NOW: THE NEW COMICS ANTHOLOGY #9
FANTAGRAPHICS BOOKS
CARTOONISTS: Theo Ellsworth; Raquelle Jac; Keren Katz; Noah Van Sciver; Emil Friis Ernst; Ben Nadler; Ethel Wolfe
DESIGN: Jacob Covey
EDITOR: Eric Reynolds
COVER: Raquelle Jac
BACKCOVER: John Ohannesian
ISBN: 978-1-68396-371-4; paperback (September 2020)
120pp, Color, $12.99 U.S.
NOW: The New Comics Anthology is an alternative-comics anthology series launched in 2017 and edited by Eric Reynolds. NOW is published by alt-comix and art comics publisher, Fantagraphics Books. Over its four-plus decades of existence, Fantagraphics has published what is probably the most diverse collection of comic book anthologies in the history of North American comic books. That line-up includes such titles as Anything Goes, Critters, Mome, Pictopia, and Zero Zero, to name a few.
NOW: The New Comics Anthology #9 offers a selection of seven cartoonists and comics creators, as well as a back cover “comics strip” from John Ohannesian. NOW #9 holds to Eric Reynolds' creed (from NOW #1) that NOW would showcase “...as broad a range of quality comic art as possible...”
The contributors list includes a Leroy favorite, Noah Van Sciver. But let's take a look at each of NOW #9's cartoonists' contributions:
THE LOWDOWN: The illustration that acts as NOW #9's cover art is entitled “Nine,” and is produced by Texan, Raquelle Jac. It is a beautiful piece that reminds me of the drawings and doodles high school students commit to their tablets to pass the time or to ignore a teacher. It is a striking image, a slice-of-surreal life that embraces a selection of the myriad variations of apartment living.
“The Real Me” by Theo Ellsworth:
This is a one-page comic that reminds me of the work of cartoonist/illustrator, Jim Woodring. It has an unsettling quality, and I really felt that the subject of “The Real Me” was talking to me.
“Misguided Love” by Raquell Jac:
This story is the cover times 41. The autobiographical story, “Misguided Love,” with its garish and sometimes subdued colors, is beautiful to look at. Unfortunately, it is an ugly read. There is just too much clutter, and some of the panels are drawn as to be impossible to read. All of it is static between the author and her audience. What I actually can understand or interpret is interesting, but this is way too obtuse in its graphical storytelling.
“The Raindrop Prelude” by Keren Katz:
The story offers some of the most beautiful drapery that I have seen in a comic book in a while. The art has a Japanese woodblock printing quality, and the story involves, in a way, one of composer and pianist Frederic Chopin's 24 “Preludes,” specifically the “Raindrop” prelude. The story is composed of several single-page illustrations (for the most part), and I felt my imagination floating through the story, while also trying to linger to keep looking at the pretty art.
“Spacehawk” by Noah Van Sciver:
This story is a tribute to cult cartoonist, Basil Wolverton (1909-1978), and his first character of note, the kooky “Spacehawk.” Of course, Van Sciver's art does not match the peculiar nature for which Wolverton was known, but he captures the kookiness.
“Zoom” by Emil Friis Ernst:
At times, there is a Moebius-like quality about “Zoom.” I could see it having a place in Metal Hurlant from long ago.
“Quarryhouse” by Ben Nadler:
I have mentioned in previous reviews that I once read a review of an Annie Lennox album (perhaps, in Spin Magazine), in which the reviewer said that every LP needed at least one great song. I believe that every volume or issue of a comics anthology needs at least one great story.
“Quarryhouse” is the first of NOW #9's two great stories. A mixture of Hey, Wait... era Jason and Acme Novelty Library-era Chris Ware, “Quarryhouse” takes place over a sixty-hear period – 1989, 2019, and 2049 and involves a tragedy (similar to the one in Hey, Wait...). Depending on how one reads “Quarryhouse,” each time period introduces a new theme to the story. I also believe that author-cartoonist Ben Nadler suggests that different generations of a family are connected much more deeply and intimately than by bloodline alone. They share stories, pain, curses, guilt, and obligations, and are tethered by the need to reach across time to help one another.
“How Mums Annoy You” by Ethel Wolfe:
The 2013 Martin Scorsese film, The Wolf of Wall Street, was an adaptation of the 2007 memoir of the same name by notorious stockbroker and trader, Jordan Belfort. The film received criticism because some people interpreted it as glorifying Belfort's criminal behavior and nihilistic lifestyle. In answer to this, the film's screenwriter, Terence Winter, said that the film was about two things: people don't change, and they never learn.”
NOW #9's second great story, “How Mums Annoy You,” is a story of abuse that focuses on an Internet “celebrity” who is also a predator and a manipulator of the young women who follow him. Ethel Wolfe (a pen name used by the cartoonist John Harvey) may not realize that his story has a theme: people don't change and they never learn … and they lie to themselves and others. If Hollywood really paid attention to alternative comics, this story would have been optioned for film or television already. It is a bracing read that left me wanting more.
“Art” back cover strip by John Ohannesian:
Meh.
So, in conclusion, the cover art and two great stories, “Quarryhouse” and “How Mums Annoy You,” are what make NOW #9. There ended up being a little controversy about one of the contributors some months after this issue was published, but I'll let you find out the details for yourselves, dear readers.
I READS YOU RECOMMENDS: Fans of classic alternative-comics anthologies will want to discover NOW: The New Comics Anthology.
A-
7.5 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
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