Ben and Miko are fighting. She claims he has "white fever" and he can't really deny it. He's been sidling up to some blue-eyed blondes while he ignores underwear-clad Miko most weeknights at home.They live in San Francisco--or they do until she decides to go to New York for a job. Her decision surprises him, and he's sure it says something ominous about the relationship (he might be right). So he seeks the help of his friend Alice, power-lesbian and fellow Asian. Turns out Alice has a friend in New York they can stay with. She and Ben decide to fly there and see what they find.
At this point I'm going to tell you: this is a graphic novel. It's called Shortcomings (Adrian Tomine). S said it would make me well rounded to read one. (Is that all it takes?)
I will say this about the graphic novel. It's very now. And I think--perhaps as a result--I've never read snappier dialogue, the properly cynical, jaded kind that reminds me of conversations Gen X-ers have with a certain kind of best friend in a certain time of life. During many of these bits of dialogue, I did indeed laugh out loud. So the Ben and Alice scenes were entertaining, and they read as amazingly authentic. I don't think this could be done with books that are meant to have a longer shelf life. Or no. I guess I mean books that shy away from talking about the right-here and now because it might compromise their hopes of becoming "classic." But I liked this approach--it felt...comforting and relevant.
But then...but then I got really annoyed at the Ben and Miko scenes--maybe because Ben told all his crap to Alice and yet to Miko his girlfriend he seemed silent and so painfully casual. Like nothing mattered.
Well, Ben, that's not cool anymore.And I guess Miko got fed up too. I'm not giving all that much away when I say that she and Ben have a confrontation--and it seems at first like it's going to be some kind of crazy Hollywood-style excitement but instead...how can I forget...Gen X-ers don't do that (I know because I am one). Instead, they tend to give in to a general feeling of melancholy and purposelessness. Which really seemed unnecessary, quite frankly. I saw lots of cool ways that Ben could have had an awesome epiphany and--and--
Well I guess it's not my graphic novel to write. And I can admit now that it was quite effective to see a portrait of Ben at his bitter worst and think...well maybe it's time to get beyond that now.
Maybe.
Maybe tomorrow. Until then I'm just going to look pensively out this airplane window--
