.

How I Lost My S#?! at the Apple Store — Jim Dougan & Molly Lawless

Dougan’s story is all too easy to relate to – who hasn’t been annoyed at Apple’s tendency to put beauty above utility? — and Lawless can draw expressive faces like no one else. This is both delightful and entertaining. And Dougan is right – the D.C. area does have a ridiculous number of Apple stores. I have nothing to back this up, but I liked to pretend that this took place at the one nearest to me.

I Hate Mom’s Cat and Other Tails — Corinne Mucha

This is probably about as autobiographical as the comics that I bought get, but this lacks any sort of “I couldn’t think of what to draw so I drew a comic about not knowing what to draw” sense to it. Mucha’s art is playful and sketchy – it has a doodled, casual quality to it. This is a silly little comic, but it’s excellent for being just that.

Tales from the Forbidden Forest — Vanessa Satone and Eve Grandt

The anime-inspired art isn’t bad in either of these stories and I think both Satone and Grandt have potential, but this just felt like the product of minds that have played too much World of Warcraft. I think some of that is that there’s not much to either of these stories – they split the 20 pages between them, leaving little room for development of plot or characters. While I’d be interested to see if either of these storylines eventually go somewhere, as it is, this was mostly forgettable for me.

Breathers: Book One — Justin Madson

This is how it’s done. Taking place in a world where humans can no longer breathe the air outside without masks, this tells the story of a troubled single mother, a drug-addicted detective and a confused slacker dealing with family problems. It’s ambitious, sure, but Madson’s art is compelling and beautiful and I want the rest of these. And possibly the T-shirt. More people need to be making comics like this.

(And it’s worth noting that as I was discussing the awesomeness of this comic with another volunteer, a third volunteer piped up in agreement. Justin Madson is really that good.)

Man Enough: A Queer Romance — Bill Roundy

First of all, Roundy let me have this for $2 rather than $3 because he didn’t have change and I had two $1 bills. I think that was excellent of him, and if I had thought about it, I would’ve gone back and given him another dollar. But I didn’t. Sorry, Bill!

Roundy’s art is cute and animated, and despite that this is a story about a budding romance between a gay man and a transgendered man, it’s sweetly innocent. He has a lovely sense of humor. I know I will continue to seek out his work. He’s great.

PS Comics 4 — Minty Lewis

I absolutely, ludicrously love this. Telling the story of the adventures of a dog and a cat at a craft show, not much happens here, but what happens is absurdly funny. The art is adorably silly and I found myself laughing at every page. This is probably my favorite thing from SPX.

Rabbit Shadows — Jason Viola

This is ridiculously gorgeous. A wordless tale of a lonely rabbit who makes sculptures out of his shadows, it is surprisingly affecting. Viola composes each page perfectly – they are individual works of art on their own. His pen and ink style is beautifully detailed. This was an unexpected gem for me.

I have a few more things to review, but all those are a little longer and they may get a wrap-up or individual treatment. I will be gone this weekend, but I hope to finish up late Sunday or Monday.

• 13:42 I did build in extra money to my SPX budget. Which is good because I need it. #
• 15:20 Miss Maryland Teen USA just signed up for the SPX mailing list. #
• 16:38 Headed home. Good weekend. #
• 20:55 I am totally sad I missed @jamessime of Isotope Comics at SPX. I don’t know how I managed that. I was there all weekend! #

Automatically shipped by LoudTwitter