Blink#1 is the beginning of a strange and very ambitious graphic novel by Dennis Lo. Three characters are introduced: Marty, a middle aged butcher, Cassie, an unorthodox scientist and Dion, a young misogynist porn star.
Issue 1 sees the main focus on the relationship between Marty and Cassie. Marty, as well as a butcher and abbatoir worker, is something of a storyteller himself, opening the novel with an Eastern tale of love and humiliation (establishing the themes of the novel? Maybe, but it's a little early to tell). Cassie, a failing scientist losing the respect of her faculty as she becomes more and more absorbed in her 'scientific' analysis of the occult, relies on Marty for animal subjects for her experiments (though exactly what they are isn't clear).
Dion is brought into the story as a subplot in this installment, and what is hinted about him, is neatly juxtaposed as a TV news story, next to the news item of baffled police finding the remains of Cassie's dismembered cows.A strange and complex story is set in motion, and left on a cliffhanger ending. Whislt Lo seems technicallly adept and creating characters and creating a story arc (or part of one), he's less successful in telling his story sequentially.
The artwork is very detailed and intricately shaded. Overly so actually. The artwork doesn't quite work for a number of reasons. Whilst I like Lo's distinctive rendering of people (they're both knotty and fleshy), there's way too much going on in each panel. The action is murky and your eye is hampered as you read. Another problem is that Lo allows all the action and detail to slide to the centre of the panel. Everything's surrounded by so much dead space and the end result is very disconcerting. It's almost like looking at a long series of badly composed stills instead of a comic.
The lettering is also a real cause for concern. Both narration and dialogue is typed and stuck on. It's so tiny and speech bubbles are tightly cut around the words, there's no room for the writing to breathe and exist as an organic part of the comic. And considering how much dead space is left in most panels, it's confusing that this should be the case.
Ironically, the thing I feel I ought to be complimenting Blink for - that it doesn't look like anything else I've read - the story has some depth, there's oodles of time and work evident here - is the thing that lets it down. This just isn't enough like a comic for me to enjoy. Lo needs to learn the rules of sequential narration, they'd help guide him towards a book that's technically sound enough to warrant his ambition and talent.
As it is, Blink is stuck somewhere between Dennis Lo's word processor and a series of odd, evocotive, but somewhat askew, paintings.
$3.95 (US)/UK ??
Blink#1
From Dimestore Productions