NOWHERESVILLE original graphic novel
(Best of the Week!)
Highly Recommended (10/10)
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Image Comics
Writer/Artist: Mark Ricketts
Price: $14.95 US |
I read introductions. I enjoy those opening essays, as I find they're often written well. Powers and Alias writer Brian Michael Bendis provides the introduction here, and it's not what I expect in an introduction, or even enjoy. It's over the top. Bendis seems desperate to convince the reader of how good this Ricketts guy is. Bendis is so insistent, and his words as so... basic, that I found I was doubting them. "Methinks he dost hype too much."
And then I read the story. Or to be more precise, stories. Every word in Bendis's introduction is true. Ricketts is a powerful storytelling, not only telling some fascinating film-noir type mysteries and crafting convincing characters, but he takes the reader into the beatnik culture of the 1950s. It makes for a fascinating and entertaining tour of a different time and different attitudes, with dialogue that's deliciuosly lyrical.
Coffee shop owner Chic Mooney is a zen kind of guy, a cool cat who walks on the edge of the more dangerous people and places in the city. His pal, Mr. Queeg, is looking to write a novel, and Chic, along with the deadly events that creep into his life, serves as inspiration. Friends and enemies turn up dead, and a cop with a grudge would just love to pin any of it on his old rival, Chic.
Ricketts's art reminds me of the work of so many top talents in comics. The first comparison that comes to mind is to Bendis's crime fiction, such as Goldfish and Jinx, in which he uses photo-reference art to tell his story. A similar method seems to be at play here. The artwork also puts me in mind of Eduardo (100 Bullets) Risso, Stuart (Shockrockets) Immonen and Tony (Starman) Harris, among others. Ricketts's realistic, haunting approach envelops in a sexy, dangerous atmosphere.
One of my favorite aspects of this book is how Ricketts's tells a number of stories, but they're all linked. There's a plotline that weaves its way from start to finish, but the book reads well as a collection of related short stories as well. And then there are the characters. Chic Mooney isn't the only well developed player in this drama. Mr. Q, Serena, Mr. Sticks, Hayley and the Diprima siblings are believable characters, most of which with tragic and/or disturbing dark sides.
When I saw this solicited in Previews a while back, I was torn. I wanted to check out more graphic novels, more work that stood outside of the norm in the industry. The premise was intriguing, but here was a creator I'd never heard of before, asking me to shell out several of my hard-earned bucks, basically on faith. I'm incredibly pleased I made that leap. This is a stunning volume, and it makes me itch for the chance to see more work from Ricketts, be it something new or a new Chic Mooney book.
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