The Monkey in the Basement and other delusions
I managed to nab a print copy of Corrine Mucha’s Ignatz-nominated mini-comic before it sold out at Retrofit Comics, but it’s still available digitally from TopShelf for a mere $1.99 and I’d definitely recommend reading it if possible. It’s funny and it’s perceptive, but I suspect it will probably be only funny and perceptive to those who possess the same fantasizing traits that the narrator does. In the three auto-biographical stories presented here, she latches on to first one idea and then another, expanding, elaborating and unravelling it, until it inevitably becomes too big to contain and deflates. Mucha deftly and humorously explores how much of our reality is consolidated in the imaginary, her style and irreverence reminiscent of a more frenzied Simone Lia.
The third and final missive nice brings together and anchors Mucha’s thoughts on the nature of fantasy and its role in adult life: why is it deemed socially unacceptable for adults to indulge in fantasy? As children, imagination is something that’s is encouraged and cultivated, yet the older you get the more you are expected to reign in and dream less over small things, big things. Those who do exercise it or articulate it are viewed as odd. There’s a lot of ‘quirky’ stuff out there, but this is one of the best efforts I’ve read recently, purely because watching Mucha/character tenaciously hold on to her imaginings and attempt to follow through with them provides a unique narrative edge. Definitely worth a look.
Update: You can still buy the print version of the comic over at Corrine’s webstore, (it’s sold out at Retrofit Comics).
Fri, Aug 31, 2012
Comics and cartoons