Brett Hamil « Optical Sloth

Hamil, Brett – Bald Knob #1

November 27, 2024

You know, I thought that “Bald Knob” sounded familiar, but this old brain ain’t what it used to be in regards to remembering specifics like that. Luckily, I have an easy cheat option: use the search function on my website! I can’t decide if that’s pathetic or hilarious. Both? Anyway, I was right: John Hankiewicz put out a mini probably 15 years ago or so with the same title, and Robert Sergel put out a graphic novel called Bald Knobber about 6 years ago. Relevant? Related to this comic in any way? Not at all! But if you’re curious, look them up yourself and be amazed! Now that that bit of nonsense is out of the way, what’s up with this comic? It’s the start of a series (and the second issue is already up on his website, which is promising) about two guys who are staying at a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Glenn is trying to make the next great American rock album (it’s more specific and defined than that), and Shad is mostly there to help and/or keep his eye on his troubled friend. Glenn had been through a breakup recently and he wasn’t taking the whole thing very well, so to Shad this seemed like the perfect distraction. Things start off with Shad trying to convince Naomi (who he’d hooked up with the night before) to leave before Glenn saw her in the morning, as he didn’t think that would help Glenn’s mood, but that plan did not work out. We spend a lot of time getting to know all three of these characters, which is crucial to any kind of lengthy series. The two of them get to their job, Shad takes off his shorts for his walk (which, creepiness aside, does seem like a great way to enjoy nature if you’re alone), and they discuss how they still need a drummer for their band. Meanwhile we see a lot more about Naomi’s life with several generations all in one room, which seems like the sort of thing that’ll come up again later. Finally they all go to a local music show in the hopes of finding a drummer or at least having a good time, and we even get a bit of a cliffhanger in terms of Glenn’s love life, even if it seems like he’s heading towards a disaster. I’d call this a solid first issue with plenty of avenues he could still explore. $6

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Posted by Kevin

Hamil, Brett – Slight Return

March 2, 2023

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Slight Return

I figured going into this that this is one of those comics that had the potential to end up going very wrong for me, or maybe I’d end up kind of liking it. Turns out that I loved it! Just another reminder in a lifetime full of them that it’s best not to assume anything based on an intentionally vague description. I was afraid that this was going to be one of those “aged punk and/or hippie returns to their hometown, wanders around aimlessly until the book eventually ends” kind of things, but I was wrong. There are elements of that, sure, but for good reason, and there’s a whole lot more going on with it. It’s a slow build, but things start off with our hero (Kevin) having sex with an old acquaintance after returning to his hometown. We gradually learn that he had had some success as a musician (enough that a large number of people recognize him when he’s walking around town) and that some great calamity has befallen society as a whole. Not bad enough to derail civilization entirely, but there’s no internet or phones, getting food is expensive and you have to “know somebody,” there was an incident where people were butchering a cow in the field right next to the other cows, etc. This is all an undercurrent to a fairly simple story, as Kevin really did come back to town to get away from everything and basically just wants to sleep, ride his skateboard, have sex and read comics. Armed fascists are also a constant underlying threat, so not too far off from our reality now, I guess. I loved the pacing of this book, as there’s no rush to do much of anything and nothing feels all that important, and the absence of constant cell phones and internet is always welcome in stories; it almost always feels like it opens up possibilities other than what you’re used to. The underlying story here, such as it is, is that Kevin gets talked into performing at an outdoor concert, but even that ends up being a very minor event. The ending shocked me, but it was one of those endings where you can’t really see things going any other way if you think about it. It’s a book that I wasn’t expecting to captivate me, but here I sit, captivated, and still thinking about various scenes hours after finishing it. If that’s not a solid endorsement, I don’t know what is. $15