This is a thoughtful and at least slightly heartbreaking story about losing touch with a friend after moving away for college, but if you’ve ever gradually lost touch with anybody, you’re going to feel a bit of a sting reading this one. I’ve tried a few times to go through some of my older memorabilia (I barely ever throw anything away, it’s a problem!), and the bulk of it involves people I lost touch with 20 years ago, maybe even longer. At the time each of them took up a big chunk of my world, but would they even care to see some of this stuff now? Not that this comic has anything to do with me, but it got me thinking about my own issues, which is as solid of an endorsement of a story as I can think of. This one starts off with June getting home after graduating from college, and we’re introduced to her as she’s writing Daisy a letter. We quickly see that Daisy never responded to these letters and June crosses them out after she writes them, using them more for therapy than anything else. Throughout the book we flip back and forth between June’s present and her memories of better times with Daisy. As she goes through these memories it becomes clear to her that Daisy had been drifting away for awhile, but figuring that out doesn’t do much to lessen the pain of it. In the end it’s about acceptance and moving on with your life, or at least giving it your best shot. And it even has me debating joining Facebook or something else horrible to see what those old friends are up to, and if you knew how much I hated “the socials,” you’d know what a huge statement that is. I think this one was $15. Not seeing it on their website currently, but I did buy it last week, so I’m thinking there are still copies available…
Has anybody out there seen the original Dolly Parton Playboy cover? If you, you might be having nightmares after seeing that crazy-eyed dude in place of her picture. Also, I’m clearly still a sucker for the autobio comics, as there were about a dozen to choose from at David’s table (SPACE 2024, future readers) and I went right for this one. Do I regret not also grabbing the wrestling comic? Reader, you know I do. This is a story from David’s time working at a used movie/music/games/comics store and the reliable event that happened every time they had a sale on VHS tapes and Playboys: Dan would come in a clear the place out, even bringing his own tubs for transport. As their checkout system was fairly antiquated, this would take quite a while to process, which gave the staff plenty of time to get to know the guy. And since “crazy” is reductive and hurtful more often than not, let’s just say that Dan’s theories about just about everything were a shade off of the norm. A conspiracist, is what I’m saying, and they had a great time getting his thoughts on anything and everything. Still, eventually he stopped coming (or the store closed down; David doesn’t say which), and the remaining staff were left with their own theories as to what happened to him and what he did with all of those VHS tapes and issues of Playboy. As “resold them” was considered too boring as a theory, they had to get creative. Hey, you try! What could somebody do with piles of VHS tapes and magazine? It’s an interesting mix of possibilities, although my guess was an enclosed cot made of VHS tapes, wallpapered with Playboy images. Hey, there are no wrong guesses! Anyway, it’s a fun little story, and even though it’s not listed on his website at the moment, I bought it from him literally two days ago, so I’m guessing he still has a few tucked away. $5 (If I’m remembering correctly)
Here I was, all set to rave about this as an absolutely stellar debut graphic novel (which it very much is, don’t get me wrong) only to discover that I’d reviewed one of her minis 15 years ago (The Legend of Johnny Rocker, and hey, at least this gave me the opportunity to clean up the text and the link). So it’s not like she’s brand new to comics, it’s just that this is her first hefty comic book. Yes, that’s my preferred term for graphic novels, and no, of course it never caught on. Yeesh, I’m rambling, and if any readers are wondering, yes, this is indeed why I don’t usually post reviews after a couple of drinks. But I just finished this, and I can’t put it onto my bookshelf without getting some thoughts out. This will be tricky to talk about without giving anything away, so be warned: I’ll try my best, but I unreservedly recommend it, even though you’re pretty much guaranteed to be disturbed by it. This is the story of a young woman (Carolanne) who had a crush on a guy at work and dreamed of a perfect life. Beth chose a fascinating structure for the book, starting with the ending (the tone changes completely once you’ve finished and know what’s happening in those opening images), followed by her successful relationship that preceded it, followed by her pregnancy and her taking time off of work. All relatively normal so far, even benign at times, outside of a dream(?) sequence that hints at the horrors to come. The flashbacks continue, as we see Carolanne in the utter mundanity of her life before she landed what she thought of as her dream boyfriend and eventual husband. I’m glossing over this quickly, because this is going to be on