Week of 6/23/2025
More workplace idiosyncrasies occur on The Shapes, I give the usual updates of what I'm doing, and review the visceral graphic memoir Precious Rubbish on Sammy the Critic!
The Shapes
Bob’s 1st Day of Work 7-8
News
Grand Central Pride Market
During Grand Central Pride in St. Pete tomorrow, I’ll be vending at Daydream Shop once more from 12-5 PM.
Comics Beat
A little while ago, I wrote two con reports for the Comics Beat about this year’s MoCCA Fest and Brooklyn Independent Comics Showcase (BICS). Check them out if you've got some extra time to kill!
Sammy the Critic
Precious Rubbish Review
CW: CSA and child abuse of all other kinds.
Previously serialized as self-published comics and the anthology NOW, Fantagraphics brings together all these bits and pieces as one tour de force in what is by far the most visceral graphic novel of the year.
Drawing aesthetic influence from the classic tradition of early to mid-20th-century visual media, such as the likes of Harvey Comics and Archie Comics, Kayla E’s memoir is a frank yet seemingly flippant introspection of childhood trauma at the hands of her exceptionally horrible family. In some way, the reading experience is akin to viewing a cathartic stream-of-consciousness unravel before one’s very eyes. The narrative isn’t very linear, often jumping between different time periods interspersed with thematically relevant advertisements and activity sheet spoofs alongside non-sequiturs. Even the more directly story-driven portions contain panels where the text doesn’t match up with the visual content or, more often, engage in metaphorical imagery of the author’s experiences.
While this would be disorienting from an observer's perspective, Kayla mitigates this effect through her cleanly composed composition and linework, both of which share a similar playfulness with form to cartoonists like Chris Ware or Ivan Brunetti within the context of an earnest story. As much as her storytelling choice functions as a coping mechanism against the blunt trauma she’s confronting, it additionally spares the reader from the horror of witnessing the abhorrent acts of abuse (including child molestation and frequent beatings) without ever giving the impression that it’s holding back.
Overall, Precious Rubbish is precious indeed and another graphic novel I see going down on my favorites of the year. You can buy it on the Fantagraphics website or anywhere books are sold.