Why I Read: Groovy, Kinda
Hi, everybody. Delta-v coming to you with another webcomic I’d like to share with premise for this you. The premise for this one is the wildest yet: What if an awesomely talented writer and artist were to create a Slice-Of-Life (sort of), Alternate-Reality comic that dealt with science, sex, silliness, sex, and the Sixties? Why, this one, of course! Author and artist Charlie Wise is graciously allowing me to examine his brainchild, so lets journey together to the delightful world of Groovy, Kinda.
Synopsis:
Electrical Engineer Larry Pye, valued employee of Sampson Enterprises, meets and falls in love with artist Edison Lighthouse (real name Rosemary Pipkin) as he helps (carries, actually) her home after she overindulges at a party they both attended. Getting her settled–no easy task–Larry goes home and discusses his evening with his Neandertal roommate, Tovio, and Tovio’s boyfriend Prospero. Larry then goes to work and has to re-hash things with his beautiful co-worker Stephanie Rossum, a Humachinal (robot) who has been dragged from her own reality into Larry’s by Sampson Laboratory’s Discombobultionatron, a time and reality-bending device. The two reminisce about Larry’s former girlfriend, the gorgeous supermodel Victoria, who two years before was pushed through the Discombobulationatron by her sister Eleanor. Larry then leaves for his date with Edison, which goes fairly well. Larry drops Edison off at her home and returns the hoverecar he borrowed whereupon he runs into his friend Anya Langerak, war orphan refugee from Chuckleslovakia, who turns into a raging bundle of hormones at the mention, or sight, of a clown. Anya has just broken up with Eleanor (yep, her), and is looking for …..solace. She invites Larry and Edison to the library where she works, and when they arrive, Edison mentions clowns, and Anya falls in love with her.
I hope you have all that down, because from there on, things get complicated…..
How I Found It:
I clicked on a Project Wonderful ad! Groovy, Kinda is also on Tapastic and Facebook, and I’m pretty impressed with myself for knowing even that much.
Why I Like It:
Since it’s a Slice-Of-Life comic, the story proceeds in a series of arcs and sub-arcs, and is styled more as a videodiary of events than a plot-driven narrative. This gives Charlie great latitude for developing characters and situations pretty much as he pleases, and he uses every bit of it. Charlie has a sharp ear for dialog, and a fluid, spot-on, sense of body language and expression, which is a force-multiplier for the humor he employs. Charlie finds so many things to poke fun at, it’s a wonder he can fit them all in.
One of his favorite subjects is human sexuality, and he apparently finds it hilarious, since so much of the comic is devoted to the silly side of it. Charlie gleefully explores all manner of “forbidden” things, and wrings a laugh from even the most gasp-worthy. Interestingly enough, while the subject matter may be hard “R” or even an”X”, the comic itself, including a few kisses and one swat on the butt, never gets beyond a medium level “PG-13”, which is pretty impressive, when you think bout it.
Another area is alcoholism. Here Charlie treads a fine line between finding the humor in drunken behavior, and acknowledging the tragedy underlying it. You find yourself feeling sorry for Edison (the heaviest drinker) even while you laugh at her antics–especially when Charlie reveals how much she has lost because of it.
And then there’s the early- to mid- Sixties. While eschewing the acid-dropping drug-loaded excesses of the later era, Charlie laces the comic with dialog and images which recall the happier aspects or Way-Back-When. This extends to the very name of the comic itself. If you can’t figure it out, ask Charlie–I’m NOT going to spoil his fun. Bell-bottoms, paisley, open-necked shirts, music, cornball movies–nostalgia at it’s best.
That brings us to the puns. After the first few pages, Charlie settled into a rhythm of using puns for page names–something I find delightful. He also slips sound puns (you have to say them out loud) and regular puns into the dialog. And be alert for place names, people’s names and object names. The stranger they are, the more likely they are to be puns.
No matter the subject, If you think you know what’s going to happen next, you’re probably wrong. Charlie delights in throwing curves, in appearing from an angle that no one else has considered, of coming up with a third answer to a binary problem. If nature abhors a vacuum, Charlie abhors the mundane.
One small irony does make me smile when I think about it. The comic was originally presented as a Menage-a-Trois, but over the weeks and months it has grown to something more like a Round-Robin. I’m not complaining, merely noting how things can grow beyond the original concept.
Next is the artwork. Charlie doesn’t draw, so much as he crafts each page. A lot of his shading–especially in backgrounds, is an intricate, deliberately drawn series of parallel lines in varying patterns. He also does wonderful woodgrain. I’ve seen him put more energy into drawing a door frame than some artists use in a whole page. He goes into great detail on electronic and lab equipment, Clothing lies just so–all very meticulous. He also draws hands, which is like the Holy Grail of comic artists. Charlie has also mastered the knack of making each character’s features unique–this is also a difficult task, and a much-sought-after ability.
The characters are also well-thought-out and self-consistent (Stephanie has gotten a little more adorably clueless about humans, but that’s actually a plus). Larry is a slightly awkward engineer-type, but Charlie made him an anti-Dilbert, since Larry has four ladies who he’s close to and one teenage girl with a crush on him whom he is trying to avoid. Edison is complex, arousing our sympathy one moment, our exasperation the next. Anya is similar in her own way, but with a greater fund of tolerance to spend since she’s an orphan who was probably preyed upon. Eleanor is manipulative, catty, spiteful, calculating, conniving–and she has here dark side, too.
This would not be an honest review if it did not mention Robespierre, the octupus-like creature who rose from humble, accidental beginnings to amassing a fanatical fan club of hyper-protective commenters who howl for Charlie’s scalp when anything threatens poor Robie. The cute little sugar-and-carb addict has captured the minds and hearts of a majority of the readers, including me.
In other things of note, Charlie often adds little touches either in the background, or extreme foreground which are easy for the inattentive to miss, but a real reward for the eagle-eyed. Of late, Robespierre has been filling that role, but it’s worth your time to examine every page carefully. He also does frequent cameos. You never know who may show up.
There are a few little markers to watch for: Stephanie’s hair is a mood indicator–lank for sad, curly for happy (or sometimes irritated–watch her eyes, too). Edison’s state of drunkenness can be determined by the number of drunky bubbles around her head, from one (barely buzzed) to five (plastered). And if you see a chicken on the page somewhere, it means to expect something extra funny.
The best way to understand where Charlie is coming from, is the word “love”. Charlie loves books, and owns a bookstore. His love of literature shows in dialog and the occasional Easter Egg (check out the URL for the very first page of the comic, and you’ll see what I mean). Charlie loves art–no one does what he does with the effort that he uses who’s indifferent to it. Charlie loves telling a good story since he works so hard to keep things interesting. Charlie loves his readers. He engages with us and cares about our thoughts and feelings–just check the comment section.
What’s the result? We love Charlie. It really is as simple as that.
What Could Be Done Better:
Well, I’ve been agitating for a plushie of Robespierre, but other than that….. nothing comes to mind. (Dan thought: maybe being active/available across more social media platforms like Twitter?)
Final Thoughts:
It’s a little strange to say, but after using over 1400 words to talk about Groovy, Kinda, I still can’t quite put into words just how much happiness reading this comic has brought me–even the sad parts, which I sort of glossed over, have their rightful place.
One thing I can say: Charlie hit a rough spot a few months ago, and for a while, things looked pretty bleak. That has changed, but I can never, and will never take what we all have her for granted. It really is like a family.
So check it out. Read. Laugh. Enjoy. Please feel free to join the community and comment even if it’s just to say “Hi”. We’ll all be glad to see you, and Charlie will be thrilled.