The Deep & Dark Blue

One of the big benefits from doing the podcast, Derek would say, was getting the books. It is really exciting to get all sorts of different types of work to read, I have to agree (storing them all is a different matter). Believe it or not, I still get review copies from publishers in the name of the Comics Alternative podcast. Today marks the date of our last posted episode, and to commemorate the day I am going to review a book I recently received.

The Deep & Dark Blue stars twin boys Grayson and Hawke, whose grandfather is the lord of House Sunderlay, a fictional feudal land where magic and destiny reign. Their personalities differ widely but they are still thick as thieves. After a bloody coup, they find themselves on the run and end up disguising themselves as girls (Grayce and Hanna).

 

The resourceful twins masquerade as initiates of the Communion of Blue, an enclave of magical women who weave using a mysterious blue dye that lets them to spin threads that reveal reality and manipulate elements such as fire and water. While in hiding, the twins learn much about themselves: Grayson that he has much to learn to be a true warrior and Hawke that he feels much more at home being female and called to magical weaving. Both of their growing realizations complicate their lives, but they also combine in an unlikely way to help them fulfill their roles to help restore a sense of stability in the upheaval.

The complexity of the plot is well complemented by the fine visual world-building on display here.  The setting and character designs are interestingly exotic, at once familiar but still unique. The expressions, color, and art really bring a sense of animation and emotion to the proceedings. I feel that the coloring is exceptionally well done, with great effects that really sell the moments of magic, make the action pop, and also make the small, intimate moments especially poignant. This book has multiple positive features, spinning a narrative of political and personal intrigue, with great moments of drama and suspense. It tells a tale that is both epic and human, and it does it in grand style.

The Deep & Dark Blue was created by Niki Smith, and it is her first graphic novel intended for a young adult audience. She has one other graphic novel, Crossplay, a story about cosplay, crushes, and identity set at a comic convention. She also has done a bunch of shorter comics works, notably for The Nib. She speaks about her work on this book in this interview.

All the reviews I have read of this book have been celebratory. In a starred review, Kelley Gile called it a "stunning work that does double duty as an absorbing adventure and a gentle musing on gender identity, family, and acceptance." In another starred review, Kirkus Reviews concluded that it was "woven with magic." Publishers Weekly wrote, "With capable worldbuilding and a positive look at transgender identity, Smith’s debut middle grade novel is likely to win over young fans of queer fantasy."

The Deep & Dark Blue was published by Little, Brown Young Readers, and they provide more info about it here.

The publisher provided a review copy.

In closing today, I just want to write that I miss my friend Derek and think of him often. I also miss podcasting and using that platform for having discussions and promoting comics. It is tough for me to think of doing that again without him, but I hope to be up and doing it again sometime in the near future. I had a great role model for how to do it, who set a high standard for humor, quality, and variety. RIP, Derek.

A spotlight on Silver Sprocket

One of my favorite things about Derek was how much he loved to read all sorts of comics. That included works from lots of publishers, and I was struck by just how much he seemed to know about a wide array of creators and countries. The breadth of his fandom was impressively comprehensive.

We would toss around ideas about shows we wanted to do and books we wanted to read, and I know we were thinking about a spotlight on Silver Sprocket. It is a publisher, creative crew, and gallery based in San Francisco, and they have a definite punk rock ethos. I had read and enjoyed a book published by them a few years ago, Liz Prince's Be Your Own Backing Band, and they have an interesting bunch of creators associated with their press. So when I had some holiday money this past year I got a few of their books, and I will share them with you here:

Big Punk is an 18-page story by Janelle Hessig where a lot happens. A punk woman who has been living in Fog City decides that the town is just to gentrified and hipster-ridden for her anymore, so she moves out to the country.

After a few weeks of peace and quiet, she grows bored and restless, and (without spoiling too much) she gets involved in a very unlikely relationship. With her life transformed, she settles in some, though still with a prickly relationship with the locals.

