Johnson, Cathy G. – Gorgeous

January 28, 2026

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Gorgeous

I’ll call this one another bit of validation for my habit of never reading the back cover of a book before reading the book itself. Don’t do it kids! Spoilers coming right up, so if you don’t want to know why that’s the case, stop reading this and go stare at another screen for a bit. Read this book though, it’s great! For the rest of you, the back of the book refers to Sophie and some trouble she gets into… and we don’t meet Sophie until we’re 17 pages into a 54 page book. What we do see beforehand are two punks at a show, and they’re the sketchy asshole kind of punks, not the “heart of gold, just trying to have fun” kind of punks. If you’ve never been near that scene, yes, there is a huge difference. Anyway, one of these punks heckles the singer of the band enough that he walks off the stage, they steal his guitar and smash it, and drunkenly drive off into the night. One of them does have a brief mystical experience with some lights in the sky, so it’s not like they’re both thorough monsters, just not that great as far as human beings go. So the drunken driving ends up in a near miss, but they learn no lessons from that, so they keep going until they do crash into another car. And hey, it’s Sophie! She’s a sophomore in college, they help her out of her wrecked car and take her to an all night diner to wait for the car repair shop to open up. Of course they’ll be happy to help her and share insurance information later! But she eventually leaves to use the restroom, is disoriented enough to leave her purse in the booth, and of course they run off with it. From here it’s all the story of Sophie, as she sleeps for a few hours in the booth, calls her mother for help in the morning, and still makes it on time for the event she was trying to make, but that’s enough spoilers for now. I certainly wasn’t expecting it, and it wasn’t the sort of thing she should have been doing with head trauma. It’s a thoroughly engaging if occasionally maddening book (for the behavior of the punks, not the art or writing), but I’d thoroughly recommend it. $10

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Posted by Kevin

Seitchik, Daryl – Dear Missy

January 26, 2026

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Dear Missy

Who’s looking for a little mild heartbreak on a Monday? This one is told from the perspective of a young girl writing in her diary. Things start off fairly innocuous, as she’s writing about things she likes and how much she enjoys writing poems, before she gets to the heart of things: her parents are getting divorced, and she has no idea what her life is going to be like after that happens. What happens when her mom starts dating again? Or when her dad moves out? Will she lose friends at school over it? The writing is done with large single page panels (which is why the sample image is so cryptic), so it’s a quick read, but there are details in here that will stick in your brain and remind you of them later. As for the explanation of that image below, oof. I hope this is fiction, because the image of your dad moving out of the house would be heartbreaking enough, but bringing both cats with him would just be such an extra insult to the proceedings. It turns out that there are several Missy comics, so maybe I’ll keep looking for more, but this is one is solid by itself. Check it out, especially if you have any lingering divorce trauma in your life. $5

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Posted by Kevin

Rickheit, Hans – Cochlea & Eustachia Volume 2

January 22, 2026

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Cochlea & Eustachia Volume 2

To readers of this website who are just discovering his work now and who think that maybe Hans has put out both of these books recently, a little reality check: that’s not the case. This second volume was at least a decade after the first, and he’s been working on it since 2014. If you’d told me that he spent about a month on each panel of this almost 200 page behemoth, based on the frankly absurd amount of detail in each image, I’d absolutely believe you. Just a gorgeous book from start to finish, full of beautifully detailed horrors. Should I tell you about the story? Fine, but this really is one of those cases where the art alone could carry the book. Things start off in almost a straightforward fashion: there’s a lone figure wearing a bear mask, crawling through the wreckage of civilization, hunting for a bird. He successfully knocks a bird out of the sky, cuts it open… and then removes a key from the carcass, which he uses to open up his own face. Yep, for a page or two there I was almost fooled that this was a typical post-apocalyptic story. Nope! We go inside his open face and see a character (that is soon named Fronky by Cochlea and Eustachia) who is clearly looking for something. He pulls two husks out of filing cabinets, plugs them into a device of some kind, and out come our heroes! Well, one of them, anyway. She has to pull her twin out of her husk, as she doesn’t really want to leave it. And, considering what happens to both of them throughout the book, she had the right instincts. The mystery of their origin is revealed, in case (like me) you were still curious from the last volume. Which has almost nothing to do with this one, in case you were wondering if you had to read them in order like I did. Anyway! Fronky was incapacitated somehow, and they manage to extract a black bubble from him. Which they then crack open, revealing an armadillo, which they then spend a lot of time chasing, and which figures into the overall plot pretty heavily. From there… you know, me going over this point by point doesn’t help either of us. There’s a giant with a globe for a head who’s hunting the twins, there’s a room full of exact duplicates of Cochlea and Eustachia, there’s a creep who’s using versions of them to power his vehicle, one of them loses an eye, and just about every oddity in this world is hunting them. Small details in panels are paid off beautifully down the line, and it somehow all ties together nicely. There’s a lot more nudity in this one than the previous volume, but it’s not like I’d call either of these appropriate for all ages. If you’re a fan of the odd and almost inexplicable (that somehow all makes sense in the end), I couldn’t recommend these two books highly enough. $36 (or get both volumes for a discounted price of $56)

