The Isle of 100,000 Graves

Before I begin this review, I need to be upfront with you about something. It’s at least a little difficult to write this review dispassionately or in any manner that could be considered objective. I think that will be something that I will struggle with, and struggle with often. Especially when it comes to Jason. Sorry, that’s just the way it’s going to be. There. I got that out of the way.

I first came across the work of Norwegian cartoonist Jason when his graphic novel, I Killed Adolf Hitler was solicited for pre-order. I believe that was in 2007. I ordered the book, it was released on time and I consumed it immediately. I loved every single page of that book. I still do. Because of I Killed Adolf Hitler, I have gobbled up every other title that Jason has released in the U.S. through Fantagraphics, as well as his work on Marvel’s Strange Tales. To date, I am yet to be disappointed. Incidentally, I Killed Adolf Hitler was an Eisner Award winning title.

 

There’s something wonderful about Jason’s cartooning. It’s a very simple looking, clean, style and has an incredible sense of comedic timing. He has a set cast of characters and those characters take on many different roles throughout all of his work…perhaps characters is not the right word. More like, physical templates? There’s nothing particularly ground breaking about his page layouts, but they tell his stories effectively. Like his overall line and style, his layouts are deceptively simple looking.

Deceptive is the key word in that last sentence. While the overall package of his work appears simple, it’s really, very subtly, complex. The subtly complexity is most emphasized by his characters. Each of his characters are terrifc actors and with the slightest gesture, or non-gesture, they convey their emotions and reactions to the reader in relatable and compelling ways. In simple 4, 6, and 9 panel grids his layouts encourage the eye to move at a pace appropriate for the action on the page. By the time the story is all said and done, Jason has usually made you laugh with his wry wit, feel compassion, awkwardness, joy, and he often leaves you with at least a modest sense of existential despair. Each story has its own wonderful feeling and is often very touching in spite of the sense of dread that may loom over it. Every story is a roller coaster ride and worth reading more than once.

In July Fantagraphics released the latest work from Jason titled The Isle of 100,000 Graves. In rare departure from his solo, writer/artist, station Jason teams with writer Fabien Vehlman. Readers may recongnize Vehlmann for his work on Seven Psychopaths with Sean Phillips, which released in 2010 from Boom! Studios.

In the story, the father of an odd looking little girl, Gwenny, has disappeared. Gwenny is convinced that her father escaped his coastal home for the legendary Isle of 100,000 graves, where he sought a mythical treasure. So sure is Gwenny that she enlists the help of some pirates on shore leave to take her to the island so that she can, hopefully, return home with her father and maybe…just maybe, the treasure.

Gwenny finds a reluctant companion in one of the buccaneers who harbors his own seemingly dark, mysterious secret who promises to help her on her quest, if only to keep his secret safe. When Gwenny and her shipmates reach the island at last, what they encounter is something that not one of them expected.

It’s really a marvelous story and has the wonderful tone and personal resonance that I’ve come to expect from a Jason comic. Vehlmann’s words superbly compliment Jason’s style and make this work fit in seamlessly with any other selection from the Jason library.

There were a few gags that I thought fell flat, but that was so infrequent as to be barely worth mentioning. The books humor was nearly perfect in its dry, understated, tone and leaves the reader with a certain degree of uncomfortableness that helps to not just color the story and move it along, but to solidify certain traits for individual characters.

As Jason books go, this is not my absolute favorite, but it ranks up there among some of his very best. Consider it this way: To me, choosing a favorite Jason book is similar to choosing a  favorite Orson Welles movie. They’re all wonderful and there’s no right or wrong answer; only varying degrees of personal pleasure that one receives from an individual work.

Jason and Fabien Vehlmann produced a terrific comic and it’s absolutely worth your time to read it. Buy it now.

The Isle of 100,000 Graves

Fabien Vehlmann & Jason

Fantagraphics Books

SRP: $14.99