[Trade Winds] The New York Four

Posted by Graig on July 11, 2008

(Minx)

I have to give DC a lot of credit for their Minx imprint, a line of books that feature young female protagonists in naturalistic situations directed at a younger (pre-teen/teenaged) female audience. It’s an audience that’s barely targeted, if at all, and recognizing the gender and age group’s interest in manga might translate into interest in western crafted comics was not only smart, but necessary.

Luring talent from throughout the comics medium and without, the Minx line is something very different than what any other mainstream publisher is putting on the stands today. Smaller presses, on occasion, put out books geared towards this audience (SLG, First Second, Fantagraphics) but for the most part there’s genre fiction (superheroes, fantasy, horror, etc.) and whiny artist books cluttering the stand, with few other non-manga publishers devoted to attracting female readership directly, nevermind a younger one. That there’s a dedicated line and identifiable trade dress for girls or their parents to identify age-appropriate dramatic storytelling is an exciting step for the medium. Even more exciting is many of these stories don’t fall into the “Mary-Kate and Ashley”-realm of young girl storytelling, but instead provide something that will interest people even outside of their target. (After picking up this weeks batch of books my wife - a straight-up superheroes-only comics reader - asked me “was that a Minx book you got? Oh good, I like those.”)

I have four Minx books on my bookshelf now, having been drawn to each by creative talent I know from works elsewhere, and each have matched the quality that I’d expect of the talent, but the entertainment level, given the line’s focus, was surprising. I come to the The New York Four following the same pattern, as the book features Local’s creative team of Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly (if you were wondering why there was such a delay between issues of that series, I’d surmise this is why).

The New York Four follows Riley as she ventures out into the world seemingly for the first time. The product of Brooklynite literati parents, Riley is extremely intelligent but also cripplingly shy. She’s lived her life until now on her computer and Blackberry, all her friends virtual ones. Now a student at NYU she’s sees the potential for transitioning her life, perhaps not to full extrovert, but at least scaling back on her introversion. Part of this is a result of a sudden encounter with her sister, Angie, long-estranged from the family. Angie encourages Riley to participate in life, make friends and be adventurous and in baby steps, she does. Befriending a trio of classmates, Riley finds each has their own peculiar neuroses which makes her feel more at ease about her own, but when she finds a mysterious email address in her coat pocket, she threatens to undo all her progress and even her education by descending into a text messaging obsession. The enigma of “sneakerfreak”, the intangible yet alluring romance threatens to destroy Riley’s new life, one way or another.

Wood’s story doesn’t play out in the typical three acts, but instead as an excerpt of life with a lot of little moments, and a few big ones. It starts at the beginning of an integral point in Riley’s life, and ends with yet another beginning. This isn’t the story of Riley, just a story. Taking a nod from Scott Pilgrim’s hipster captions, Wood peppers the story with kitschy explanations about settings and characters and threads through an undercurrent of quiet cool. Like a barely-legal Sex In The City New York City acts as a fifth member to the titular four, and in many ways the story is a love letter to the city and a guided tour through it, as Riley explores and explains the neighborhoods and boroughs, the culture and the nuances, and how she fits in.

With the setting elaborately rendered by Ryan Kelly, it’s almost like being there. Apartments, cafes, subway cars, taxi cabs, libraries, bars, the interiors breathe NYC just as much as the skate parks, street scenes, museum exteriors and city parks. Over his 12 issues with Wood on Local Kelly has developed a definite knack for visually capturing the feel and ambiance of a place, just as Wood is able to subtly identify its charm with words. Kelly not only groks the streets and surroundings of NYC, but the people as well, able to define a unique fashion for every character in the book, as well as distinctive hairstyles, make-up and visual personality, all in the absence of color. If there’s perhaps one niggling point about Kelly’s art, it would be his Four are all far too attractive. True none are waifs or big-chested glamazons, but they’re also blemish-free and there’s not an overweight girl (or guy) to be seen. Even toned down from superhero standards, I guess comics still present a visual ideal.

As I said, the book ends with another defining moment for Riley. I can see this being a sticking point with many readers, as it does pose the anguishi-filled question “what happens next”. I’m not sure if there’s plans for another round of the four from Wood and Kelly, but it would be most welcome. This is a book, had I a daughter entering her teens, or even about to exit them, that I would excitedly place in her hands. The characters are empathetic and relatable, probably moreso for women than men but Wood still brings a sense of champion to the characters, Riley especially, that puts the reader behind her, excited to see her bloom, wanting to catch her she falls. It’s the type of book comics could certainly use more of.

4 out of 5 Vikings