Sweet Tooth #21

I've been a Jeff Lemire fan for a while now, books like Essex County and Lost Dogs hooked me way before Sweet Tooth, but Sweet Tooth has grown so much in my heart over the last two years and this is an issue where Jeff is firing on all engines and really demonstrates why he is a cartooning force that deserves attention.

The way the arc is going the narrative is split in which we have too things happening: The Girls tale and the Boys tale.  The Girls tale is shown in the lower half of each page, while the Boys tale is done in silent narration above.  What Jeff accomplishes in this issue is difficult if you don't love comics like he does.  I love comics lots and don't think I could balance a script with two narratives this well.

The Girls tale is important since it is pushing the arc forward, but the real magic is the boys arc, when Jeff is adding so much depth without really saying anything.  His strong visuals are a great example why I love comics, the juxtapositions, the highlighted symbols and the primal rage in the boys story is so strong that no words can really do justice to what we can read from those heartfelt images alone.

Sweet Tooth is one of the better Vertigo series that is ongoing for one reason and that reason is Jeff Lemire's fearless cartooning.  Each panel is wonderfully chosen, each gutter is laid out where Jeff has a complex infrastructure within his stories.  I am glad that the true potential of comics is not lost in writers/artists like Jeff Lemire and Sweet Tooth #21 is one of those examples where the medium is being pushed to grow.  Vertigo doesn't always mean sex and violence, is use to be about pushing boundaries of comics and Jeff Lemire is keeping that classic Vertigo spirit alive with Sweet Tooth.

Cheers
 - Silkcuts