all kinds of “best of” lists by the end of the year and you’re all going to read it anyway. Right? Anyway, we eventually end up back in the happy stage of the relationship, with her pregnant and taking maternity leave from work, before something absolutely devastating happens. Is that a bad place to stop telling you what happens next? Oh well, that’s all the specifics you’re getting out of me. What happens from there was something that could have gone predictably in a number of ways under lesser hands, but there were all kinds of surprises all the way through the end, and anybody trying to predict things would have at best only guessed at the level of disintegration of her life, friends, and self. This is terrifying, deeply disturbing stuff, and I can’t wait to see what Beth does next. $19.99
DJ school! We’ve all thought about it. OK, some of us have, at least, and maybe even in the olden times when it involved switching out actual records. Why, in my day… man, sorry about that. Narrowly avoided a serious old man rant. Anyway! In this issue our hero is bored at his day job and dreams of being a DJ. That terrible boss is wrong; a kitchen is absolutely a perfect place to pretend to be a DJ. He gets fired, more or less, and tells us his origin story, which involves hearing “Firestarter” by Prodigy at the age of 3 and having it change his life. How many DJs did that song create, do you reckon? It has to be hundreds at a minimum. He looks online and finds a course about becoming a DJ, although he finds it boring and a bit obvious, at least until he discovers… the secret trick. As we move on to his first gig, our hero is nervous, so a well-meaning (?) liason offers him what solves all problems at a rave: hard drugs. Our hero thinks he’s maybe bitten off more than he can chew, as he can no longer tell where his hands are, but in case of emergency he can always rely on… the secret trick! It’s a fun story with a happy ending (spoilers I guess), which is very much not a guarantee with the mini kus books. It’s also $7.95 by itself or $22 if you buy it with three other comics and, as always, you know which of those two options I recommend.
I’m still moving ahead with my “let’s review a random issue of Eyeland” plan, but I’m going to have to pick up the pace on this sucker because he sent me some new comics recently to go along with the backlog. Now hiring, pay rate same as mine (losing a little money paying for the website, but at a “meh” level)! This time around is a theme that’s near and dear to most of our hearts, not that WE’RE the ones with the problem, not at all: getting lost in screens. Why yes, I am typing this and seeing it on a computer monitor, so the irony isn’t lost on me. But hey, I’m heading to the gym once I finish writing these reviews, that has to count for something, right? Things start off with a close-up of the detritus surrounding the average gamer, and yep, that was a little too on the nose. Our hero then takes a bit of a mystical journey through a swamp, learning a bit about the swamp (along with some cryptic hints from a Yoda-esque figure), before we see the horror: every gamer in the world, all gathered in one area, all in their individual boxes. It’s horrifying to think about everybody who’s playing a game right now, cut off from human contact, but to see an image of them all together, and the endlessly repeated, lame dialogue… yikes. Not something I’d ever conceived of, but it’s a sobering image. From there a rescue plan is devised for these poor souls, but do any of them have an interest in being rescued? It’s another thought-provoking issue, and will it make me self-conscious the next time I fire up a game? Almost certainly yes. I’ll also probably get over it after a few minutes, meaning I won’t end up learning any lesson from this comic. How about you? $5
Ah, autobio comics. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a collection as hefty as this one, and it’s a good one. It might seem complicated, but the basic ingredient of a good autobio comic is simple: do you have interesting stories to tell? If so, you’re already more than halfway there! If not, or if you run out, well, that’s a large part of why most diary strips tend to just peter out after a few months or years. But hey, let’s get to Tony! He’s been doing this for a long time (the mid 90’s), but he took a significant break and came back. This is a collection of most of the comics/illustrations that he’s done, and this is over 200 pages, so I’d say he’s done quite a bit over the years. The first chunk is made up of stories called Greenpoint of View, tales mostly taken from his immediate surrounding area in the 90’s. There’s watching his neighborhood being gradually taken over by hipsters (he’s correct, people do forget that it all started with trucker hats), stopping to listen to a band in the park and what became of them, a fascinating piece about how he was one of the main reasons why ticket quotas were stopped for New York cops (it involves the injustice of him getting ticketed early in the a.m. one day for spreading out over two seats when he had the entire car to himself), and a sadly closed pizza place. Other stories include his experience participating in the phone survey on whether