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Posted by Kevin

Rickheit, Hans – Cochlea & Eustachia Volume 1

January 20, 2026

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Cochlea & Eustachia Volume 1

I’d occasionally like to go back in time and give the past version of myself a smack on the head. I reviewed a few comics from Hans way back in the early days of the website, starting in 2005 if my rickety archiving system is accurate. At the time it was obvious that he was an exceptional talent, which current me can confirm by reading those old reviews. And yet! I somehow managed to lose track of the guy. One look at his website shows that he’s been making books ever since, so that’s a pile of books I need to get caught up with in a hurry. Because (long-winded and meandering introduction over) this is an exceptional comic, unlike just about anything else you’re likely to see. Before I even get started on the story, I’d recommend to anybody reading this book to take your time on those panels. Every one has a level of detail that rewards lingering on it, and the choice to go full color (his previous comics were black and white) was inspired. So what’s going on in here? Oh boy. Cochlea and Eustachia are twin (?) human girls (???), and no, you cannot tell them apart unless they’re actively addressing themselves. The “human” part is dicey since one drilled a hole into the side of the other and no blood came out (there was also only a momentary sense of pain), and the “twin” part is in question because most of this volume deals with the repercussions of getting mistaken for another identical version of the girls who’s going around and causing chaos. Things start off with a mole man emerging from the his cage in the back of a giant statue of an anteater with a fancy collar (or possibly a taxidermied anteater), which rouses Cochlea from her sleep. This also lets the reader take a tour of this house, surrounded by a sea of bird skulls, which is filled with mysteries and wonders. And dangers! They’re both seemingly at constant risk of injury or death, although we do see later that the rules might be a bit different in their world. After observing both the mole man going about his day and their evil twin doing all sorts of damage, one of them is captured after being mistaken for the evil twin. Horrible things happen to her as a result (how did a phone get up there anyway?), after one particularly horrible thing happens to the mole man, and things take an ugly turn after a plug is pulled. No more from me about the story, as I feel like I may have already said too much. This volume also has a short story in the back, which shows the pair digging up a (still living?) body and doing some improvements to it, which I should also probably leave to the reader. Highly recommended, obviously, and once again, reader: take your time with this one. There’s not a huge amount of dialogue, but some of these images are guaranteed to stick with you. $25 (or $56 for a pack of volume 1 & 2)