This book is funny and shocking, with some sexual humor as well as profanity, but it is also an interesting take on what happens to rebellious people as they grow older. Sure, they carry on the struggles in their own ways but their lives and popular culture transform as well. In a different way, it reminds me of the themes in Jaime Hernandez's Is This How You See Me? with its take on aging punk rockers. It is intriguing to see how defiant people eventually settle down, particularly when they do not necessarily mellow out.

I very much admired the artwork, too. It is very bold with clear storytelling, and best of all for me included lots of details, like the titles of books on the punk woman's book shelf, that really helped make this cartoony world feel real. It is a funny and provocative book, with a surprising amount of heart.

Striking a different note in its 32 pages, Magical Beatdown, Volume 1 by Jenn Woodall is a garish, revenge fantasy done as a mash-up of manga tropes. The protagonist is a mousy, goody-two-shoes who resembles Sailor Moon. She is playing arcade games when she gets accosted by some tough-looking juvenile delinquent types. The story then shifts from blue to hot pink (literally), and the main character transforms into a badass warrior who brutally murders everyone who crosses her. She also swears a lot. The story is satisfying in two ways: there is the joy in justice being served and the ultra-violence is done with verve and a sense of humor.

I won't say it is the deepest or most meaningful book I've ever read, but it's a delightfully gory confection. The artwork is very expressive and over-the-top, but at the same time quite gorgeous. There is a Volume 2, and it was a 2018 Doug Wright Spotlight Award Winner. I will definitely be checking it out soon.

Inspired by the philosophical work of Frantz Fanon, Your Black Friend by Ben Passmore checks in at a seemingly slight 12 pages, but they are dense with ideas and feelings. It chronicles a short series of exchanges at a coffee shop, but within those moments all sorts of history and culture get unpacked. The "black friend" observes an oblivious older white woman having an exchange with the barista, and it sets off his train of thought.

In a few short seconds, he ponders his past experiences with similar people, how black culture gets co-opted, how he feels he has to perform for both whites and blacks in ways that alienate him from both groups, and his own tenuous friendships. Towards the end of the story, he also has a brief revenge fantasy play through his head, but it is not nearly as explosive as that in Magical Beatdown, and it only highlights the futility and frustration he feels.

Your Black Friend is pretty text-heavy, but it is also propelled by an iconographic art style that features bold, primary colors for places and backgrounds but is aptly static when applied to the protagonist. It seems like there is great potential for explosive reactions, but he is constrained by culture and potential racist backlash and maintains a flat, seemingly nonplussed affect. He maintains his face like a mask, not betraying his thoughts about his plight.

This book is thought-provoking and powerful, and it won the 2017 Ignatz Award for "Outstanding Comic." You can read it all for free right here, but I think it is also well worth buying, perhaps in this collection.

After reading these comics from Silver Sprocket, I was very impressed with their offerings. I marveled at how subversively socially conscious they are, and I admire the contemporary punk ethos they communicate. At the same time, I did not really feel they were preachy, as they were very enjoyable reads as well.  These comics are the best sort, ones that are deep and entertaining at the same time.

All of these books are available here from Silver Sprocket, which also offers a good variety of other titles. Go check them out!

Come Again

In my last post I noted the death of Tom Spurgeon, a huge figure in contemporary comics. Today I start a series of remembrances about my friend and collaborator Derek Royal. Derek's death was too soon, as he was only 55. I met him several years back through our mutual friend Andy Kunka, and it was a couple of years ago now that he asked me to be the regular co-host of the Comics Alternative Podcast. Derek was a great ambassador of all comics. Our podcast focused on alternative comics, those not published by the big 2 comics companies. In that purview were works by independent presses, self-publishers, manga, European comics, webcomics, and comics for younger readers. I did a bunch of shows with him, got to interview some great creators, and also read a lot of comics that I might not have otherwise.

