OVERSIGHT: SHORT STORIES 1990-2005
Written by Phil Hester and Drawn by Hester and Others
Published by Image Comics

I’m an avowed Phil Hester fan, so seeing this collection of shorter works and anthology pieces that have appeared in variety of places over the last fifteen years was a happy thing for me. For many, Hester is primarily known for his work as an artist, especially on titles like GREEN ARROW and MARVEL TEAM-UP. However, without exception, I think that his best and most creative moments come when he’s providing the script and story. Hester has an agile, imaginative style as a writer, sometimes to the point that his artists can’t keep up with what he wants. Still, even with that loss of power here and there, there’s plenty of good stuff here.

Looking at it, I would guess that there had to be some debate about the make-up of this book; this isn’t a “Best Of” compilation, this is a completist’s collection. That means that there are some whiffs to get through to get to the truly fantastic material. This didn’t bother me, but for others, it could be a stopping point. Personally, I liked being able to read and see Hester develop his talent and progress into the A-list creator we see in 2006. That alone makes this book worth your dollar.

BLOOD RIVER
Written by Mike Avon Oeming and Daniel Berman and Drawn by Brian Quinn
Published by Image Comics

This based-on-a-true-story graphic novel wants very much to be a classic tale of modern horror, but unfortunately it lacks the style and execution to energize the reader into doing much more than setting the book down on the table and moving on to reading something else.

In the early part of the twentieth century, many small lakes and rivers in New Jersey were terrorized by a serious of gruesome deaths. Oeming and company take that basic premise and bring it to the 1970s, sending four friends out into the woods for a date with mysterious doom. That, more than anything, sinks the book from the start.

We’ve seen any number of clichéd horror stories that send callow youth out into the woods to get blasted and have sex. So immediately, a tone of familiarity sets in and removes the sense of suspense. And what do you know, but soon enough, one of the girls vanishes while fooling around with her boyfriend. Such an over-used moment drags you out of the book, and there’s really no way back in. Further hampering the effort is the artwork by Quinn; it isn’t that he isn’t talented. Some of the material looks quite nice. But there are many panels where he works so hard to adapt to a style resembling Charles Burns’ BLACK HOLE that the panels become confusing and the narrative jumbled. I applaud that a graphic novel like this made it to the shelves, because the market only succeeds when more alternatives to superheroes are offered. Sadly, in this case, it needed to be a far better book.

THE GLAMOUR GIRLS OF DON FLOWERS
Written and Drawn by Don Flowers
Edited by Alex Chun
Published by Fantagraphics

This third volume of pin-up cartoons put together by Chun is somewhat of a departure from the previous ones. While the work of Dan DeCarlo and Bill Wenzel tended to feature women of a more voluptuous and ripe sexuality, Flowers’ dames have a far more subtle and wholesome look. They’re still gorgeous and very appealing, but his sense of humor and place are much quieter. The ladies Flowers depicts are unquestionably objects of lust, but (and I know this will sound weird) they’re untouchable. Nothing about them actually suggests sex.

Pulling it all together are nice essays from Sergio Aragone and the late Flowers’ son, Don Jr. Like the previous two volumes, the book is designed in fine fashion by Jacob Covey and looks terrific. Fantagraphics has gained a stellar reputation for their work in collecting and preserving classic works like KRAZY AND IGNATZ and PEANUTS, but it’s just as important to preserve the work of great individual cartoonists who worked in this milieu. Another fine effort.

COMPLETE OMAHA VOL.2
Written and Drawn by Reed Waller, Kate Worley, and James Vance
Published by NBM/Amerotica

Volume two of the classic rules-breaking series finds Omaha back in the clutches of her boyfriend’s father, though it may not quite be as sinister a thing as she believes. In the meantime, her boyfriend Chuck deals with an ex who isn’t quite the person he hopes and a new male friend who has more designs on him than he knows. And one character thought dead and out of the picture makes a surprising return.

While dismissed early on by some as nothing but porn, OMAHA continued to show just how you could meld raw sexuality and serious character storytelling, and the book really began to find its foothold in these issues. As the characters themselves became more defined, the soap opera nature of the storytelling got a little slicker and more sophisticated. OMAHA then developed into a book that was a bit more grounded, as well, and it was here that I think the readership began to see its true depth.

Printed in an over-sized format, the OMAHA collections look fantastic and make a worthy addition to the shelves of fans of both erotica and soaps. Definitely a treat for the mature reader.

OTHELLO VOL.6-7
Written and Drawn by Satomi Ikezawa
Published by Del Rey

Satomi-chan brings her saga of teenage love and multiple personalities to a close with these two volumes, and manages to do so in solid fashion. Against my expectations, the conclusion to Yaya and Nana’s saga became truly gripping, emotionally intriguing stuff.

Yaya is a sweet girl who lacks the ability to stand up for herself and her dreams. Unbeknownst to her, her mind has reacted to that problem by developing a second personality who steps out and takes control during moments of stress and crisis. But while Nana may do a great job of taking care of their shared body, the boy the two personality likes only digs Yaya. But as Yaya’s life begins to spiral downward, and Nana gains more control, it looks like love is hopeless and Yaya may never be seen or heard from again.

Satomi’s other current manga work is GURU GURU PON-CHAN, a story about a dog who becomes a human girl with the aid of a “magical” bone. Combined with this work, you see that the creator has quite an obsession with questions of identity as they pertain to teenaged girls. Metaphorically, both stories turn on how the heroines see themselves as they approach matters of the heart, and the sense is that she’s trying to make a statement about self-esteem and being true to one’s self, and that comes across quite well in OTHELLO (uhh… not so much in PON-CHAN, however).

After reading volume five, I rather figured that OTHELLO would be nothing more than a mild piffle of a work, something that would be lost in a manga landscape full of titles about characters who aren’t quite what or whom they seem to be. I’m more than pleased to be proven completely wrong.

See you in seven.

Review materials may be sent to: Marc Mason, P.O. Box 26732, Tempe, AZ 85285. You can also find me at Happy Nonsense and The Comics Waiting Room

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