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Posted by Kevin

Purins, Ansis – Savage Beast

December 31, 2025

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Savage Beast

A new book from Ansis is always a treat, just to spare you any suspense regarding how this review is going to go. It was just last week that I was wearing my Zombre shirt to the gym and had the pleasure of watching a dude look at my shirt, silently mouth the word “Zombre” like it was a question, and go about his day. Too bad, as I would have had a grand old time explaining it to him if he’d asked. But hey, Zombre isn’t in this one, it’s all about cats! Do I always give comics about cats a positive review? Yeah, probably. And that’ll be true until I find the one comic about somebody being an asshole to a cat, at which point the streak will end. This one is a series of single page stories mostly about two cats (Skelly and Pip), with occasional guest cats thrown in. Ansis is also using occasional stickers and colors, mostly but not completely as part of his scanned images in the book (my cover had an actual sticker on it anyway), which made for an interesting look throughout. Side note: am I typing this while my cat Miles is literally cat yelling at me for closing the door while I’m doing this? Reader, you know it, so I’d better make this quick. Stories in here deal with the inevitable quest for quiet while you’re working (pretty on the nose for me today), the glorious dream of catching the mouse versus the reality of how much trouble it is, getting too worked up after watching a movie (cat edition), the sad origin story of Skelly (adopted as part of a bonded pair when the other half died only a week later, sadly I can relate to this one too), the tuna dance, and an unseen moment of cat peace. There are also stories about Ranger (it just never works to try to help a cat who seems too hot) and Cutlet (the shrieker) and Bob (awwww). I’m not seeing this on his website so it must be hot off the presses, but if you contact him through his website I’m thinking maybe $5 could get you a copy? I’m terrible about guessing prices so don’t quote me on that. He’s also putting out two new books next year, but for now… cats!

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Posted by Kevin

Lehmann, Brandon – Stocking Stuffer Spectacular

December 30, 2025

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Stocking Stuffer Spectacular

I apologize for this being a few days late to be considered an actual Christmas review, but you know how life gets around the holidays. And hey, at least I’m getting this out during the weird holiday taint week. Can the holidays be funny, was the question I asked myself after seeing this arrive in the mail. Normally I’d think that the subject has been satirized to death by now, but then again I’d never seen Brandon take a crack at it. This one starts off with a Christmas song (with lyrics), so gather the family around the fire and give it a go! Next we get a mysterious tale of a secret Santa who keeps sending a single egg to their chosen person throughout the holidays, until we get the dramatic reveal at the end. Next we see the moments where the Home Alone bandits question their life choices before going into that McCallister house and have time to briefly ponder what might have been. I’m not even going to tell you what the next two stories are about (other than to tell you that Rudolph is a human this time around and Santana shows up for the holiday), because I believe in surprises for Christmas. Oh, and Meat Santa to wrap things up, another unopened present for you. Still, the bulk of this book is a Christmas Carol parody. You may think, like I did, that parodying that particular story has been done to death and that there’s no hidden sources of humor left in it. Again, you haven’t seen Brandon’s take yet. Scrooge has never been humbuggier, Tiny Tim has never been tinier, the ghosts have never been more downsized, and the true effects of Scrooge’s change of heart on a larger scale have never been more clearly and depressingly explained. Brandon’s single panel per page style makes using a sample image tricky for me (oh, the troubles I have), but he asks the important questions, so I had to include the question that’s been bothering historians for over a century. This one is packed full of funny bits and I couldn’t recommend it more highly, ESPECIALLY if you read it during the actual holiday season. $25

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Posted by Kevin

Bishop, Eli – Detours

December 18, 2025

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Detours

I’m going to stick with my lifelong habit of avoiding spoilers whenever possible, but the biggest story in here deals with a breakup, and I’m still blown away with how it happened. The details are left to the imagination, and they’re kind of irrelevant to my bafflement, which is: people really break up over text and THEN ask to meet up so they can explain it in person? I’ve seen the cowardly breaking up by text, I’ve seen breaking up in person, I’ve even seen breaking up in person in a public place to lessen the chance of any unpleasant blowups. But breaking up by text and getting into the details later? AND asking them to return a loaned book when you meet them? I’m in awe. That story is told as in a fever dream, which makes sense, and the surprisingly good news he gets while waiting at the park was a fantastic juxtaposition. I mean, the look that the bank manager gave when he realized that heartbroken Eli would be a terrible model for a photo op! Eh, that’ll all make sense when you read the story. Other stories in here include the secret conversations of hospital equipment (come on, you know you were wondering about them) and a crowd in the rain joining together to salvage some poorly placed road detour blocks during a torrential downpour. Also sprinkled throughout are some of Eli’s interpretations of headlines from a celebrity gossip magazine he saw and didn’t understand, and there’s some hilarious stuff in there. The joys of hitting middle age are sparse, but “I have no idea who these ‘famous’ people are and also don’t care” is definitely one of them. I’d recommend this for the breakup story alone, but there’s a lot of good stuff in here, so give it a shot why don’t you? $10

