All posts by Andrew T

Review: Brooklyn Quesadillas

BQ Cover

Review: Brooklyn Quesadillas
by Antony Huchette
Published by Conundrum Press
Currently in-stock at the Beguiling

Review by Andrew T

Brooklyn Quesadillas is about Joseph, a father/boyfriend/producer who is trying to figure out how to make a living off of his dream-world talk show Homemade Quesadillas. This quest is **record scratch** interrupted when Denise Huxtable (from The Cosby Show) kidnaps Joseph away to the Governors Island, where he is to direct a film to restore Denise and other sitcom starlets to their former glory. It’s the Science of Sleep for the quarter-to-mid(third?)life crisis crowd raised on early 90s TV.

I’m only a handful of years behind Antony Huchette, but even I’m having trouble not freaking to Wikipedia with every drop of a reference. And in a way, I find that to be a brave authorial choice. Huchette (himself a Frenchman living in Brooklyn) seamlessly blends Joseph’s real world life (internship, job, family, etc.) with his dream world. Watching Yves Roberts movies on an iPad as a lullaby, riding in a rowboat named Walt Kelly, or hearing “Tezata” by Mulatu Astatqé at a house party: these bits of cultural flotsam float on by as you fly through Joseph’s coming-of-middle-age journey. Sure this story can be your gateway into singing Prince songs at karaoke, or a reminder to reread Richard Scary (note to self: see if the library has any Richard Scary books…), but really it’s the reverence that Huchette silently pays to these things that matters. It’s the same reverence that Joseph is supposed to demonstrate on his movie assignment, before he realizes that these pop culture castaways are just a distraction from what really matters. He’s created this escape full of his TV crushes, a group of unattainable and unreal women who finally need him, but all he wants to do is get back to his family. Early in the book, Joseph tells Fruitor, the fox who hosts Homemade Quesadillas, that he shouldn’t worry about money because, “when you’re lucky enough to be doing what you love, it’s best to be patient.” By the end, Joseph gets that it’s not being able to do what you love that’s special, but having special people to love that makes it worthwhile.

In general, our generation is going through a thing where it’s cool to have less stuff. Whether it’s because you’ve discovered unemployment or Buddhism, being a minimalist is hot right now. And I think that also applies to how we value a renaissance wo/man. Unless you’re trying for the full Trivial Pursuit pie, the third-life crisis nowadays is more about focusing and getting better. It’s about finding fulfillment in the things that are most important to you, to really matter. The 21st century in a big city is about specializing – being specific gives you an edge. We only have so much room in our hearts and heads, and so we should fill it with only the best. And a nice thing about BQ is that at 64 pages, it won’t take up much space on your shelf.

BQ page 1

Review: Pink

pink cover

Review: Pink
by Kyoko Okazaki
Published by Vertical Inc
Currently in-stock at the Beguiling

Review by Andrew T

Woody Allen once explained part of his process for writing stand-up in an interview. It involved starting from an absurd premise, and then exploring everything around how the mess came about. Giving an example, he describes being caught in an elevator with a piano during a blackout in New York. On it’s own, not a great joke, but there’s so much that can be expanded upon and extrapolated to get to this climatic moment (why was he moving out of his old apartment, why he didn’t have moving men, how did he manage to lift the piano, etc.). Often the material surrounding a crazy situation can be way more interesting, you just have to look at it.

And that’s how I see Kyoko Okazaki’s Pink. Midway through the book Yumi, an office/call girl, is sleeping on a futon in a tiny Tokyo apartment with her kid step-sister, Keiko, and her step-mother’s manstress Haru, all accompanied by Yumi’s pet crocodile. And while that scene is mind-boggling, it’s how they got there and where they go that makes you love and hate them. The thing that drives the main characters in Pink to this moment is sex and how it’s traded. And that’s the story.

Continue reading Review: Pink

Review: Other Stories and the Horse You Rode In On

Other Stories Cover

Review: Other Stories and the Horse You Rode In On
by Dakota McFadzean

Published by Conundrum Press
Currently in-stock at the Beguiling

Review by Andrew T

Man, if Dakota McFadzean’s comics in Other Stories and the Horse You Rode In On are any indication, it must suck being a kid. And it must also suck being old. In-between seems…mm, dicey at best.

For example, my favourite story in this collection is “The Best Donald.” It’s a tale of two boys who are told by their grandpop that he can draw the best Donald Duck. This amazing talent is only a boast until years later, when their gramps is and old man. Turns out, he draws the grossest Donald Duck I’ve ever seen.

The Best Donald

Continue reading Review: Other Stories and the Horse You Rode In On

In-Stock: Hot Stuff from Spaceface Books and Youth in Decline!

Whoa! We got a wonderful package of new alt/art comics from America!

lz_cover

First up, in alphabetical order, are the latest offerings from Spaceface Books:

  • Misliving Amended by Adam Buttrick
  • MS Kingdom by Gabriel Corbera
  • Emmy by Josephine M.K. Edwards
  • Life Zone by Simon Hanselmann
  • Baboom by John F. Malta

People are really stoked on that Simon Hanselmann these days, so don’t delay in grabbing one. We’ve also restocked on The Boy in Question by Michael Deforge, so grab that one too if you haven’t already. Grip’em while we still got’em!

hellen jo

And brand new from Youth in Decline comes Frontier #2: Hellen Jo! Full of some seriously badass ladies, this is a mesmerizing collection of art that should not be missed. So don’t miss it! Buy it! (We’ve still got copies of Frontier #1 in-stock, and YiD just announced their 2014 slate of Frontier artists. Keep an eye on these pups.)

All of the above books, along with many others, can be found on the main floor of The Beguiling.