The FenReview
Moralicide
(16 Jul 2008)
Here is a comic book of an odd size, with a gray cover and a silhouette in a circle of a guy about to drink a bottle of alcohol like it has been forced on him.
R.M. Kerhli has been slowly and painfully puking up this creation since 2004, and I've been watching him do it.
If at all possible, you really should extract his first book from him. He'll admonish you for it, because he doesn't like chapter one anymore, but ignore him.
Let me tell you why this first book is successful and inspiring to me.
It contains chapters one and two, titled "First Thoughts" and "Fag" respectively. It has 45 pages of comics in it, making it a substantial read acquired at a price that is really too low (I got mine for $5). It's kinda ghetto, being a classic copy shop mini. Except that the cover is glossy, the gray scale beautifully handles the meticulous marker work, and the book measures an unusual 5.25" by 7". How Kerhli came up with those dimensions I have yet to extract from him. I'm sure I'll find out eventually. All and all, this creates a product that instills a sense of deviant pride in the new owner when holding it (or me, at least). Also, this presentation properly prepares you for the content.
Well, I mean, the name does that on it's own, but... We're talking about the unity of the whole work of art, here.
The artwork and story telling are... well, you can take a quick look at the website. You should. Be prepared, it's definitely adult content, and kinda brutal.
There's something a little bit Tom Sawyer-y about the story, a bit Catcher in the Rye, and a bit Road Waffles maybe. That's just all my impressions, not an exact analogy. The story follows this guy named Alex as he takes a road trip with his friend John. There's some good history and decent flashbacks and bad decisions. It's a navel gazing type of comic that reads like a true morality tale. I got the impression from the narrator that I'd better damn well pay attention, and not because he wanted me to, but because if he kept going - if I could keep him going - he'd tell me all the horrible details and come to two or three revelations in the process.
And I get the impression that it's not going where I expect it to.
When I bought the comic from Kehrli, I also purchased an iced mocha, then I went over to Rite Aid and bought a beef stick. And then I walked home in the sun, listening to a compilation of 70's music, while consuming these three treasures in full. I started downtown and finished while standing on the walk to the shared house I was living in at the time.
This is an excellent way to enjoy this book.
It stands alone pretty well, and feels like a complete work, even though it isn't. It leaves me wanting for more, in the same format! And it is a fantastic presentation for a first comic, standing out from the crowd and appealing to the kind of person who might enjoy the comic itself. So good work there!
Now, upon reading this, Kehrli, if I have at all got at what you were trying to do with Chapter 1 and 2, then I suggest you always keep a few of these books around. But if I failed to interpret my impressions right, if they don't match the goals you have for this work, then by all means continue with your plans to scrap Chapter 1. I've already got my copy, and I plan to show it to people!
Also, people, you gotta check out the improvement in Kerhli's artwork. He's always claimed to be more of a writer than an artist, with little to no artistic training. But while Chapter 1 is adequately done for its style and carefully rendered and finished feeling, his latest work is just stunning.
Website for Moralicide:
http://www.moralicide.com
Posted by Fenmere
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