Optical Sloth

Website

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

Website

Airbag #0

How obsessively have you been following Brian’s career over the years? If your answer is not “just short of camping outside of his house (or apartment or whatever) to get the new comics as soon as possible,” then read on! This one collects four minis of his that are all out of print: Two Stories, Two More Stories, Three Stories and Four Stories. See the links on two of those comics? I already wrote reviews for those books, so I won’t be mentioning the stories in this review. But I thoroughly enjoyed most of them, so read the reviews if you’re curious. He was also nice enough to make those stories cover exactly the first half of this comic, which keeps me from having to do too much work keeping the stories straight. Especially since a couple of the other ones seemed familiar, which means I might have read one or both of those other minis and just not reviewed them? Madness. Anyway, first up is the tale of an overheard conversation on the school bus when Brian was a child (or he made the story up). It’s a ridiculously trivial thing for him to remember, but remember it he did, and he’s right: now it’s in my memory too. Next up is a young couple having a conversation about their relationship, which honestly wasn’t doing all that much for me until he really nailed the ending and made me think about the whole strip in a different way. Then there’s what I can only describe as a melancholic tale about a man attending the funeral of his mother and using that time to think about what it all means and if it’s all worth it, ending with a mundane scene at his job that feels like it’s answering the question for him. Finally there’s a scene set in the future (only noticeable because of the floating cars; I enjoyed the audacity of it) about a woman finally going to see her estranged mother while her mother is dying, with her daughters in the car peppering her with questions about the whole thing. Finally there’s a new strip on the back that I thoroughly enjoyed, and yes, I’m aware that I’m short a story in my previous descriptions. Think Pringles, and I shall say no more about it. I’m glad Brian put all of these stories in one place, as several of these were way too good to fall out of print. I’m thinking about his comic musing on the reason why he still makes comics in particular, but there’s more than that. Check it out, several of these stories are almost certainly new to you. $8

Website

Airbag #3

Programming note: I’m probably not going to review it since I reviewed the series issue by issue, but there’s a collected edition of Applewood Canyon out, and y’all should know about it. In case you didn’t want to buy individual issues, well, now you’re all out of excuses! Oh look, here’s a new issue of Airbag, which is how I’m going to segue into the actual review. He’s done a few of these now, each with its own theme, and they’re getting better each time. Considering my short term memory that might not actually be true, but they’re all great so work with me here. This time around it might be “themes” more than “theme,” since the stories deal with loss, feeling forgotten, social awkwardness and, uh, tricking another mouse into springing a mouse trap. Hey, he never said that all of the stories in these issues had to be about humans! The issue starts and ends with a boy who’s laughed off of the basketball court for having the wrong shoes on, with some wise words from his grandfather on how this sort of thing usually ends up if he follows the wrong path. Next we have a brother and sister, both with relationship issues of different types, dealing with the death of their mother and the conflicting feelings that came from it. Each get their own story as they try to connect with other people, with drastically different results. A grandmother and grandfather each tell their story about feeling abandoned, one with the self-awareness to realize why this probably happened and one who’s left without a clue. Finally there’s the longest story in the book, which deals with a college student whose drinking has gotten out of hand slowly, ever so slowly, trying to get her life back on track, or at least put together some semblance of a plan for it. Plenty of tears in here along with a few laughs, and plenty to think about if you’re one of those stoic types who doesn’t cry easily. As always, the man does a lot of comic series, so if you ever want to jump into his stuff without worrying about backstory, his Airbag comics are the way to go. $8

Website

Airbag #2

All of the Caniniacs out there (fan name subject to change, but I like it) are probably wondering why Brian occasionally puts out big old books like this, full of different types of stories, if he already has a few different ongoing series with a variety of different subjects. Why not make a few more minis? Well, because it wouldn’t work nearly as well to have interconnected stories in a variety of minis where the similarities wouldn’t be nearly as clear, now would it? Now that that imaginary strawman has been handily defeated, I can go on with the review. This is a collection of several stories, with comedy, despair and heartbreak (seriously, the first long story was devastating) all wrapped up into one bundle that still somehow works beautifully. Things start off with the “invention” of comics back in 1925 and the all too predictable reaction of the hoity toity types of the time. This picks up again later, but next we get the story of a woman who’s tasked with clearing out her father’s home after he passes away. Their relationship wasn’t all that close, especially after the divorce, but she learns a lot about the guy by digging through what he thought was meaningful enough to keep, which all leads up to the moment that explains a whole lot of his attitude towards her wanting to become an artist. From there we get an explanation of how a forgotten comics artist gets rediscovered before moving on to a comics convention, and am I ever thrilled that “DeForgian” is a descriptor that’s being used out in the world. If you know, you know, and if you don’t, read some comics by Michael DeForge. Yes, any of them. Anyway, the artist at the convention gets sick of it, find a “magic” pen and gets dragged into a magical comics land. There’s all kinds of things going on in here, as the artist takes a real spiritual journey, but this is one that’s best left to the reader to discover completely unspoiled. Finally it all wraps in the Billy Ireland museum in Columbus, as the forgotten comics are finally collected. OR ARE THEY? Yup, a mystery. That back page comic is also a winner, and a nice little dig at the newspaper business. So yes, if you’re just curious about Brian’s work, it’s probably more economical to get a few minis. But if you’re looking for something that’s complete in one volume with some serious variety to boot, this would be an excellent place to get started on his comics. I’m talking to the newbies, as I’m assuming everybody who already reads his stuff either already has this or is now ordering it now that you know it exists… $10

Website

Airbag #1

Good news, people who read Brian’s comics! He’s settled on a title for his various short pieces that don’t fit anywhere else, and it’s Airbag. Probably it’s for the best. I’ve been rereading (and getting caught up on the ones I hadn’t read) Love and Rockets after reading the 40th anniversary collection, and there was a point after a few series with different names where they went back to calling their comics Love and Rockets. People just didn’t pick up the other series as much for whatever reason. Sure, to comics folks like you and me it would seem like seeing their name on a comic (or Brian’s name, to try and tie all this together) would be enough, but apparently there actually are casual independent comics fans. And these shorter, more personal and serious comics of his should not get lost in the shuffle. There are a few laughs to be found here, sure, but mostly these pack a harder punch than his lighter fare. Things start off with a quiet piece about a son meeting his estranged father for lunch, which reaches a boil of resentment slowly but surely. Next is a story about a breakup, how it causes the man (Mark) to reevaluate his life, but offers no easy answers as to how somebody can break out of a rut like that. Finally there’s a group of kids who sneak into a frat party in college to get some free booze and a conversation happens along the way that changes the whole dynamic. It also started with an unanswered phone call on 9/11 before flashing back to the party, and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out the connection. As always, blame a sleepy reviewer before blaming the artist in a situation like this, and either way it’s not like it blew up the story or anything. Finally there’s a wraparound piece which is grimly comedic, but I’ll leave that one up to you. I’ll just say that it involves that Bluto-esque dude on the cover and leave it at that. There’s also some encouragement from some of the best comics names around on his letters page, just in case you were clinging to the idea Brian was still your little comics secret. Here’s hoping Brian has enough stories to make these Airbag comics a fairly regular thing. Based on his insanely productive ability to produce comics so far, I’d bet on him for sure. $6