To my surprise, the title character is really more of a supporting player in this quirky comedy/drama. Scooter Girl defies expectations. Like Clugston-Major's Blue Monday, it opens with some high-school hijinks, but there's a less frenetic tone to this story. The main character is really the villain, but he's a victim as well. It's an odd story that defies description, but it doesn't come up short in the entertainment department. The creator has crafted some vivid characters and maintained a universal tone despite the historical setting.
Ashton Archer is a high-school senior, and he has it all. He's revered by the student population and the faculty alike. He's rich. He's handsome. He's got the world around his finger, and he knows it. Even history is on his side, and a life of luxury and hedonism awaits him... until he meets her. At a scooter rally, he catches a glimpse of Margaret Sheldon, and she's unlike any other girl he's ever seen. When she's around, he turns into a clumsy, tongue-tied dork, and he's in deep trouble when she realizes it.
Clugston-Major clearly enjoys delving into the 1960s mod period here. The second-page splash is a celebration of pop culture at the time... scooter races, the fashions and the female gender bursting forth with exuberance, hunger and power. Clugston-Major's Amerimanga style is well suited to capturing the youth and attitude of these characters, but there's something about her work here that sets it apart from her efforts on her Blue Monday books. I'm reminded of Phil (Beautiful Killer) Noto's style here. There's a softer quality at play here, and a more relaxed look as well. The panels aren't as crowded, but the artist doesn't sacrifice detail either.
In an unusual move, Clugston-Major sets up the main character as the target of the reader's derision. Ashton is far too slick, cocky and popular to be actually liked. He's an admitted phony, and the reader is chomping at the bit to see him get his comeuppance. Oddly enough, though, by the end of the issue, we sympathize with him... even empathize. Sure, he's the victim of his own ego, but forces are actuively working against him as well.
Scooter Girl is something of a feminist book, but it does so by poking holes in the typical male fantasy of popularity, sex, money and no responsibility. I'm also pleased to find that the scope of this story will go beyond the confines of high-school hallways. Unlike Blue Monday, Clugston-Major is following the characters' journey into adulthood, and what I suspect -- and hope -- this book is about is the characters' discovery of who they really are, as opposed to the facades they've initially learned to sport.
