Cartoon Clouds #1
Hello art school graduates! Here’s a story that was written especially for you. Well, actually I’d guess that the story was written for Joseph, or not for any particular person at all, but it is a story about graduating from art school, so I’m guessing a lot of people can relate to it. Anyway! This one starts off with the main character (Seth) getting his final critique from an art professor. The professor references his own show, suggests that Seth use his student I.D. card while he can still get a discount to see his show, and generally takes every opportunity to make the grading all about himself. Once that’s over Seth has a stoned conversation with a friend, has a nightmare about Indian food, goes to a party that he’d just as soon skip and has several conversations with people that he was trying desperately to avoid. In the background of the party is Allison, a purely platonic friend of Seth’s, and the clear undercurrent that Seth is running out of time to tell her how he really feels before their “real life” starts. Seth is presented various paths that he can take after graduation by these people, some more realistic than others, but is understandably pessimistic about any of his friends earning a living with their art. Art school tropes are punctured, hopes are dashed, a good time is resolutely not had by Seth at any point for very long, but hey, there’s more to come. The art is fantastic and I’m curious to see what happens next, which is the entire point of the first issue in a series. There were a few spelling errors that will continue to baffle me every time I see them (as a spell check takes significantly less time than drawing a single panel on one page), but don’t mind me being a curmudgeon on that. If you can relate to anything I described here then give this a shot, if not but if you still like a good story then I’d also say it’s worth your time. $5
