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Herman, Willard – Zugwang?! #3
Zugwang?! #3
Here’s a peek behind the curtain for the artists out there who have had books reviewed on this site: I usually forget what I wrote about the book pretty quickly. Not always, and not completely, but I review an awful lot of comics, and the specifics often fly right out of my brain in a hurry. Which can make things awkward at conventions when I’m asked questions about a past review, but I’m always willing to fess up about that fact. Why am I mentioning this? Because when I looked up Willard’s website, a review for a previous book of his came up right after his website, and it was from here, from a couple of years ago. Curious, I looked it up… and saw that I had basically cheated on it. The comic is question was so abstract that I just didn’t have a lot to say about it, so the review was one long stalling exercise. Well, that’s a cheat that I’m not going to use again. Granted, this comic is almost equally abstract, but there are a few stories in this one, not just the one wordless story that left me so little to go on. Stories in here include a truly terrifying number of stars, a story told without having a story (naturally, this one takes up the bulk of the comic), a man who is having a very difficult time finding the sun, and a monster trapped in a boat at sea. OK, I mostly guessed on the last one. There’s a lot to hurt your brain in this comic, but overall I liked it. That large story went on a bit longer than needed to get the point across, but it’s entirely possible that the excessive length was the point. It’s worth a look, is what I’m trying to say.
Herman, Willard – The Escape Plan
The Escape Plan
Well, it’s official: I don’t have anything to add to this one. Granted, I have blustered my way through a few reviews in my day with nothing to really say about a comic, but I thought I’d try to be up front about that fact this time around. This comic is about… hm. See, there’s this guy… nope, for all I know it’s possible that it’s a lady. OK, there’s this character who starts off with two giant pupils in their eyeballs. After a shake of the head and a heavy blink, this character only has one giant pupil. This pupil moves from side to side as the character shakes their head and/or blinks heavily. And then… well, that’s the gist of the comic right there. I hate to do this because this is undoubtedly going to come across like me not liking the comic, which could not be further from the truth. I was absolutely riveted for the minute or so that it took me to read this (it’s wordless), and what else could you ask for out of a comic? If you’re looking for an utterly unique experience, this one certainly fits the bill. $1
