Dee’s Dream: The Cosmic Wombat House
Comic, Dre Grigorpol, dretime.org
Opening for the “hot local band” has been a rite of passage for thousands, if not zillions, of young musicians across the planet. You come. You play. You hope you don’t barf. It’s the fear of that third one that fuels the arc of Dee’s Dream: The Cosmic Wombat House.
This fun, easy-to-read comic details the dreams and demons of a toe-haired guitarist named (yes) Dee who kinda freaks out upon learning her band will be opening for regional favourites Coco Blue Sunday. She harkens back to a bad grade school memory that’s been marinating in puke within her memory for a lifetime. Will history repeat? Well, let’s just say Dee and her buddies try to curb the threat with some adult beverages. You’ll have to send away for the comic to see if Dee holds down her lunch.
Aesthetically, Dee’s Dream works because it’s light, lovely and drawn in a simple style that is cute without being cloying. There is always an assumption that these works are semi-autobiographical so I would be curious to learn whether Dee is something of a hand drawn doppelganger for creator Dre Grigorpol. Either way, the comic also works because of the universality of stage fright. And, I dunno… because everybody loves music? In short, Dee’s Dream is very high concept (in the cinematic sense) and its lack of layers makes it a great pick-up for just about anyone. (Cam Gordon)