Why I Read: The Lost Island of the Na-Rune-Tok
Hi, everybody . Delta-v is back with another webcomic that I’ve been following for a while. It’s the story of a castaway, but with a twist, which, as you know, is something I look for. Co-creators Gina Trujillo and Sonya Gonzales gave me permission, so let’s explore The Lost Island of the Na-Rune-Tok.
Synopsis:
Protagonist June Markowitz, a law student on a Spring Break cruse, is lost overboard during a storm, and washes ashore on a storm-surge littered beach with nothing but the clothes on her back and a cell phone–oh, and she lost her shoes. The cell phone only underscores just how lost she is, because although it works, there’s no service.
After a couple of encounters with the local wildlife, she is rescued by an inhabitant named Kets’zual who seems overjoyed to see her, and even addresses her in English. It turns out that he has been training since childhood for just such an occasion, and that maroonings happen rather frequently, which is how he knows her language. After she proves to everyone’s satisfaction that she can’t pronounce his name, she decides to just call him “Kets”. Kets appoints himself her guide and guard–after all, that’s why he was trained in the first place–and calls her “Na-Rune-Tok June”, a title of respect which means “stranger” but has deeper meanings, as well. Na-Rune-Toks are considered good luck, so June, rather than being feared, hunted, or worshipped, is treated like an Ambassador instead.
June has some problems adjusting–everyone’s more-or-less naked–and both sides make assumptions that cause confusion. We meet Kets’ sister Namai’sal, whom June calls “Sister”. Sister doesn’t speak English, so Kets has to translate. After the village elders tell June that they can’t help her get home, but there’s another Na-Rune-Tok in another village, June, Kets, and Sister set off. Each village welcomes June with a celebration, so they travel on, one party at a time.
How I Found It:
I clicked on a Project Wonderful ad. You can also find it on Facebook, Twitter, Tapastic, Tubmlr, Deviant Art and Google Plus.
Why I Like It:
First of all, it’s beautiful. Gina and Sonya share the art chores (and the writing), and the settings are lush and colorful. The cartoon style is well-done, and the character’s expressions are believable. The ladies do a considerable amount of experimentation with layout and perspective, something I approve of heartily. There’s no need for artists to limit themselves to the same panel size and placement, if a different pattern would work as well or perhaps, better.
Second, It’s very funny. Culture clashes, physical humor, snarky put-downs (my favorite). silly/embarrassing situations….. At one point, the village kids run off with June’s clothing while she’s bathing. She gets every garment back except one.
Another time, June deeds to go to the bathroom, and runs through a list of euphemisms before the light dawns, and Kets uses the clinical term. What does that say about the way we talk about stuff we don’t want to talk about?
Next,depth of world. The language the villagers speak isn’t just window dressing. the ladies actually wrote a language with nouns, verbs and other rules of grammar. And then there are the tattoos. They follow a code that tells viewers what that person has done, and what has happened in their lives. This is another reason they don’t wear much. Covering their bodies would be like deleting their Facebook account.
They haven’t published it yet, but the ladies are working on a chart decoding tattoo shape and placement.
By the way, June does have a tattoo, but it’s a butterfly, it’s on her…..back, and she covers it up.
Some may be thinking, “This comic is PG-13. How does that work with toplessness?” Simple. Nobody has nipples–nobody–and it works.
The comic examines a lot of Western preconceptions of what, and how much we need, exactly what constitutes “social graces”, and who decides what is or is not “taboo”.
I guess I’d have to say that I like it, because it’s playful, clever, well thought out, and well delivered. Gina and Sonya obviously love their work, and although there are a few somber pages, it makes me feel good when I read it.
Things I Think Could Be Better:
The only thing I can think of, and I know that they are Mega-Super-busy, but I really love it when they respond to my comments. I wish they had time to do it more.
Final Thoughts:
I really like it when writers take a concept–especially a hackneyed one, and twist it and change it, then develop it in a brand new way. Just think how different Robinson Crusoe would have been if he had to deal with June, instead of Friday.
Gina and Sonya have crafted a true gem from a literary backwater, and they did it with flair–I’m very impressed.
I seem to be drawn to underappreciated comics like this one–comics that deserve a much wider readership because they are really that good. They also deserve a higher Top Web Comics ranking, so please vote here for them. Thank you so much.