Guinea Pig: Pet Shop Private Eye #4: Fish You Were Here

The Kiddo and I enjoyed another volume from this series, so when we had a chance to run into Colleen A.F. Venable again at the 2014 Maine Comic Arts Festival, he picked this one out.

Title: Guinea Pig: Pet Shop Private Eye #4: Fish You Were Here
Publisher: Graphic Universe
Date: 2011
Writer: Colleen A.F. Venable
Artist: Stephanie Yue
Letterer: Grace Lu

Mr. Venezi has the help-wanted sign out, but he's having trouble finding the perfect assistant for the pet shop until high-school freshman Viola walks in the door, full of energy and know-how. At least, she's full of energy until Mr. V's not watching her. Then she's more into binge-watching her soaps then watching the shop. Meanwhile, Mr. V thinks she's doing such a great job that he isn't even needed anymore.

Sasspants and Hamisher have to convince the rest of the pet store to take some drastic action to get Mr. V to come back. But first they need to solve the mystery of where he's gone.

This was the second in this graphic novel series that I've read, and it was amusing and cute. The subplot involving the goldfish (all named Steve) getting a pleco as a new addition to their tank was particularly fun.

Rating: 7/10

Owl Time

Here's a minicomic that I picked up at the Maine Comic Arts Festival last spring.

Title: Owl Time
Date: 2011
Publisher: Sophie Goldstein
Writer: Sophie Goldstein
Artist: Sophie Goldstein

Eight-page micro-minicomic from the co-creator of Darwin Carmichael is Going To Hell.

Mostly wordless tale of a sleepy owl on a tree limb.Very cute and a nice example of how expressive a simple image can be. Back cover includes some amusing quotes from "reviewers".

Quick, but good fun.

Rating: 7/10

The Weeks Act Story

Another missed day yesterday due to internet outage combined with general circumstances. Maybe this week I'll be able to do a couple of multiple-review days. Not tonight, though. Here's a quick piece on an educational mini that I picked up at the Maine Comic Arts Festival.

Title: The Weeks Act Story
Date: 2011
Publisher: Marek Bennett (www.markbennett.com)
Writer: Marek Bennett
Artist: Marek Bennett

This is a fairly minimalist comic, consisting of both sides of a single 8.5 x 11 inch sheet. It's also sponsored by the Weeks Act Centennial and the Arts Alliance of Northern New Hampshire. The stick-figure comic gives the history behind the Week Acts, which was enacted by congress a century ago this year. This was one of the first important environmental laws, and it protected watersheds and established National Forests.

Marek Bennett works with stick figures here (well, President Taft can't exactly be described as a "stick"...), but he does a very nice job of capturing the political maneuvering that was necessary to pass the Weeks Act (not surprisingly, it resembles the political maneuvering necessary to get anything done in Congress now).

This was a cute comic, and I learned a bit of history from it. The format isn't polished, but it since it is licensed for reprint for non-commercial use, the objective is obviously to make it easy to reproduce with a photocopier.

Rating: 7/10

Eclectic Etcetera

This is a minicomic that we traded for at the Maine Comic Arts Festival.

Title: Eclectic Etcetera
Date: 2011
Publisher: Bluebirdie Comics
Writer: Christina Siravo
Artist: Christina Siravo

As the title suggests, this quarter-sized minicomic is an eclectic sampler of the artist's work. The first half consists of funny animal cartoons, and the book then shifts into fantasy and faerie tale themes.

The humorous bits were quirky and fun, although in a few places the print got so small that it became difficult to make out all of the jokes.

I really enjoyed Siravo's fantasy art that made up the second half of the book, especially her tale of a moth lost in a beehive and unable to speak in the worker bee language.

The book ends with some nice pinup pieces with faerie tale themes. Siravo puts a lot of detail work into every piece, and I feel like it would look even better showcased in a full-sized book.

Rating: 7/10

Reading

Title: Reading
Date: 2011
Publisher: Aya Rothwell
Writer: Aya Rothwell
Artist: Aya Rothwell

This is a short story based on Aya's "Mark and the Aliens" comic. The main character, Mark, is stranded on a distant planet inhabited by strange but generally friendly aliens.

In this quarter-sized minicomic, Mark and one of the aliens sit on a hillside and read books. What follows is cute and funny. This is a full color minicomic with some nice watercolor work on the art. Very pretty little book.

Rating: 7.5/10

What's the Word?

Title: What's the Word? True Tales of a Woman on the Go
Date: 2011
Publisher: Metrokitty
Writer: Cathy Leamy
Artist: Cathy Leamy

Cathy Leamy tries a new approach to her autobiographical comics with this collection from her webcomic (with a few extras for the printed minicomic). Each one-page or two-page entry is based on a single-word theme. The autobiographical aspect is great, largely because Leamy seeks out some really cool experiences. In this minicomic, she attends an acoustic performance by Harry and the Potters. Other destinations include Coney Island's Mermaid Parade, disco aerobics in Cambridge MA, and a pantomime play in England.

All of this is delivered with Leamy's excellent wit and good sense of pacing. Fun book.

Rating: 7.5/10