Jim Mahfood's Stupid Comics is a collection of some of his one and two page strips over the last few years.  Mahfood has an awful lot of high profile fans who adore him, as can be seen from the slightly unusual presence of thirteen approving quotes on the back cover.

I can see the appeal.  He certainly has a great visual style, and I've always loved the way he draws women.  He has a nice scattershot selection of subject matter, and god knows he crams plenty of content into his work.  It probably took around three times longer to read this issue than most of the other books that came out this week.

So why am I not quite joining the adoration...?

For one thing, I have an irresistible urge to backlash against anything which has thirteen quotes on the back proclaiming itself to contain "some of the most relevant and thought-provoking pieces of graphic commentary being produced today."  Especially when page 2 is about how reality television is stupid, and page 3 is about how MTV is stupid.  True, of course, but not exactly dazzling insight.

Of course, Mahfood doesn't just do broadside assaults on barndoor targets.  He also does more roundabout pieces.  Some of these really just amount to two characters standing around exchanging monologues, and although they tend to be good monologues, they also tend to be rather shapeless strips.

Mahfood's at his best when he's doing vignettes that make their points more subtly (such as the closing "Sunshine Sally" piece, or the "Loop Digga" strip), or simply enthusing about funk or jazz.  Or at least, those are the ones that play best to my tastes.  I'm a quiet soul, you see.  I don't like being shouted at.  Even by people I agree with.

Worth picking up if you're not familiar with Mahfood's comics.  It's certainly full of content, and most people will find something in here to justify the price.  The back cover hyperbole might be just a little excessive, though.

Rating: A-

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