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There's been a flurry of offline discussion this week among some of the CBG contributors about what exactly "pushing comix forward" means. This weekend, as I sat down to re-read the first volume of Mome, Fantagraphics' outstanding new "literary journal" of comics, it suddenly became very clear. There are a growing number of artists (and writers) in comics today whose works are intelligent, human, emotional, questioning, complex, challenging and experimental. They are the ones actually pushing comics forward with their creations, taking an established language and expressing new ideas, exploring the boundaries of what comics are, and what they can be. So where do we come in? Comic Book Galaxy is a think tank of ideas on the artform by a group of very passionate enthusiasts who also want to push the medium further toward respectability and widespread acceptance. Our best tool for doing this is to attract attention to those artists and writers who are expanding the definition of comics, and encourage people to buy their work. It's often difficult to know these works even exist, as many of these books don't make it into smaller retail shops, and given the current state of the direct market, this won't change anytime soon. So, to me, one of the main goals of sites like CBG is to promote these innovative works and convince readers to check them out. What we want, in short, is for everyone to read more books like Mome.
Mome opens with a 12 page slice of life story by cover artist Gabrielle Bell, titled "I Feel Nothing." Two neighbors, a man and a woman, start the morning off with some whiskey, cocaine and conversation, but we quickly learn that the man, who remains nameless, has ulterior motives. He's severely depressed, frustrated with his hollow life as a bar owner, and wants to sleep with the woman as an antidote to his depression. But his advances are desperate, awkward and somewhat pathetic. Even after he offers to pay her to stay, the woman leaves for her mundane video rental job, and the story ends. What lingers is the shallowness of the interaction and an undercurrent of loneliness that both characters share. Bell's cartooning is capable and clear, sort of a mix between David Mazzucchelli and Jaime Hernandez and overall this was a solid opening story.
Following Bell is Kurt Wolfgang with a light-hearted meditation on death. The story follows an old man's last memories after his heart stops as he floats like a ghost through the highlights of his life. It's a clever idea but the art, which is much looser and less detailed than Wolfgang's outstanding graphic novella, Where Hats Go works against the story. The panels are washed out with a yellow and brown color palette that made it hard to determine the action in a few panels, and generally detracted from the artwork as a whole.
Jeffrey Brown contributes a typically neurotic autobiographical short depicting the artist's struggles with motivation. Brown seems aware that using himself as a character has its limitations and expresses that frustration through procrastination. The irony, of course, is that Brown is one of the more prolific cartoonists in the industry, particularly among the autobiographical sub-genre, but here he seems fed up with using his relationship experiences as entertainment. There's not really much in the way of story here, but as a creator, I can sympathize with the pressure Brown puts on himself. This is a far cry from the heartfelt confessional of Clumsy, but an honest expression nonetheless.
Paul Hornschemeier's contribution, "Life with Mr. Dangerous," was one of the pieces I was most looking forward to. On the strength of his graphic novel, Mother Come Home, Hornschemeier proved himself one of the few cartoonists comparable to Dan Clowes and Adrian Tomine in both artistry and writing skills. Though there's little more than setup in this first 12 page scene, Hornschemeier does a good job at establishing his protagonist, Amy, through three different one-sided phone conversations - first with her friend Michael, then her mother, and finally with her soon to be ex-boyfriend Eric. Hornschemeier's ability to convey all three of these supporting characters' personalities through Amy's reactions alone (we do not hear their side of the dialogue) shows his growing skills as a writer and though very little dramatic conflict has been established thus far, the characters are well-developed and interesting. I imagine this will read far better once it's collected than in quarterly installments, but still, any new work by Hornschemeier is a treat. Immediately following this story is a mini-interview with Hornschemeier conducted by Gary Groth. Though it doesn't go into nearly the depth of most of Groth's Comics Journal interviews, it's a good primer on the artist, his influences and plans for the future. And perhaps most importantly, Groth makes sure everyone knows how to pronounce Hornschemeier's name.
"The Beast," by Anders Nilsen is a beautiful, if somewhat confusing piece. It starts with a Kafkaesque everyman attempting to explain his "aesthetic philosophy" while complaining about constant interruptions by an increasingly corrupt government. But it takes a turn for the surreal as the character inexplicably disintegrates, and then is vacuumed up and reformed only to merge with his savior. It's absurd, and doesn't seem to have a point, per se, but what makes this contribution fascinating is not the story, but the shifting backgrounds, each a double page color photograph of various settings (a city skyline (see sample page), a field of flowers, an oil drilling field, etc.). These photos are contrasted against the faceless, panel-less black and white figures hovering over each like ghosts. This, more than anything contained in the dialogue, conveys the artist's true "aesthetic philosophy" and it's one of the most visually striking and original pieces in the book.