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Posted by Kevin

Nall, Alex – Town & Country #4

December 16, 2025

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Town & Country #4

This one fell through the reviewing cracks somehow (Alex put this out a couple of years ago), which wouldn’t be all that notable except for the fact that his online store seems to be down completely and the only active link I can find for this issue goes to Birdcage Bottom Books. They’re great, don’t get me wrong, but the link shows as a security risk, so I’m using a different link that’s currently sold out. Maybe they’ll get more? Eh, I don’t know. Not the first time that I’ve reviewed something and wondered after the fact if a comics apocalypse happened while I wasn’t paying attention. Past me thought I’d be reading the previous three issues before trying to review this one, but current me is cranky and tired, so I’ll have to rely on my memory to keep these characters straight. Which isn’t as problematic as usual, since Alex put a brief synopsis at the start, and the theme of this issue is overall less about the people than it is about the town itself. The first half of this book is an oral history of the town given by one of its residents, and we don’t see any details about who or what’s happening until the end. This person goes through what the town used to be like, how the people used to interact, how sad it is that the younger generation can’t wait to get out, why they stick around, etc. If you come from a small town this one might hit you pretty hard, as it’s hard not to see some parallels to other places that I’ve lived. After a lovely centerfold depicting parts of the town (and a very brief story about Suzy), the rest of the book shows an outdoor wedding. Sure, Alex spends plenty of time with some character growth for several people (seriously, the number of things going on in the background makes me think that I still missed a few after reading this twice), but this is once again about the town and the various interpersonal dynamics happening. Also that ending didn’t involve any humans and it still got me. Here’s hoping that everything is OK in Alex’s world, as it’s odd not to see active links to his comics online. But if you can find this at a con or have better searching skills than me, give it a shot. It might not be the best single issue by itself, but it wouldn’t be possible without the character growth from the previous issues, and I’m still fascinated to see how it all comes together. $8

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Posted by Kevin

Brubaker, Charles – Lauren Ipsum

December 10, 2025

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Lauren Ipsum #32

It’s been a little while since I’ve reviewed a comic from Charles (the pace he puts these things out at puts even Brian Canini to shame, and if I were to review everything he makes this would become a Charles Brubaker exclusive website in a hurry), but I do like to check in occasionally to see how things are going. Big picture: yeah, the guy is still pretty funny, even battering his way past my natural indifference to the four panel gag structure to get a few genuine laughs out of me every time. That’s no small task! Smaller picture, or a review of the actual comic: yep, he’s still getting laughs out of me. I’m genuinely astonished that this is the first issue of Lauren Ipsum I’ve reviewed here, especially since it’s #32 (!!!). I was also curious about how far he’s gotten with his various other series, and was mildly baffled to see that the only books he has listed for sale are his graphic novel collections of these (and other) minis. I’m guessing that you can contact the man and ask for specific issues, but that’s just a guess. This issue has a few stories running through it, all neatly wrapped up by the end. There’s an ongoing (and hilarious) story about a man and his sidekick who go house to house, stealing used books, in one of the more unrealistic get rich quick schemes I’ve ever heard. As a man who just tried to sell two very full paper grocery bags of books/graphic novels and was pleasantly surprised to end up with $60 in trade-in value… let’s just say that it’s a very funny premise for a thief. There are a few assorted strips in the middle dealing with Lauren as an author and her general inability to relax, and the last chunk of the comic deals with Lauren summoning the spirit of Zeus, which gives Charles the opportunity to have a whole lot of fun with Zeus as a sex creep who can’t even help pestering inanimate objects. Some genuinely funny stuff here, even more so if you’re familiar with the myths. So yeah, the man still puts out comics that are well worth checking out. If you’re just a little bit curious I’d suggest checking with him to see if you could get a grab bag of minis, if you’re willing to dive right in maybe start with his Ask a Cat omnibus and go from there? $2 (probably)

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Posted by Kevin

Gren – Watch Your Tone!!

