Optic Nerve #11

Creator: Adrian Tomine
Drawn & Quarterly, 32 pages, black and white, $3.95
So? Tomine wraps up a three-part story in this issue, in which angry young man Ben’s quest to patch things up or get over his ex-girlfriend comes to a close. Tomine’s art is, as always, excellent and well-worth the year-long wait for each issue. The story is well-told and full of emotions, but suffers a bit from tapping into the same kind of angsty anger that is the stock-in-trade of too many indie comics artists. Ben is bright, but not the brightest, and he has trouble speaking his mind honestly but often speaks angrily and without thinking. That makes him human, but not terribly likeable. He’s average in every way, and in that way everyone will see at least some part of themselves in this character, even if it’s a part we don’t really want to acknowledge. Grade: B+