Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Many artists re-channeled their creativity during the Covid-related lockdowns, but few managed it with as much fiery elan and grace as Graham. Serialized as a daily webcomic on Instagram, this Seattle-set graphic novel takes place over a few days as a love triangle breaks an already-fragile hipster ecosystem. Gussy is a middle-aged ex-painter now running a yuppie dog treat café (sample offering: Rosemary cracked pepper balsamic buttermilk) and lusting after his younger employee, Rosie. Though Rosie is keen on Gussy, her attention is drawn more acutely to her roommate, Hissy, a trust-fund bisexual dabbler in social justice. While of different generations, Rosie and Gussy seem of the same neurotic mold, spinning in self-recriminating spirals while Hissy blithely stirs trouble. The hothouse pandemic atmosphere amplifies the trio's combustible situation, as does Graham's art: her characters are drawn with animal heads affixed to human torsos, exaggerated expressions, and ropy limbs, and have a knack for self-destruction. Occasionally X-rated relationship drama gets balanced with fantastical elements (Hissy being the son of actor Jennifer Love Hewitt, for example). Graham channels summer 2020's rage with a sharp eye: cops appear clownishly sadistic, protestors refuse to admit the violence happening in front of them. It's a messy comedy of errors for readers who embrace the social media chaos of Matt Furie but appreciate Graham's greater nuance. (May)
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Review by Library Journal Review
A love triangle in Seattle over the summer of 2020 reveals the intersection and impact of social media, woke culture, art, commerce, politics, and gender and class dynamics in this complete collection of author and illustrator Graham's Cartoonist Studio Prize Award--winning webcomic. (Graham also previously self-published the webcomic in a print-on-demand edition in 2021.) After giving up on the artistic aspirations of his youth to run a gourmet dog biscuit bakery, a middle-aged man named Gussy finds himself on the verge of bankruptcy. He's infatuated with Rosie, a twenty-something determined to live according to her principles, once she figures out what they actually are, who is equally enamored with Gussy and her housemate Hissy, the activist son of a major celebrity. With COVID surging, the economy cratering, and clashes between protestors and police threatening to turn the city into a battleground, Graham highlights the disparity between her cast's private lives and public personas to evoke how psychological, emotional, and cultural factors combine to compel human behavior. VERDICT Graham (Cosmic Be-Ing; This Never Happened) has created an occasionally scathing yet perceptive portrait of an especially fraught period in American history.
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