December 8, 2025

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Watch Your Tone!!

First off, don’t let my inability to properly size a scanned image fool you: this comic is tiny, maybe 1/10th the size of how the scan appears. It’s also roughly 800% more informative and educational than you may have guessed from the cover. Aren’t numbers fun! This comic explains several different types of toning that were used from the early days of comics to today. If you’re an artist and/or are wondering about specifics, those types of tones are halftone, benday, craftint, acetate and zip-a-tone. The comic lays out when they were invented, when they were used, which comics benefited the most from them, etc. There’s also some fun historical facts in the back; I had no idea that EC comics used 64 colors decades before DC comics did. So like I said, informative and fun. What more can you ask for out of a teeny tiny mini comic like this? $4 (on sale for $2.40 as I write this review, so act fast if you’re curious)

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Posted by Kevin

Minkoff, John – The Bible Drawings Part Two

December 4, 2025

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The Bible Drawings Part Two

After reading the first issue of John’s bible drawings I was very curious to see how he’d progress, and this one is if anything even more engaging than the first issue. If you’re not familiar with the book, or only familiar in the sense that it’s been in the culture for just about forever and you’re bound to learn a few things about it, don’t fret. John goes into great detail in his notes after the comics about the sources he uses, his basis for shifting to opinion a few times, even the debates about which translation is best. So yeah, even if you barely know anything about the bible, you’ll know a lot more about it after reading his notes. This one (no big shocker here) starts off right after the stories in the first issue, which John rightly refers to as the “patriarchal/matriarchal tales” of the first section of the bible. And, as those of us who have read the book know (it was ages ago, yes I read the whole thing, ask me about it sometime), those stories get problematic in a hurry. They’re also very much about the characters and/or actual historical figures, so expect to learn a lot about mistresses, kidnappings, exiles, sexual assaults, etc. Yes, including stories that involve some of the biggest names that are still revered today. It makes you think, and explains why so many of these stories were barely ever mentioned in church or Sunday school. It’s fascinating stuff, and his art really makes these dusty old stories come alive. I’d recommend checking both issues out, but if you can only afford one I’d suggest this one. $15

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Posted by Kevin

Georges, Dane – Sleepless Sights

December 2, 2025

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Sleepless Sights

Now that was one heck of a comic. It all starts off casually enough, as our (unnamed) hero has insomnia, wakes up at 3am and decides to take a walk. I’d submit that nothing good in human history has ever happened after deciding to take a walk at 3am, but our hero obviously doesn’t subscribe to that theory. As he’s leaving his cat runs out the open door. Cat owners know the terror involved in that situation (remind me to tell you about the time I chased my very indoors cat through an open courtyard during, yes, the early morning hours with nobody around). Which maybe wouldn’t be that bad, as he lives in an apartment building and the cat is just loose in the hallway, but then the elevator door opens and the cat runs inside, leading to a whole thing. I’m not sure how much to give away here, but that sample image below, of our hero finally getting onto an elevator? If you can take one look at that other guy and think that situation ends well, do I ever have some bad news for you! From there it’s a steady escalation, as it turns out that there’s quite a lot of activity happening in that apartment building at 3am, along with the extremely disquieting sense that you’re never completely sure how real any of what’s happening actually is. It’s a thoroughly entertaining and more than slightly creepy book, so of course I think you should check it out. $5

