Greetings, yetis! Cabbage here with a delicious dose of nourishing and tasty comics you should get your eyeballs on ASAP.
Like most websites, we've got an absolute treasure trove of submissions from all you fine folks, and only so many hours in the day to cover them. Each month I'll spotlight some fun, weird and unique comics you can add to your sequential diet for variety, creative nutrition and tasty good times.
Let's dive in!
IT TOOK LUKE
Sal's an exterminator. Sal hates their job. Sal's trying to get back together with their partner. It's Sal's last day at work.
Oh yeah, and they've got a green exterminator to rescue from a grisly baddie, too.
WHO MADE IT?
Written by Mark Bouchard, illustrated by Bayleigh Underwood, lettered by Micah Myers, edited by Jasmine Walls and designed by Jillian Crab. Self-published.
WHERE CAN I GET IT?
On the heels of a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2020, you can pre-order It Took Luke now.
WHY SHOULD I READ IT?
Featuring fantastic creature design and explosive art by Underwood and wry, evocative humor by Bouchard, It Took Luke satisfies my penchant for winsome queer romance, body horror, weirdo team-ups and capitalist ennui all at once. Underwood's wild, splashy creativity means there's always something fun to look at, even when we're experiencing "down time," and Myers demonstrates excellent placement and font choice to keep the book readable, clean and stylish.
My favorite kind of horror blends grim comedy and serious scares, and It Took Luke isn't afraid to give us laughs and frights in equal measure. It Took Luke also steps up to the challenge of horror comics pacing, and mostly succeeds thanks to Underwood's all-in style.
CREAM MAID
Cream Maid features an affluent couple in marriage trouble, a very strange cat and a lot of people who just need a little chaos in their lives to make things better.
The cat more than delivers.
WHO MADE IT?
Written by Mark Dickson, illustrated by Rebecca Burgess, edited by Bryce Beal & Scott Malin, and designed by Leanna Cruz. Logo by Rhianna Mills. Published by Arledge Comics.
WHERE CAN I GET IT?
The Cream Maid TBP is currently available on pre-order from Arledge Comics.
WHY SHOULD I READ IT?
Cream Maid is my favorite kind of bonkers, in that its charming aesthetic lures you into linear expectations that blow up in your face. Immediately.
This cat is a being sent from some other dimension to help you get your life untangled by, well, tangling it up even more. Dickson riffs on British period classics with restrained, hilarious dialogue between troubled spouses Honey and Darling, while Burgess delivers cute overload and plenty of fantasy with a clean line and excellent cartooning. Cream Maid doesn't speak, so the visual gags matter, and Burgess understands how to spool out each one for maximum impact.
HOME TIME: UNDER THE RIVER
It's the last day of school and twin siblings Lilly, David and their friends are on their way to the best sleepover ever – pools, video games, pizza, scary movies, romance, intrigue and more.
Then they fall in a river and end up in a visit a forest realm where they're pretty much gods.
From there, things get interesting.
WHO MADE IT?
Written and illustrated by Campbell Whyte. Published by Top Shelf Productions.
WHERE CAN I GET IT?
Home Time is available through Top Shelf Productions. There's also a sequel, so check it out!
WHY SHOULD I READ IT?
Home Time more than earns the "wildly imaginative" pull quote we all know and love. Whyte's imagination is on full display in the book's conceit and in the multiple art styles he flexes throughout this engaging and unsettling comic. Don't be deceived by the book's cute aesthetic - there's more than enough weird, odd and freaky detail at play to satisfy those of us who prefer some Miyazaki with our middle-grade vibes.
Bonus points for some seriously lived-in kid dynamics. Balancing multiple young voices in any narrative isn't easy. There's a quicksilver quality to their banter that feels true, and generates a ton of meta-nostalgia even as the kids try to hold onto, and in some cases control, this transitional moment in their lives.
HOP DUDE
Mama mia! Hop Dude is an existential look at a familiar video game protagonist's daily existence, with a memorable gag repeated ad infinitum.
Fom family dynamics to food foibles, there's nothing that Hop Dude can't conquer.
Kinda.
WHO MADE IT?
Written and illustrated by Dave Mercier, flatted by Sam Kehoe. Self-published.
WHERE CAN I GET IT?
Hop Dude is currently available through Mercier's store.
WHY SHOULD I READ IT?
Hop Dude is for fans of Super Mario Brothers, fans of existential crisis in the form of three-panel comic strips and anyone who likes a good dose of absurdist humor with their graphic reading experience.
Mercier is adept at landing a single-strip gag and using the format to build themes over time. We dive deep into the interminable joy of marinara sauce, the frustration of the forever out-of-reach fancy pasta, the weird world of villains that we've all grown up with, and some meta musings on what it means to be a parent, a person and a creature that's alive in this weird old world. The cartooning is just wobbly enough to be referential without straying into derivative territory.
It's also just funny as hell.
That'll do it for this installment of Leafy Greens!
Remember, folks: capes and stylish indies are delightful, but there's a wide world of weird comics out there for everyone. Read broadly, read deliciously and read often!
Eat your greens, kiddos.
Love,
Cabbage
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