One of the two standout pieces in Mome is by newcomer Jonathan Bennett. Bennett tells a quiet story about a morning spent wandering his Brooklyn neighborhood, but its beauty is in his incredibly clear and detailed black and white style which reminded me a lot of Jason Lutes' Berlin. Like Lutes and Chris Ware, Bennett controls the pacing by varying panel sizes, and in "Dance with the Ventures," he demonstrates an innate sense of timing. Bennett also uses many of comics' visual tools very effectively, including sound effects, motion lines, gestures and flashbacks. In the sample page, look at the small 4 panel strip below panel 3 in the upper right corner. Bennett uses this tiny sequence to convey a single gesture, and his anatomy and pacing capture perfectly the restrained emotion. At the bottom of the same page, Bennett drops the borders and overlaps panels to transition into the flashback, before pulling the reader wholly into the memory with the large establishing shot. Bennett's proficiency and skill in the language of comics are far beyond most artists at this early point in their careers, and just as I felt after reading Jar of Fools for the first time, I am extremely excited to see where Bennett goes next.
The other standout piece is "Mildred Lee" by John Pham. Mildred is a college student, overwhelmed with work and frustrated with her lack of money. Pham also introduces another character, Vrej Sarkissian, who is presumably Mildred's roommate, though not enough information has been provided yet. Pham's clear linework is at once imaginative, innovative and aesthetically beautiful and his use of blues and oranges gives the work a distinctive look, and helps delineate the figures and backgrounds. I was so impressed with this contribution that I went and tracked down Epoxy #1, Pham's first published work, and it's startling to see how much the artist's style has evolved in just a few short years. Pham also shows an incredible sense of design and draftsmanship in his page layouts. The last panel on the sample page, for example, shows Mildred surrounded by various thoughts (both words and images) racing through her mind all at once. It's a clever visual tactic to show her frustration and I don't remember seeing this technique anywhere before. My one complaint with this contribution was that the landscape orientation was a little difficult to read with the way the book is bound, but overall, this was one of the best pieces in the anthology.
Sophie Crumb contributes three short stories, two of which are castoffs from her two issues of Belly Button Comix. But "Their Story" about her friend Tanya's immigration from the Ukraine to the United States is the best thing Crumb has done to date. In just four pages we learn about Tanya's entire life, from her impoverished childhood to her mother's death to her emergence as an artist. It's a very human story, and shows Sophie's capable of much more than the same old, familiar autobiographical stories she's been doing. As I was pretty lukewarm to Belly Button Comix , I hope this is a sign of things to come.
This was pretty much my reaction to David Heatley's contribution, "Overpeck." I think it's becoming clear that Heatley has direct experience with child sexual abuse. His sexual confessional strip that appeared in Deadpan #2 , while not directly related to abuse, was certainly an uncomfortable read, but in Mome, Heatley goes much further, introducing Sadie, a young girl who is the victim of a vicious rape where her father forced her to have sex with a dog in broad daylight while he watched. Sadie wanders through the strip naked, suffering panic attacks from her trauma, and enduring insults from her friends and neighbors. There's also an interlude with a retarded girl that seemed out of place, but may fit into the larger narrative. What Heatley excels at is creating a depth to each page, and allowing his characters to move freely through this landscape. But ultimately, this was a disquieting story with little character development or purpose and it's all the more disturbing because of Heatley's brightly colored, animation style, as if a child (albeit a very skilled one) had done the drawings. Heatley is clearly a talented cartoonist, but thus far his choice of subject matter has been disappointing.
The final story is an adaptation of an ancient Japanese folk tale by Andrice Arp, painter, co-editor and publisher of the Hi Horse anthologies. The tale focuses on two brothers, both gods, one of land, and one of the sea, who decide to trade roles for a day. However, when the land god loses his brother's prized fishing hook, he must go on a quest underwater to the kingdoms of the dragon to find it. The adaptation is effective, as Arp's blue-washed artwork captures the authentic look and feel of the period beautifully. The buildings, people and even the fish all have a distinctively Japanese look, not so much in a manga sense, but more along the lines of Patrick Atangan's The Yellow Jar or It is worth noting that Martin Cendreda, whose Dang! was one of the best floppy comics from Top Shelf in years, contributes four single panel paintings, mixed sporadically throughout the anthology. Each captioned painting is in full color, and compared to prior works, shows Cendreda's growing range as an artist. On the whole, Mome is greater than the sum of its parts. While it's too early to call this the Raw for a new generation, it is, without question, the most exciting and talented collection of cartoonists assembled between covers in a long time. Some, like Hornschemeier, have proven themselves, while others like Anders Nilsen and Jonathan Bennett offer the promise of great things to come. Overall, this was an impressive debut, and going forward Mome will hopefully become a breeding ground for some of comics' best and brightest alternative cartoonists. Highly recommended! Grade: 4.5 out of 5 -- Marc Sobel
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