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Posted by Kevin

Porcellino, John – King Cat #84

November 26, 2025

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King Cat #84

Have I run out of words to talk about King Cat? No! But I must confess, I’m currently spending a lot more time sitting here and thinking about the comic that I am writing about it. And if you were looking at a sped up recording of me typing this review (you creep), then you’d see me getting up and puttering around the house a bit rather than my usual business of madly typing until all of the thoughts are out of my head. Um, a peek behind the curtain there, I guess. Maybe it’s because these books are rare and I’m trying to savor it? Probably, because if you think this is the issue where I’m finally going to stop recommending this book, you are completely mistaken. There’s a lot of death this time around, as John’s mother, cat and one of his best friends have all passed away since the last issue. He’s as open as it’s possible for a person to be while talking about these events, and I doubt very much that you’ll be able to get through this comic without crying a few times. But there’s funny stuff in here too, so don’t go thinking it’s entirely grim. Other stories in here deal with John trying to get woodchucks to stop pecking holes in his gutters (in hilariously cartoonish fashion), tasting the dog, unwelcome visits from the cat while sitting on the toilet, how many geese are in the picture, trying to make the ultimate pattern for a dream machine, things left on the nightstand, remembering a trip to the circus and how Zorro fit into it, learning the Dewey Decimal System from a nun while having class outside, a few Buddhist stories, and several more quiet pieces. Of course there’s also his top 40 (and at this point I’d genuinely have to read all of his old comics again to see if it was ever actually exactly 40), several pages of brief synopses of dreams, how he picked out his dog Gretel, and several pages of letters. Look, his comics are a whole mood, and mine instantly improves any time I see a new issue in the mail or at a comics shop. If you’ve somehow made it this far if life without reading any of his comics, fix that already! $7

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Posted by Kevin

Pellnat, Stephen – Mach the Hedgehog

November 24, 2025

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Mach the Hedgehog

Is there a word for the feeling you get when you realize that the comic that you randomly bought from an artist at a comics convention was, in hindsight, probably not the best choice out of their available work? Eh, probably not. It’s just that in looking up Stephen’s info for this review, his Upstate series seems like it’s much more my type of thing, especially since I have no attachment to Sonic, or even enough knowledge of the characters to get what I’m pretty sure are most of the jokes in this comic. Still, I had a good time reading it, and that ending got a legit chuckle out of me. As you may have guessed, this is kinda sorta a parody of Sonic the Hedgehog, the lead character of a series of games, comics and cartoons, but set in the far future. Sonic (Mach in this book; if there’s a character actually named Mach and I’m getting this all wrong, I’m OK with that level of ignorance) starts off this comic in a grand fight with the evil Professor, and we’re quickly made aware that this is a flashback and Mach is actually an elderly hedgehog who’s being cared for by a robot. The rest of the book is an appreciation dinner for Mach (that he wants no part in), Mach catching up with an old enemy and, like I said, one fantastic ending. If you’ve got a lot of love for this character/series I’m sure there’s plenty here that I missed, but if you’re going into it fairly new like me there’s still funny stuff in here. $7

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Posted by Kevin

Steiner, Steve – Odd Clods #8

November 19, 2025

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Odd Clods #8

Well, this is embarrassing. A review with no pictures? For a comic, which is the most visual of all mediums? Well, when I reviewed #7 of this series I had to grab pictures from Steve’s website, and this one is so new that it isn’t ON his website yet. And the book is too large for me to scan, so any pictures I’d put up would be unconnected snippets of much larger images, so basically worthless. Look, I’ll keep checking his website, and if he updates with images of this book I’ll, um, borrow them again and post them here. In the meantime, Steve has really outdone himself visually with this one, which makes it even worse that all I have to convey that for now is my words. Last time around I was impressed because Steve presented several larger stories in the comic, with my theory being that his style was evolving. Which was a ridiculous thing to think, because this one is almost entirely ad parodies, which by nature are rarely even a full page… and I’d still call this one a step up from his previous issue. Which I loved! Anyway, the framing device here is that an unemployed dude spends the day hanging out at home and reading the newspaper which, as is the case of the few remaining newspapers that have survived into 2025, mostly ads. To be clear, I would have liked this just fine if the book was all ad parodies, because Steve is a genuinely funny writer and several of these got a chuckle out of me. But no, he goes much farther than that. The ads are increasingly encroached upon by other ads as you go on. First there’s the acidic teeth cleaner that drips down onto the lady who’s trying to feed her cat a vegan diet, then the roided-up dude literally breaking the wall into an ad for drugged chocolate bars, or the job deletion robot’s laser beam bouncing off a protected brain in one ad an onto a real estate ad, and on and on it goes. The whole book (outside of wrapping up the framing device story in the end) is an engaging puzzle to read how the ads effect each other, which order you should be reading these (some are easy to follow the chain of chaos, others you as the reader could go a few ways), and the few ads that manage to stay walled off from the increasing madness. There’s also a reason for it all in the end, which I’m not going to get into here, but I thought it was nicely handled. This isn’t on his website as of mid November 2025, but I can’t imagine that’ll stay the case much longer, so check it out why don’t you? Don’t let the price tag scare you, you’ll be getting quite a lot of comic for that price. $15