or not to murder Robin back in the late 80’s (yes kids, DC comics really did encourage people to call a hotline to determine whether or not the new Robin lived or died), his experience with the Alpha Flight comic and his complicated feelings for John Byrne, a secret Italian desert called tartufo that sounds freaking delicious, squab, his fascination with the McRib, a hopeful tale of how he got through a bout of severe depression, his learning the fascinating history behind the name of one of the ferries in New York harbor, and several very short (mostly one page) stories about a variety of subjects, which I’ll leave as a surprise for y’all. He also gets political towards the end, which I still wish would happen with more cartoonists, and he has several compelling strips on recent political history. Anti-Trump stuff, obviously, in case you were worried that he had trouble taking a stand against something so obviously horrific. There are pull quotes from about a dozen names that you’ll recognize if you’re been reading comics for more than a few months; his stuff has obviously impressed a wide range of people over the years. This is a damned solid collection of almost entirely autobiographical comics, from a guy with a lot of fun and/or fascinating stories to tell. Check it out, why don’t you? $20
I’m going to type a lot of words now, as is my way, but to be very clear about this comic right off the bat: I’m fully on board for this journey. Any quibbles (and I honestly can’t think of any at the moment), any doubts, I’m still fully invested in seeing where Alex takes this thing. To anybody who’s jumping into my ramblings with the review for #2, that’s ridiculous, but things ended up previously with the flushed fetus Robert (talking from birth, mind you) surviving his experience in the sewer and wandering out into the world. This one picks up in 1974, about 26 years after the first issue, and Robert is a full grown dude. What was his life like? How did he make it this far? Maybe that’ll get dealt with later in the series, or maybe it’s irrelevant and I shouldn’t worry about it. Alex has a fantastic (and surprisingly thorough, considering how complex the story has been so far) synopsis on the inside front cover, for new readers and anybody who might have forgotten bits of it, which is something I’m always happy to see. We’re reintroduced to Robert, who’s a broke poet, and the audience at this particular poetry reading is pretty sick of him always bringing things back to the sewer. Which is a succinct, hilarious way to let the reader know that he’s scarred for life from an experience that would definitely do that to a person. We meet Robert’s neighbor Dandelion, who is also haunted by that grinning devil, not that either of them know that about the other person. We spend a good chunk of the issue with her, so I’m guessing that’ll be something else that comes in to play more later. We see that his mother is still around, and the oddball cartoonist neighbor is still doing his thing, but in a more sinister fashion, which the back cover (actually the end of the story; Alex used ALL the pages for this 66 page behemoth of a tale) lays out explicitly. Oh, and there’s the killer, or maybe it’s a killer. And Robert’s girlfriend, and Dandelion’s therapist and abandoned car, and that wandering cop… lots of ingredients bubbling around. It’s a thoroughly engaging story, and the only thing that has me even slightly hesitating before buying the next available issues is the eternal “do I just wait for the collected edition to come out” conundrum. If you see a review for #3 shortly, I guess that answers that… $14
What a gorgeous, precise little comic this is. Not that most comics are sloppy or anything, but this one was clearly made with intention in each image/line. Think of this as a meditation session but with you being represented as a video game image and you’ll come close to the feel of it, although this is definitely one of those comics you need to experience for yourself to have a chance to fully understand it. As such, does this mean that mini kus has done it to me again, as this comic is basically unreviewable? They surely did! Let’s see what I can say about it. Things start off with a login for the session, followed by subtle changes to the character, followed by changes of the scenery. The character (or you, if you’re meditating along with the comic) merge with the scenery, get invaded by all sorts of images and ideas, but maintain serenity throughout. This could be a harrowing experience if you weren’t meditating already, so it’s probably best to calm yourself and enjoy the ride. Could this comic alone drive you to madness otherwise? I mean, probably not, unless letting the fluidity flow through or blending into the background would be problems for you. It’s somehow a riveting and relaxing story all at once, so yeah, I’d definitely say it’s worth checking out. $8 for the comic or $22 for this one with three others, and you know by now which deal I recommend…
