Both of these semi-narrative cartoons are compelling. I am particularly impressed with the way Jesse utilizes gaps in his stories; readers, given only flashes of an event, immediately act to fill in the spots where something happened, but nobody, probably not even Jesse, knows what it was. For Jesse’s unamed protagonist, the world is a strange place: Aliens splash paint and insist on signed documents, and love is always a plane ride away. I may not know what’s going on, but I know exactly what happens. The drawing, filled with the instantly recognizable but slightly mutated creatures who populate our world, perfectly complements Jesse’s conveyance of the surreal.
comic / publisher: Kobold Press / main creator: Jesse Bochner / 50 cents for Best Day, $1 for They Let Me / 343 1/2 Markham St., Toronto, ON, M6G 2K8