Derek, as rendered by Andy Hirsch

Derek was a voracious reader who read all sorts of work from all sorts of creators and publishers, big and small, local and international. He really pushed the boundaries of how I look at comics, and what is more he pushed me to examine my own thinking about comics. Most of all, he was a good friend and conversationalist. I really miss talking to him, not just about comics but also mundane stuff. We had lots of ideas for different directions to take the podcast, and I am sad not to get to realize those with him. In the spirit of revisiting my time with Derek and also revisiting some of the books we might have reviewed together, I plan to spend the rest of this month reviewing works pertaining to him. It is one small way I have to share his legacy of spreading the joy of reading a great variety of comics.

There are a good number of other tributes and memorials to Derek out there. The Philip Roth Society, which he founded, has a lovely write-up here. Comics for Fun and Profit has a good podcast about him here. I just listened to that one, and it was weird hearing him again. He sounds so vital and enthusiastic, as per usual, and I could not help but be struck by how I used to listen to him make our own episodes, how he would read the copy for our sponsor every time, and how I would also jump in at opportune moments to bolster what he was pitching. Derek did pretty much all the work on The Comics Alternative, and I felt most of what I had to do was read, be prepared with some talking points, and just be a good conversationalist. He did all the editing, posting, and everything else technical, which I find amazing.

My favorite tribute about Derek was from Paul Lai, who was co-hosted the podcast before I did. He and I had similar experiences with Derek, and I think he is much more eloquent in crystallizing just how special a guy Derek was. Go give it listen.

In one of the last podcasts we did together, Derek chose this book as one of his honorable mentions for favorite books of 2018. At the time, I thought I have it but have not gotten to it yet; I should put it on the top of my to-read pile. Then, after our hiatus and Derek's death, I did not really want to read it, almost as if I did another part of him would be gone. So, it has been on my shelf a long time, and I feel like now is the time for me to start addressing my feelings.

Come Again is by Nate Powell, a veteran and expert creator with a long list of praised works, including the Eisner and National Book Award winning March trilogy. He has also drawn a number of other graphic novels, such as The Silence of Our Friends, Swallow Me Whole, and Any Empire. He is one of the most accomplished graphic novelists of his generation. Powell spoke with Derek and Paul about his work on this book in this podcast interview.

This book is a unique one that defies easy categorization. It is a period piece, set in the 1970s at a commune in the Ozark mountains. The protagonists are a young boy named Jake and his mother Halushka (Hal, for short). They are pretty close to another family who has a young boy named Shane, but there are some secrets that are buried in that relationship. In a touch of magic realism, that secret is embodied by a cave where some illicit activities take place and where a mysterious creature lurks. I will try not to spoil so much, but one day Jake and Shane find and play in that cave, and one of the boys does not come out, touching off a frantic series of events.

 

The interplay between narrative and illustrations here is deftly woven. The characters are well portrayed with clear expressions and relatable emotions. This book is pretty dark, especially communicated via the artwork, which is very atmospheric. There are drastic contrasts between what transpires at night versus in the light of day, and I think the visuals definitely convey the idea of a tainted past impeding on the present.  Hal has a lot of baggage with her ex and others, and those feelings of dread creep into her relationship with Jake. In the end, she has to decide what to let go of in order to resolve matters. I won't way that I found the ending completely satisfying, but I this book sat with me a while and I have found myself flipping though its pages and revisiting what transpired. In terms of story and art, it sets a definite tone, and I feel that its exploration of personal relationships is thoughtful and haunting.

The reviews I have read about this book have been mixed. Etelka Lehoczky wrote, "Few creators could envision a story as unique as Come Again, and even fewer could have as much fun with it." Oliver Sava called it "striking but flawed." Tegan O'Neil was also ambivalent about the book, noting "I don’t know if the happy ending is necessarily earned because there’s something less than satisfactory" about how things resolve (If you want the spoilers, go read that review).

Come Again was published by Top Shelf, and they have more information about the book available here. This book features some profanity and adult situations, so it is suggested for more mature readers.