A robot, a minotaur and a plant... no, they don't walk into a bar, but they do take a journey together in Pulpatoon Pilgrimage.
Randy:
In recent years, I've found more and more to interest me from alternative publishers like Alternative Comics and Top Shelf, mostly in graphic novel form. Another publisher in that vein, Ad House Books appears ready to throw their hat in the ring with Pulpatoon Pilgrimage, an original graphic novel already drawing attention in all the right circles.
Don:
The creator combines tones of innocence and maturity nicely in this quirky, creative story. It's a fable, really... a fable of self-discovery. This graphic novel should be on every indy comics fan's must-read list.
Pulpatoon Pilgrimage
published by Ad House Books
created, written & illustrated by Joel Priddy
Don:
Rowbot, a one-time robotic sailor; Bull, a quiet, innocent minotaur; and Delaware Thistle, a plant-man make their way through a pristine countryside, headed toward a mountain in the distance. Each of them is something of a lost soul, each with a melancholy past that has driven them out into the world in search of purpose. Along the way, we learn of another traveller they left behind earlier in their pilgrimage, and of their parents and relationships.
Randy:
Just by reading the solicitation copy and taking a look at the book, I had a pretty idea going in what to expect. Pulpatoon Pilgrimage is a strange book with a definite "alternative comics" flavor, not unlike the work of Craig Thompson or James Kochalka. Priddy stands alongside these and other cartoonists whose work you can spot a mile away, with a distinctive style and artistic approach that immediately sets the book aside from its more mainstream cousins.
Don:
I was immediately put in mind of Kochalka's work too, as well as that of Steve (Don't Call Me Stupid) Weissman and Michael (Electric Girl) Brennan. The combination of lighter and more reflective moments in the script, along with the simple but emotive figures, made for an unusual but ultimately satisfying read. I was particularly impressed with the hazier production qualities used to convey the characters' dream sequences. It was a thoroughly effective storytelling device.
Randy:
Pulpatoon has a sort of lazy, almost scattershot pacing to it, as it is deliberately told as a series of short stories that flesh out the characters and their journey. This is not an anthology-style book, however; the stories all lead into the main plot, which is a story of three friends taking journeys, both physical and spiritual, and learning about themselves and the worlds around them. Priddy creates an intriguing cast of characters, giving each main character some sort of verbal tick or visual quirk that helps to flesh out their personality. I was particularly taken with the childlike Bull, whose speech patterns are depicted with lettering that makes it easy to figure out that we're supposed to be hearing each syllable at a different volume, or one more drawn out than the other.
Don:
The simpler tone of the script overall almost hides how well Priddy has fleshed out these characters. Rowbot's past is engagingly adventurous, while Delaware's hints at social complexities that really intrigued me. Bull's simple demeanor makes him the easiest to know, but there's also a greater sense of mystery surrounding him at the same time.
Randy:
Though there's a definite weirdness to Priddy's cast and approach, the book uses these unusual characters to tell universal stories. The story of Delaware Thistle's mom may be shrouded in references to photosynthesis and bee pollination, but it's really a tale of a girl who gets pregnant too young and the consequences of that. And Rowbot's insistence that he doesn't dream comes off as a self-defense mechanism of an all-too-human personality who doesn't want to open up, given that he dreams more than anyone else in the book.
Don:
I think his denial of his dreaming is really a denial of his feelings, which he is trying to escape. After all, we learn that's how he came to be a sailor in a key flashback sequences in the latter half of the book.
Randy:
Priddy's art style is as strong as his writing, and I found plenty to like in his detailed but simple work. Like Don, I especially appreciated how he uses slightly faded panels to indicate the afore-mentioned Rowbot dream sequences, a clever convention that gets around the difficulty of transitioning from reality to dreams or present to flashbacks without color to help out.
For more information about Pulpatoon Pilgrimage and Ad House Books, visit