So I have this vague, half-formed idea that there can be too many pages in some wordless stories. Wordless minis are fine, wordless comics are usually at least understandable, but once you get into wordless graphic novel territory, you pretty much need to be a master of the craft to come away with anything coherent. The other option, of course, is that I’m a dummy who can’t understand longer works unless they’re spelled out for me. You may be right about that! But I can only write reviews with the brain that I’ve got, and this poor old sucker basically tapped out halfway through (but I did read it to the end; I am a professional, after all!). Positives: this is a wildly imaginative world, and while I know there’s no way it was financially possible, a lot could have been glossed over if he had the resources to color this sucker like he did the cover. The only synopsis we get are brief descriptions of the two types of creatures: Norks and Mogz. Norks are basically teletubbie looking things with worms in place of their stomachs and faces. Mogz are roughly the same thing, but with robot bodies instead. Or I could have just said that Norks are on the cover image and a Mogz is on the sample page. Anyway, they’re both fighting over the tree of life, and when Norks take fruit from the tree and put in in their heads in place of their giant eyeball, they get super powers. Basically. This is where words would have come in helpful, because how do they stay alive without an eyeball? Sometimes their worms get removed and they’re fine, sometimes they die. Why? This volume also contains at least three stories, but in an entirely wordless book you at least need to clearly delineate when that happens. My only clue was that “the end” showed up a few times, but then the book launched right back into the world. I get the impression, and this could be completely wrong, that this book was produced over the course of years online, probably with a lot of feedback from his readers, and they most likely spent some time talking about who was who, what was happening, motivations, etc. But for somebody like me coming in cold, this one failed to grab me. Maybe if I spent more time with it, maybe if I talked to the author and had bits explained to me, as there are a number of genuinely interesting sections. But as it stands I can only recommend this to people who are looking for a puzzle to be solved, or something that leaves a lot of room to talk about in your book club. And if you do pick this for your book club, please invite me, because I’d love to see that conversation. It’s listed at $22 on Amazon, which is the only place I see it these days…
It’s best to start this one off with a confession/explanation. Rob put out a comic in 2007 (or at least that’s when I reviewed it) called On the Banks of the Mighty Croal. That comic, like this one, was a narrated walking tour through the town of Bolton, a lot of which being adjacent to the Croal river. Now, that review was 16 years ago and, as you may have guessed, my memory of it is somewhere between hazy and nonexistent. So is this book a sequel to that comic, a continuation, or an expansion? It’s listed as having a new map in the synopsis on his website, so I’m guessing expansion/new edition. Look, since it’s been 16 years, chances are that it will seem new to you regardless. As for the comic itself, there’s not much to say that wouldn’t be me just repeating facts that I learned here, which would get boring for both of us in a hurry. Picture a walking tour accompanied by a guide who was funny and clever and also had both a lifetime of familiarity with the area and had done a ridiculous amount of research to dig up obscure facts and info. All that and it’s “narrated” by Telly Savalas, or at least it us until Rob is no longer able to afford him. It’s a fascinating journey, and if I was suddenly plopped into Bolton right now I feel like I’d have a fighting chance thanks to this comic. Now, if it was 16 years from now, probably not so much. Once again we play the conversion dance to try and guess pricing, and if I’m right it’s around $7 (but there’s a good chance I’m wrong).
Again and forever, I wish I could just reprint the synopsis from the back of this comic in the place of a review and call it a day. It says everything and somehow manages to convey terror and deep eroticism at the same time. But no, I’ve given that synopsis away for free too many times, so you’ll have to buy a copy to read it yourself. Or go to the link where you can buy a copy, as the whole thing is there as well. This one is ridiculously open to interpretation, as you could go with the idea of somebody ogling their neighbor through the peephole and imagining a sexual encounter (or several), or you could go with this being a faithful retelling of some sexy times. The images are a jumble of chaotic and/or angry lines, with various sexy bits coming to the surface and being submerged again, with dialogue that shows the sexual fluidity (and sheer, rampaging horniness) of both participants. It’s mesmerizing, even with the ending that takes a serious turn into ______ (what, you thought I was going to spoil the ending? For shame). Read it and be dazzled, unless you’re one of those prudish churchy types, in which case you only clicked on a review with this title because you were titillated by it. Admit it, at least to yourself! $7.95 for the issue but, as always, I’d recommend getting the bundle of four for $22 with this one in it.
