Here is the latest in our year-long look at one cool comic (whether it be a self-contained work, an ongoing comic or a run on a long-running title that featured multiple creative teams on it over the years) a day (in no particular order whatsoever)! Here's the archive of the comics posted so far!
Today we look at a neat original graphic novel from writers Jessica Abel and Gabe Soria and artist Warren Pleece called Life Sucks.
Enjoy!
Dave is your typical underachiever. He works the night shift at a rinky dink convenience store. He pines after a girl who doesn't even know he exists.
And, of course, he is a vampire.
Yeah, this graphic novel from a couple of years back would have really fit in nowadays with how big vampires have come become, but I suppose it wouldn't have seemed so charming had it come out after Twilight and True Blood hit the big and small screen, respectively.
In any event, Dave was turned into a vampire by a centuries-old vampire who turns young adults into vampires so that they can be cheap labor for his convenience store. Dave lives with his best friend who he has known for years, and he lives a pretty sad little life. He wakes up when the sun goes down, he chugs some plasma (he refuses to feed on humans) and then he goes to work. He spends most of the rest of his time sleeping, playing video games and watching either cartoons or Spanish soap operas.
Warren Pleece is the perfect artist for this style of book. Check out a couple of pages here where Dave and his fellow night shift worker (at a local copy shop) and fellow vampire Jerome watch some goth ladies, including the girl that Dave likes...
Abel and Soria do a nice job with the main Goth girl, Rosa, as they explore what it means to be Latina AND Goth. It's interesting to see Goth from that angle.
In any event, the book mostly follows a pretty conventional romantic comedy plot (with vampires, of course). Dave and another vampire (also made by the same master as Dave) have a bet - see who can get Rosa to be their girlfriend, withOUT using any vampire tricks like hypnotism. Naturally, the other vampire is better looking with a great body (he DOES drink human blood and that makes him stronger) and also rich, to boot, so he's a great foil for Dave, who is amiable enough but also a bit of a loser.
Abel and Soria avoid strict cliche, though, through some offbeat decisions, including random acts of violence. In addition, their character work is strong enough that they make the story worth following. And Pleece's art, as you can see, is quite good.
So I'd recommend this comic.
Check out the profile page for the comic at First Second's home page for ordering information and even MORE sample pages!