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Posted by Kevin

Baskin, Glenn – Oh Fudge and Flub

November 17, 2025

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Oh Fudge and Flub

No, that’s probably not the actual title, but after wondering what to call these comics the first time around I’ve decided to just go with the first phrase and call that a title. Just trying to keep these even slightly distinct from each other, since I have more of his comics to review eventually. This time around we get several excuses from our hero as to why he’s calling in sick to work on every day of the week, which is… exactly what happened in the last comic of his that I reviewed? Huh. Lemme just go back and make sure I didn’t buy two copies of the same thing… nope. It even has another recipe for a hot dog casserole, but here’s the twist: this one doesn’t have sauerkraut in it. But it does have peas, which is another instant veto from me. But if he keeps putting these recipes into every one of these comics, I’m bound to run across a recipe I like one of these days! So if you’ve already somehow picked up the previous issue I reviewed and see this one at a con, should you buy it too? I mean, yeah, probably. This one is longer than the previous issue, has more jokes, more excuses for calling off work (but probably fewer that have any chance of helping you in a practical sense), and hey, color covers are always nice. Two comics isn’t enough of a sample size for me to understand what Glenn is getting at here by making two minis with the same theme (and with covers that are very similar), but I’ll read a few more of these and come up with something. Deal? No price again, but maybe a couple of bucks?

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Posted by Kevin

Forker, Nick – Eyeland #16

November 13, 2025

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Eyeland #16

Maybe some day I’ll understand why it’s so rare for artists to have simple ways to buy their comics on their websites, but that day is not today. The link goes to a store that is currently sold out, but hey, maybe they’ll get more copies! Also back in my review for #13 I figured out that Nick is doing more continuing stories now and that I should stop my habit of reviewing random issues. I then promptly forgot all about that before reviewing this one. Better luck next time! This is a collection of several short pieces that are almost certainly parts of larger stories, but I’ll do my best. First up is the story of a badger having a conversation with several animals. He tells them that he has a secret he’d like to share with them… but only if they give up something they value. Next up is the shortest story, starring our hero the eyeball, discovering drinking, dancing and fun. I’m guessing this would have made a lot more sense in context, but I’ll get there eventually. Next is an equally short piece about an amnesiac with a cooked chicken (attached to a penis) for a head waking up in the back of an unknown vehicle. The next piece looks like the start of a story, as it deals with a young man who gets in an accident, rejects death, comes back to life and has a series of visions when he’s drifting in and out of consciousness. Finally there’s a baffling piece about a snake and a… sentient zit? The management here at Optical Sloth (me, it’s always and forever just been me) regrets not reading the previous issues for context, and will get on that in the near future. Before the end of 2025 is my pledge to you! And since it’s already mid-November, that’s serious business. The bottom line is that Nick is still putting out quality comics at an impressive pace, and I’m content just to watch his mind work, even without full context. If you’re like that too, give this one a shot! If not, the man has at least two collections available, maybe start with one of those and see what you think. $7