What, like I’m not going to do an update on Leap Day? New review today for The History of a Toss by Weng Pixin, another from the rapidly dwindling mini kus pile.
The idea behind this one is specific, and while it seems like it probably hasn’t affected that many people, this one will hit hard for certain folks. Have you ever been enjoying some quiet time, either alone or with others, when suddenly a large heavy object comes flying through the air and strikes you, seemingly for no reason? Like I said, that just lost a good chunk of you, but for those of you who are nodding your heads right now, you’re in luck! This one starts off with our hero the bunny trying to enjoy a cup of tea when they’re suddenly struck by a phone book. It turns out that the roommate (the frog) was just trying to throw the phone book away, but they’d misjudged both how hard they threw the book and the distance to the garbage. After a sudden clobbering like that, it’s hard not to feel a little targeted, and this might bring up memories of previous conversations with your roommate about their family members throwing things in anger. This might also bring up a defensive reaction on their part, as they see it as an unfortunate if innocent mistake. From here there are two main possibilities: either the offending party sees that what they did was at best thoughtless and apologizes, or they dig in and use the opportunity to bring up all kinds of irrelevant grudges, both real and perceived. And if the aggressor takes that second tack, well, things are probably going to get ugly. This book is an exploration of that conversation, and how “heroes” and “villains” in this situation don’t necessarily mean a thing in regards to who “wins” the argument. It’s a fascinating and more than slightly uncomfortable book, so yes, we can add another mini kus book to the “yeah buy that why don’t you?” pile. $7.95 (for this comic, it’s $22 for this and the next three in the series. I know which one sounds like a better deal to me!)
I can’t believe that I almost missed reviewing a Brick book. In case you were wondering, yes, it is indeed possible for a reviewer to clean their kitchen, put comics into a drawer to “sort through later,” and then completely forget to do that last step. For several years, since this is listed as 2019. Oh well, you get what you pay for! This is listed on his website as completing the “first season” of strips, and while I don’t know what that means, this is a solid collection of stories. Maybe the most practical uses for Brick that I’ve seen yet? If you’re new to Brick, the basic format is a sentient brick (or bricks) either getting into mischief or helping out in some way, usually in wordless fashion. I’m still waiting for the format to get old and I’m happy to report that it hasn’t happened yet. Stories in this one deal with Brick taking full advantage of the wind whistling through his holes, figuring out an ingenious way to entertain a child, being extremely useful as a golf caddy, fishing (his technique is unstoppable), enjoying a day on the beach both above and below the sea, what happens to a brick on a trampoline, going bowling (with a second page that’s terrifying in its implications for the other seemingly inanimate objects in this world), kinda sorta cheating at a carnival game, and meeting hundreds of tiny white bricks. There’s also a few pages of single panel strips of bricks helping people out, but there’s no way I could leave out the opus of the book, the story where the title comes from. Brick is helping out on a construction site, but that can be dangerous for a creature/item (?) who looks like construction material, and the worst happens to our hero: he’s cemented into a house. How does our hero escape? Well, that’s for you to figure out, but I think that cover might give you some idea. You know, if Brick had thought bubbles, that would have been a horrifying story. Just something to consider in this collection of otherwise lighthearted fun. I didn’t see any comics on David’s website that have come out over the last few years, but here’s hoping he’s still working on them. Either way, he still has copies of this sucker, so why don’t you get one for yourself? $10
