Misinterpreted Complications #5
Is there a word for something that is wistful, sad and amusing at the same time? Nostalgiaish? Ah well, who says a comic reviewer needs a command of the language. Well, that’s what this comic is all at once. You can tell by the sample that Nick goes for fairly simple drawings accompanied by wise and insightful writing. If you’re of the opinion that this is a bad thing, we clearly can’t relate on this one. Plenty of the strips in this comic are currently up on the main page of his website (along with a couple not included here about the replaceable nature of relationships and the lack of the feeling of self-worth needed to start a new one), so you have no reason to be uninformed about this man. Willful ignorance, that’s one of my least favorite things in the world, so don’t do it! Stories in here include gradually ruining a fried egg as a small child, enjoying solitude (but not being at all sure how to get out of it if desired), being insulted by a stupid name for a charity, limitless possibilities shrinking to few, the flawed basis for Sim City, confusion from thumping, and life as a whole. This is one of those very rare occasions where I actually like the layout of the comics on his website better than the printed layout, as they’re two panels a page here and an organized clump on the site. There’s not a whole lot in these panels screaming out to be made bigger, so why not pack more content into the comics? Granted, that is my complaint for many comics that I enjoy, but it makes a special kind of sense here. Either way it’s an interesting pile of stories, told from a perspective that, even with the general misanthropy of comics readers, isn’t seen often enough.