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Posted by Kevin

Petre, Greg & Fake – Santos Sisters #9

November 11, 2025

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Santos Sisters #9

I feel like there’s a certain type of old school comic reader who would still, somehow, in this disastrous world of ours, make a fuss over the fact that the image on the cover never occurs in the comic, so I’ll acknowledge that that’s the case. But what’s in the comic is even better than them somehow making their way to space, so don’t worry about it! There are four stories in this Eisner award winning series (hey, congrats!), along with the usual and constantly growing array of ads, and this time even a letters page. First up is the dramatic tale of Alana saying that she’s quitting the sisters to become a tattoo artist. How will her friends react? Will anybody take her seriously? Will she be any good at inking tattoos? OK, no more hypothetical questions in my review, but you know I’m not going to answer any of them. Next up is a story of the boys going nuts for Pokeman cards and buying them all up before some local kids can get theirs, which leads to them getting offered old baseball cards out of pity, which leads to the birth of a new and terrifying villain. Or maybe just a walking public service announcement? Dammit, I said I was done with the hypotheticals. Boozy Bee’s wife almost gets caught in the act, but can she manage to hide her lover before… ugh, once you start with the questions you just can’t stop. Finally there’s the story of a man, his wallet, the need for cash to buy shawarma and an irresistible ad for massage service. The need to ask another hypothetical question is killing me, but I’ll move past it. It’s another solid issue, and they’ve built up such a massive cast of characters that the Santos Sisters don’t even need to be in every story to still have a fun comic. Buy that collection from Fantagraphics why don’t you, then get caught up with the individual issues? They work fast, so you’re running out of time to catch up before it becomes a hopeless task. $5

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Posted by Kevin

Bishop, Eli – Spinnerrackreverie

November 6, 2025

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Spinnerrackreverie

I wonder how many of the people reading this remember spinner racks. Fellow adults/middle-aged people, give me a second here. Younger folks, you could literally spin those racks in a circle, and the racks would be covered by the latest comics available. Sometimes a little digging would uncover hidden issues in these racks, or if you were lucky even the last few back issues of whatever series you were looking for. Sure, the rack kind of beat up the comics a bit, but it was definitely convenient. This not particularly helpful explainer doesn’t say much about the inside of this comic, but at least now you know what the title means! This is a collection of Eli’s interpretations of the covers of several old comics. He first shows his version of two covers, then on the following page shows the actual covers along with a synopsis of the stories and whatever he knows about the covers (or trivia about the contents, if it’s relevant). I recognized a few of these (including this one) before I got to the actual cover, and in every instance that I recognized Eli’s version was an improvement. I also hadn’t realized that so many older comics never credited the cover artist, let alone the colorist or letterer for it, so a lot of that stuff is literally lost to history. Which is why I tend to call it out when I review a mini comic with no contact information in it. Before you know it it’s 20 years later and somebody is discovering your comic for the first time, and they’ll have no clue who made it. Anyway, this was a blast for me, and I think it would also be interesting for people who’ve never heard of spinner racks (but I must admit that my opinion is not exactly subjective). $12

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Posted by Kevin

Canini, Brian – Airbag #4

November 4, 2025

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Airbag #4

I recently watched all of the Treehouse of Horror episodes of The Simpsons (well, re-watched the first dozen or so, watched the rest for the first time), so maybe it’s just because they’re fresh in my mind, but that’s what came instantly to mind after reading this. These issues are also Brian’s chance to create whatever stories he wants without necessarily thinking about a long term plan, just like those episodes. I say that and I’ll probably end up figuring out around #12 or so that he had a master plan all along. Anyway! This is another collection of short stories, although I think at least a few of the characters have appeared in some of his other comics. First up is the longest story in here (called Basement Machine; it takes up exactly half of the comic), dealing with a woman who’s spiraling because of recent break-up before starting to hear an odd but insistent noise in her basement. How far would you go to uncover the mystery behind something like that? Speaking as someone who’s currently living in a house where the basement locks from my side, I personally would have given up long before she did. There’s one quick but poignant story in here about how a bookshelf changes over time and what is heard by that shelf over the years, and then the next story covers the rest of the comic. It deals with a bullied boy who does some quick math in his head (based off of comic book super hero origin stories) and decides that if he rolls around in poison ivy, he’ll become Poison Ivy Man. Is he correct? I’ll let you discover that part, but this was also a solid story about a quiet kid who tries to do things the right way to get the bullies to like him while not being a total pushover. Altogether it’s another solid issue of Airbag, and it’s another one that I’d recommend. These are also great if you see him at a convention, since they’re self-contained. I mean, I’d also recommend all 22ish issues of Plastic People, but one of those options is significantly more of a financial commitment than the other one. $10

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Posted by Kevin

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