As always, it feels like cheating to tell the reader to refer to the previous review in this series, but yeah, do that. Everything I said there remains true, about how Karl is using the comic to show a city, warts and all, as only regulars in that city can see it. Honestly, his books these days make me want to instantly go down to the bar for a few drinks, which is awkward because I’m usually reading his comics in the morning hours. This comic is another glimpse inside of an average day, made all the more complete because he has an excellent ear for dialogue (I’m just assuming that he’s using overheard conversations and not just making all the dialogue up, but most of it sure sounds/looks real) and detail. Things again start off silently for several pages, as we see the routine of Karl and his wife as they get ready to head out on the town. There’s also a brief glimpse of Oola, but she’s not the star of this series, so take what you can get, Oola fans! From there we see some colorful locals, a band advertisement, the route that they walk, and finally a leisurely look at their bus route. An overheard conversation on the bus is the first dialogue we see, followed by the entire experience of eating in a diner. Observations, stories, even a doomed attempt to hit on a sad waitress, it’s all there. After they leave, Chekhov’s Middle Finger (or maybe I’m thinking about the rule about his gun), which was seen earlier, is now used as a weapon, and a depressing argument occurs. The rest of the book is a delightful continuation of an average day spent out in the world, or this city in particular. You know, I’m pretty sure Karl doesn’t say a word in this one, but I could be wrong. You know what kind of mood this comic would be perfect for? If you’re in the mood to go out but either can’t (let’s say it’s snowing) or can’t decide. If it’s the former, you get to live vicariously. If it’s the latter, chances are that it’ll help you decide to get off your ass and head out. For the rest of us, I’ll guarantee you that something in here will remind you of something YOU’VE seen while out and you’ll get a chuckle out of it. $12
My “let’s review Eyeland one random issue at a time” plan is still going swimmingly, and if you think I’m not sticking to this credo, I’d suggest looking up the issues that I’ve reviewed so far. Normally I wouldn’t do this, but since each issue has been self-contained so far, well, what’s the harm? And yes, of course I’ll feel like a real dummy if that doesn’t end up being the case. This time around we’re treated to the… origin of the main character? Maybe? It’s entirely wordless until the last page, so it’s very much open to interpretation. Things start off with a giant head that’s attached a mountain slowly, painstakingly ripping its own eye out. So if you’ve ever wanted to see that process play out over the course of a few pages of a comic, you’re in luck! From there we see the slow evolution of the eye growing limbs, beginning to walk, taking an inventory of its surroundings, and then being mercilessly flicked off a table by a giant hand. Most of these issues so far have delved deep into philosophy, so the one thing I was not expecting out of this series was a wordless issue. If I’ve already reviewed a wordless issue of this series and have forgotten about it, well I guess that shows how much you should trust my memory, huh? It’s another good issue, but if you’re just going to check a single issue out, if probably shouldn’t be this one. Unless you’re big into eye removal, that is. $5
If you’re wondering why it’s taken me this long to get back to reviewing the series, I’d somehow managed to lose a few review issues that Brian sent me, so the plan was to take stock and then buy those issues the next time I saw him at a con. But lo, what was lost is now found! In a drawer. In the kitchen. <cough> Not much of a dramatic reveal, I guess, but I can at least get the reviews back on track now, and after this one I’ll be switching to a “multiple issues reviewed at once” format, because that’s probably the best way to read this series. Boy howdy, that was a whole lot of gibberish. Anyway, if you need a refresher, go back to the old reviews (or issues, obviously), but this one starts with our first long look into a… plastic surgery church? I’m not sure that it was ever named, unless it’s in one of the older issues and I’ve forgotten it. We get a deeply creepy sermon (and call and response) from the pulpit, then the detectives take the “priest” aside to ask him some questions about the murdered girl. We get a lot of information in this issue, although it’s tough to say if we’re any closer to solving the mystery, and things end up with a major update on the celebrity who was attacked at the end of the last issue. It’s still compelling as a story, and he’s up to #20 as of this writing with no signs of slowing down. Grab yourself a few of the compendiums to catch up, why don’t you? Or the single issues are $2 if you just want to dip a toe in.
