Two men are running. One of them says: “Between mates, friends or relations, what do you think is the best word to describe us?” To which the other answers: “I think mates implies a degree of intimacy that we don’t reach. That’s largely due to the fact that our relationship is only young, and that we rarely meet up. Meanwhile, I think we have a degree of understanding which proves that we could be called friends’. It’s even possible that we have already reached the point of being mates.”
When it comes to interpersonal relationships in comics, and narrative fiction in general, it would seem that love, be it romantic or purely physical, has a monopoly on storytelling. Just compare the number of books that have love as their main theme to that of books that focus on that equally multi-faceted, difficult and fascinating theme of friendship, especially between males.
French cartoonist François Ayroles latest book, Les Amis (L’Association), does just that: it studies the different aspects of male friendship, its dynamics, beauty and ludicrousness. It tries to find out what makes friendship so important that we incessantly strive for it, and will do anything to keep our friends liking us.
In a series of short scenes, tableaux even, Ayroles puts a number of men or boys in an ordinary situation (a café, a park bench, a jog, a party), and watches how the interaction unfolds. He shows how people use friendship as a means to control others, how others try and fail to become friends (often against their better judgement), and how over-analysis can kill a bond that is deep and unique.
(page from Les Amis by François Ayroles, published L’Association)
In one scene, a professional type tries to win the friendship of another, similar guy, only to be obliged to fill out an obligatory questionnaire which will be used “to audit our possibility of friendship”. In another one, a gang leader introduces a new guy to one of his friends, and leaves, giving his friend money to have a pint with the new guy. Upon which the other one follows his top dog’s example, gives the money to the new guy and leaves as well. A final example involves four friends who get all creeped out when one of them starts taking notes of their conversations.
To Ayroles friendship is obviously a fickle and even shallow thing. It is bartered with, and used to uphold one’s social standing. Ridiculous unwritten rules determine whether you belong to one group or another and never, it seems, the two will meet. Friendship is an artificial thing: you decide to be friends at one point (or you are admitted to a friendship circle), and you decide that the deals off just the same.
At one point, this leads to a group of social outcasts forming their own Friendship club, to support each other in obtaining the necessary social skills to make friends with other people (such as, greeting people or being interested in what they’re saying). Naturally, they are the laughing stock of the others, and cruelly find out that even within their own circle, they are not friends, but rather remain outcasts, doomed to each other’s company.
(awkward social groups in Les Amis, art and (c) François Ayroles)
Ayrole’s book is at once bleak and insightful, disconcerting and hilariously funny. His style, which is a combination of sketchy lines and a very sparse layout, supports this. Les Amis is one of the best graphic novels I’ve read this year, and it urgently needs a translation into English. Forward-thinking publishers take note.
Wim Lockefeer lives in Belgium and when not trying to fathom the practicality of making a comics anthology printed on Belgian lace writes extensively on comics culture and art; you can read more of his work on his own Ephemerist blog.
Wed, Aug 6, 2008
From our Continental Correspondent, Translation please