Right now is probably the most exciting point in the history of SA comics. Every year more comics are created locally and just about every genre under the sun is covered. Comic book guru Moray Rhoda picks his three current favourites. 

Mengelmoes 2 
Willem Samuel

Mengelmoes 2 covers Samuel’s matric year and the self-confessed teenage angst he felt at having his heart broken (or torn out of his ribcage as per his illustrations), his views on Christianity and school life in Cape Town. Samuel masterfully evokes the complexities of living in South Africa and our uncomfortable relationships with the history of our country. 

Fantasy and the reality of his past combines as effortlessly as the different art styles Samuel uses, creating a book that is visually impressive, but is probably also the best storytelling in a comic book by a South African during 2014. The artwork changes throughout to reflect the dark or positive emotions Willem felt at specific moments in time. Although broken hearts might seem like a heavy topic, plenty of humourous moments are sprinkled throughout making this an enjoyable book and one of the sweetest odes to a lost love I’ve read.

Sophie the Giantslayer
Kay Carmichael

40 years ago giants came from space and invaded earth by land, sea and air. The devastation they caused drove humanity into small scattered enclaves all over the world and no one could stand against them until one of the astronauts that released them reappeared with a magic sword. The story picks up with young Sophie having heard these legends her entire life, although most people have not seen giants for decades. 

Carmichael creates an intriguing world, setting up the greater history in a few conversations and small scenes with meaningful character interaction. The struggle between the islanders who believe in giants/magic and the rational idealists/scientists who doubt they ever existed is established early as the main conflict. Sophie the Giantslayer is a well-paced, well-written tale of the hero’s journey of a young girl who must save her tribe when the giants return. Read it here for free. 

Fixed Up
Ian Norris

Ex-Cape Town boy, Ian Norris has a nostalgic and heartfelt look back at the failed relationships of his past, starting with the first pressurised fixed-up scenario as a twelve year-old. The cartoony approach and subtle humour is the perfect vehicle for a story where the characters and events are the main focus. In especially the first issue there is a childlike honesty to the story, from the start where Norris exchanges being happy for a girlfriend and a good dose of misery.

Some universal themes are touched upon, such as peer pressure to get fixed-up, the desperation of dating, the end of relationships and the difference between desire and action. Issue 2 moves the story on to post-matric Ian and his year gap year spent at a kibbutz and how that changed him but not his calamitous relationships. Fixed Up is a great start to a series and an entertaining read.

Article first appeared in TechSmart 136, available for download here.