I get moderately lazy when linking to individual websites for anthology reviews, but check out those tags. That’s a hell of a list of talent, and if you haven’t heard of a name on it, look them up and check out their stuff! Obviously. This is a collection of six new (I think?) stories, and to take all the suspense out of my conclusion, it might be the best anthology I’ve seen in years. There’s not a weak story in the bunch, and just about any of them would be considered the best story in an average anthology. Things start off strong with Caroline Cash’s First Date, a story about her just starting to come out of the pandemic restrictions in the summer of 2020 and trying to date, with all of the usual awkwardness that comes with that on top of not being sure if you’re allowed to touch the other person. Sam Szabo is up next with the story of when they did their own makeup for the first time, how it changed everything in terms of how they saw themselves, and how it all magically came together with them going solo to an Insane Clown Posse show (trust me, the whole thing comes together beautifully). Victoria Douglas is up next with a grim but hilarious take on being constantly expected to churn out content for the always voraciously hungry internet, including unwelcome feedback from family members, and if you’re not nodding along to several of the points, you’re not even online enough to see this review. M.S. Harkness juxtaposes her experience with fireworks during an awkward backyard fight when she was a kid with an entirely different experience as an adult out on the water with some dude she sort of knew, then Heather Loase is up with a piece about her first time looking up a porn search term and everything that came from it, followed by her years of denial of the feelings that it brought up. Finally there’s Audra Stang’s piece about her family’s “holiday tree” (i.e. the Christmas tree that doesn’t come down, so it’s just decorated for each successive holiday until it crumbles) fro when she was a kid, her jealousy of her classmates and their trees and how her whole schedule would change over winter break. Oh, and all of these synopses for the stories? They barely scratch the surface of each piece. Sometimes in anthologies you’ll at least get a rush job or two, or at least shorter, fluffier pieces. Everything in here would be complete if it was released as its own mini comic, and that’s just about as high of a complement as I can give for an anthology. There aren’t many places left that still have copies listed as being available, so if you’re interested, I wouldn’t dither too long. Click on that link while it still has copies! $20
This series is moving right along, and this time around we start to see Chad’s plan for becoming/staying a successful pot dealer in the aughts. If you missed the first two comics in this series and have just started reading the reviews now, check back with those, that’ll tell you the story so far. Obviously, YOU know all that, I’m just talking to that one guy who doesn’t get it. Anyway, we see how Chad approaches people, how he knows who to ask, and how people know to ask him (generally because he assumes that he usually smells like pot). We see an eclectic range of customers, proving once again an ongoing theory of mine: the people who are smoking pot are often not the stereotypical ones that you might suspect. We also see what sure looks the beginning of a foolproof plan of where he should set up shop for his pot handoffs, after Chad learns that police have to get permission from the university to show up. Chad also peppers the story with overheard conversations from his time on campus and, as he makes clear in his afterward, these are all actual conversations, as he regularly carries around a notepad to remember conversations verbatim. The rich kids at Georgetown are often just as obnoxious and clueless as you might think, which all leads inevitably and delightfully to the conclusion: he’s going to take these kids for all they’re worth. Spoiler, sort of, but it’s not like that’s the end of the whole story, so only a baby spoiler, really. Speaking of that afterward, it’s another welcome piece of insight into the process, what he hopes comes from it, and it’ll ideally be a spot for letters in the future. So yeah, this series is thoroughly on track now, if anybody had any doubts. I thought it hit the ground running and has stayed solid throughout. He does offer a package deal for the first few comics (I know I linked to it in one of this reviews), or you can buy them singly through Birdcage Bottom Books. $9
Oh, I’ll bet that title got at least a few people to buy this who didn’t get what they were expecting at all. This is the story of a sad little bunny, mostly, who gets several pieces of advice from an unseen narrator that aren’t at all designed to cheer the little creature up. Still, the narrator is not wrong, and it’s clear that the little bunny needs to hear this stuff. The bunny is sad, you see, but the narrator is a little sick of having to cheer the creature up, and makes the decision to tell the bunny about how others can’t save you (they’re mostly too busy to even notice you have a problem to save you), the narrator is frankly a little sick of having to make a show of trying, it’s maybe your own fault that these things keep happening, and the only thing that won’t abandon you is your tears. I mean, they’re not wrong, but the juxtaposition of all of this advice with the dazzling array of colors and cuteness can make your head spin at times. It really is a gorgeous book, and I’d honestly be curious what a kid who hasn’t learned to read yet would get out of it. Granted, that last one is mostly because I’m a weirdo. Some solid advice in here, and possibly a useful reality check for at least a few people. Does that mean that this is another mini kus winner? Why yes, it certainly does. $7.95 (or cheaper for a bundle of four different comics, always a good deal)
Posted by Kevin 
