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Lemonade Tango #3

It’s time for the exciting conclusion to the “Bonjour Paris” saga! Is it a saga if it’s a three part story? Eh, either way. He also starts a new story called “Out of Tune” that I’ll get into in a bit, but I’m going out of order with this one. That’s right, there are no rules here! If you haven’t read the other parts of “Bonjour Paris” you’re going to be a little confused, but that’s the case for all the reviews I do of ongoing stories. Rick has decided that he’s going to climb that tower to be with Martha when and if the aliens do come, so they end up waiting for the end as a couple. Without getting into specifics, it’s a lovely, quiet moment full of doubt and yearning, and a solid (if ambiguous, which I imagine was the point) ending to their story. “Out of Tune” is a bit more of a puzzler to me, at least as an ongoing story. It works great as a single piece, but I am curious where it goes from here. It’s the story of three musicians who get hired to play at a creepy old mansion. As they’re playing the owner of the house coaxes his wife out of hiding, and it’s an open question whether she’s enjoying the music or just likes crying. Later, while they’re bowling, a new theory emerges for the couple, and I guess that’s the direction things will be taking in future installments. Henry’s afterward was damned near brilliant, like they all have been so far, and it’s an extended meditation on bowling and yes, it does also end up as a metaphor for life. So I’m cautiously optimistic about the new storyline and completely happy about the ending to the old one. Sounds like a recommendation to me! $7.99

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Lemonade Tango #2

Everybody out there is familiar with confirmation bias, right? It’s how people who read horoscopes read them for weeks, thinking nothing of it, until finally they do meet a tall dark stranger, just like it said they would! Granted, it wasn’t correct for all those other weeks, but all of that time is instantly discounted because it finally hit on something that happened in their life. Well, I have a sneaking suspicion (especially after going back and reading my review for the previous issue) that Henry is maybe making a reference to me in the brilliant essay on the back cover. Why? Because I used this innocent cartoonist as a springboard to rant about how so many series don’t make it past the first issue, and he references how it would be a shame that the second issue would never come out before going into (in a funny, satirical kind of way) how this issue came about. Did he even read my previous review and, if he did, did he think about it for more than a few seconds? Eh, probably not. But he’s talking about the thing I was talking about, so I got all confirmation bias-y over here. See? That mess right there is why I’ll never be a teacher. Since there’s also a comic here to talk about, this one has a few stories in it, including the continuation (ending?) of the story from the previous issue. Joan lives next door to a brilliant cellist who practices at the same time every night, for what she calls her “private symphony.” When the police come around asking about a murder after an evening where there was no music, how’s she going to handle it? Rick is still trying to convince Martha to go to Paris with him, because to him there’s no better place in the world to propose to her. But Martha has her own plans, and they’re all mixed up in waiting for aliens to come after she finishes her tower. There are a couple of short pieces too, including one about whether or not spelling bees are sports, but I’ll leave that to all y’all. And yes, his afterwards are hilarious. Not better than the comics, just in case I am getting through to him and I came across that way the first time around. Really the whole previous review (and this one) could be summed up as “keep doing what you’re doing,” but if that was all I wrote for a review then I’d be out of a job. And all the sweet, sweet reviewer riches that come with it.

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Lemonade Tango #1

I have to be the last person who reads comics and even notices things like this, but maybe people shouldn’t bother putting “#1” on their books at all and just start with “#2” if they make it to a second issue. Aw, why am I starting this out by being all cynical? This comic was a delight. It’s just that I’m entering (or I’ve been there for years, depending on your perspective) old crank status as a small press comics reader, and boy howdy could I ever show you a giant stack of comics that never made it past the first issue. Still, this one has an ongoing story and a call for reader’s letters on the back inside cover, so I’m going to smother my cynicism and say that this one will definitely continue. Besides, he has a number of other comics on his website, so he’s stuck on this comics crazy train with the rest of us. So anyway, what’s this one about? Two main stories, and one single page story that I went ahead and used as a sample image. What, nobody out there can relate to that story? First up is the ongoing story, and it starts off with Rick trying to get Martha out of the house for their planned trip to Paris. Martha is not going, and she has one heck of a story as to why that’s the case, but I’m not going to tell you about it. Then there’s the l’il story, followed by a Thanksgiving poem (hey, timely! Future readers, this review came out the week after Thanksgiving 2021. Even farther future readers, Thanksgiving used to be a holiday before we all realized what a ghastly thing that whole idea was to celebrate). This poem is all about the robot who’s cooking and serving a family for the holiday, along with his terrible decision to follow the advice of a drunken uncle. The inside back cover was pretty funny too, as we get a peek into the mind of Henry as he decides what to do with the inside back cover. Meta, I know, but also hilarious. Like I said, I enjoyed it, and if he hasn’t written himself into a corner already I’m looking forwards to seeing what happens next. Which is the whole point of a #1, right? $6.99