Papercutter #7, Ed. by Greg Means and Galen Longstreth

Papercutter #7
Edited by Greg Means and Galen Longstreth

Papercutter issue seven spotlights four emerging comic artists with three solid stories. Though none of the tales ranks among my new favorites, the artists prove their mettle and position themselves as ones to keep an eye on in the future.

The featured story, “Americus,” is the tale of two boys on the day of their middle school graduation. A collaborative effort by MK Reed and Jonathan Hill, “Americus” offers somewhat typical fare for plot: a smart, nerdy boy (Neil)has a tough time fitting in in middle school. His friend Danny is also a nerd, but somewhat less socially inept and less picked on, meaning he ends up with a slow dance at the end of the night while Neil ends up rummaging through a dumpster to fish out his book, which a couple of bullies grabbed and threw inside.

Not particularly new stuff, but Reed and Hill do a good job keeping the story moving with some unexpected moments: finding out Neil has no father in the picture and a brief, two-page escape into the fantasy world of the eighth book of one of the boys’ favorite series — the cleverly titled Chronicles of Apathea Ravenchilde, the Huntress Wytch. (Sort of a Harry Potter meets The Chronicles of Narnia.) The artwork, like the story, doesn’t take any big risks, but the bold, clean style suits the story, and at the end especially, frames of Neil digging alone through the dumpster with the shading of nighttime around him are particularly touching.

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