Monthly Archives: December 2011
Echavarria, Luis – Guino Danino
Guino Danino
The best guess I’ve been able to come up with (based on internet translation doodads) for that title is “depraved blink.” Believe it or not, that’s actually a pretty great title for this comic. This is another shorty from Luis, as I continue my quest to review all of the tiny comics that he sent me a few months back. This starts off with a man (Ricardo) waiting for a doctor of some kind, and when he walks into his office the phone of the receptionist breaks in her hand. He apologizes, she (and the reader) react in confusion, and Ricardo meets his doctor. This doctor is more of a voodoo doctor than anything else, as he hypnotizes Ricardo to try and get to the root of his problem. Some memories are uncovered, a possible solution is proposed, end of comic. That’s what I love about Luis’s work so far: even though it’s short stuff, each of them has been utterly unique in their own way. Sure, there are comics with people with telekinesis, but they’re usually wearing spandex, and it’s rarely depicted as the out of control menace that it would be if it existed at all in real life. Another great mini, another one where I have to guess on the price, so… $3?
Update for 12/2/11
New review for Ike the Cat in Wall Street Cat: Money Takes Naps by Sara Lindo. Happy weekend everybody, and if you’re an employer in Champaign and are looking for a competent data entry person, or would perhaps like to pay me for doing this (ha!), then I’m available these days. Very, very available…
Lindo, Sara – Ike the Cat in Wall Street Cat: Money Takes Naps
Ike the Cat in Wall Street Cat: Money Takes Naps
Hey cat haters, you soulless monsters you: get an early start to your weekend, you’ll find nothing to enjoy here. For the rest of us people with actual human feelings, you’re in luck. This is the fictional story of a real cat who seems to have a job on Wall Street, although it appears from the story that his job is really just to listen to people complain. Anyway, Ike starts his day with some canned food, rides the subway to work (making friends along the way), listens to several people tell him their problems and calls it a day. It’s pretty much all sweetness and light; even the conversation with the H.R. lady went swimmingly. This probably won’t win any awards, but it has a cute story and it was the perfect heft and tone for a Friday afternoon. My only real complaint has nothing to do with the story and more to do with the cat. Ike in the comics is depicted with an “M” on his forehead, and his picture at the back of the book seems to confirm that. Why in the world would you start the name of such a cat with an “I”? Crikey, at least call him “Mighty Ike” or something to take advantage of that natural branding on his head. Use your imagination, cat owners, but he’s just crying out for at least a nickname. Sara sent along some other books too, so I’ll have a few chances to look at comics that aren’t all “look at the cute kitty” (not that I have much of a problem with that), but I like the art here and had no problems with the story. Worth a look, at least unless you hate cats, and I thought I told you people to leave at the start of the review? No price listed on her website, so I’ll go with… $5!
Update for 12/1/11
New review for By the Slice by Giulie Speziani & Cecilia Latella. Still taking orders for the holidays, still offering to make sure that it gets to you in time for you to wrap it if necessary for gifting. Wouldn’t you rather get somebody comics instead of going to one of the big box stores and getting maced or pepper sprayed?
Speziani, Giulie & Latella, Cecilia – By the Slice
By the Slice
Job hunting! I’ve been doing that myself lately and it is some demoralizing shit. This starts off with a young woman (Gwen) looking for work online and sending out her resume. She gets a call back the next day and gets hired on as a cashier at a pizza place. There wouldn’t be much of a comic if that was the whole story, so she also lucks out and gets a racist asshole of a boss. Not the hood wearing kind of racist, just the kind that has assumptions about entire ethnic backgrounds based on a few bad experiences. So Gwen puts up with it for awhile, as she doesn’t have much choice in the matter and most jobs are shitty anyway, before things finally come to a head. It’s a nice little story, with her friends trying to get her through some of the nonsense and all kinds of examples of the casual racism that always makes Fox News viewers get an odd look on their face when they’re called on it, like it’s impossible for it to be true. I do have one small bone to pick, and it’s a bit of a spoiler, so watch out if you don’t care for such things. In fact, just stop reading now, as the art for this is fantastic and it’s a fun little story, so you should give it a shot, in case that’s what you were wondering about. OK, so the book ends with Gwen having a nice chat with her boss, as she feels bad about quitting the way that she did. He’d been built up as a (rightly) bad guy up until that point, and I didn’t feel the need for the burst of sympathy there, but maybe that’s just my cold, cold heart talking. No price, so $3 maybe?
