Either way, it's a little funny that I'm writing on a comic with such a title when I actually am sick at the moment, a rarity for me.
I also admit I feel a little bit late to the party spotlighting a Jhonen Vasquez work (his big-time popularity trickled out what, three years ago?) but I also think this is a very commonly overlooked comic of his. It didn't get nearly the publicity that his other titles from the same time (JtHM and Squee) did, which is sad because I think it's definitely one of his better works. Hence its spot here. Right then, off we go.
I Feel Sick, by Jhonen Vasquez and Rikki Simons
Format: Two comic issues. (Originally it was going to be a one-shot, but it was realized to tell all the story they wanted, it would have to be two issues.)
Content Rating: R. Main character Devi's frequent resorting to f-bombs when frustrated is actually remarked on and mocked by another character a couple times, and though there are only two particularly violent moments, they're both pretty graphic when they happen. And of course, Jhonen being Jhonen, the humor can be pretty off-kilter at times.
Plot: Devi's been having creative problems lately. Big ones. Ever since she got a job as a freelance artist, It seems like ideas just won't come, and her drive to make things keeps draining. Worse still, a personal painting she started just before she got the job has begun...talking to her. Whispering. Saying some rather upsetting things, and now Devi's worried she might be losing her grip a little. Can she figure out what's going on in her head, regain control of her art life, and retain her sanity...before the voice in the painting eats her creative energy entirely?
Thoughts: Though it still definitely has its flaws (some of which will be addressed), I think this is some of Vasquez's best writing work--predominantly because it does away with a lot of the mindless non-sequitur humor that came to unfortunately define some of his later stuff. It's still there, of course (it wouldn't really feel like he wrote it without at least a little of that), but it's relegated mostly to background gags. This is more of a two-issue character study, with the focus squarely on the situation occuring. It also covers a lot of similar thematic ground as his earlier graphic novel, JtHM (which I don't recommend as highly--but I Feel Sick is technically a spin-off from it and does help make a lot more sense of some of that novel's confusing bits), but does it in a far more concise, accessable way. The colour also helps things a lot--this was made while Vasquez was still working on the ill-fated Invader Zim cartoon (or perhaps just afterward), and it shows. The artwork here could have easily been pulled straight from the show, but that's definitely not a bad thing. The climactic pages of the second issue, in particular, have a lot of neat things going on with the colouring to really add a sense of mood. The only thing that really makes me twist my lip a little is the time at which this was written--this was when Invader Zim was on shaky legs, in danger of imminent cancellation, and a lot of arguments were being had between him and network executives over creative differences, so it's all too easy to see some of this as Jhonen boo-hooing about being a poor artist that The Man's squeezing a little too tightly, especially with how he demonizes the company Devi ends up working for. However, if you are unaware of that context or choose to ignore it, it mostly works fine and has some decent symbology for what intense creative struggles can feel like.
[Holden Out.]
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