I have a list of people making mini comics who should really have been published by now (well, not a literal list, but I could rattle some names off the top of my head pretty easily), and Will Dinski has long been one of those names. His “Habitual Entertainment” series, “An Endorsement of Smoking” and some other shorties have long had me wondering why none of the “big” small press publishers have gobbled him up yet. Well, the wait is over, as Top Shelf turns out to be the smart ones of the group. In this gorgeous graphic novel Will tells the story of a plastic surgeon, a female actor that he has basically completely remade (and she’s almost JUST RIGHT), the surgeon’s assistant and a closeted gay male movie star. Oh, and the aging wife of the surgeon, can’t forget her. We get to see these mostly soulless people in all their glory, and our “hero” the surgeon has the world by the tail before his assistant starts her own practice with a revolutionary new invention: a helmet you can put on to change your features into one of the two previously mentioned stars. The order of the plastic surgery universe is turned on its head, but gosh, that invention sure did come about awfully quick, and who knows what the side effects will be? Anybody who has seen Will’s work knows that it’s damned near flawless, and this time you get that quality alongside a full color package. He says plenty about the culture’s obsession of youth and beauty over common sense, but it never gets to a the preachy obnoxiousness which would have been so very justified. He even manages to be funny! I often say that books are worth a look, but your buying this one will probably help convince Top Shelf that he deserves more graphic novels as well, which will lead to more wonderful books like this one about any number of topics that are undoubtedly floating around Will’s brain. Think of a purchase of this book as a step towards the artistic development of one of the more gifted artists around and do your small press civic duty! $14.95 Oh, and “duty” probably comes across too strong, as that implies it’s more a chore than anything else. Not so! But if you wonder why there aren’t more quality comic options available, supporting a book like this will only increase those choices in the future. I’m having trouble thinking of a single thing wrong with that…
Posted by Kevin 
