Eye on Comics
  • About/Submissions

Frequent Flyer Smiles

  • Reviews - NBM

Little Nothings Vol. 4: My Shadow in the Distance graphic novel
Writer/Artist/Cover artist: Lewis Trondheim
Translation: Joe Johnson
Publisher: NBM Publishing
Price: $14.99 US

As someone who loves the medium of comics and has been writing about them for years, I’m obviously familiar with Lewis Trondheim’s name, but I have to confess, this is the first time I’ve sat down and read his work. I honestly didn’t know what to expect from him, but now that I have, I know what to expect next: I expect I’ll be reading more of his comics. This collection of one-page, slice-of-life cartoons are eminently relatable, and the universality of Trondheim’s ‘toons becomes even more apparent when one considers this book is a translation of work originally crafted and presented in French. Loosely linked by a theme of the creator’s international travels, the book definitely reads better in shorter spurts. There’s not much in the way of an overarching plotline to provide a stronger connection and flow. Nevertheless, Trondheim’s honesty about the fleeting, neurotic thoughts that pass through his mind at any given moment is as touching as his ability to poke fun at his little foibles. As for his approach to the character designs, his intent is clear. The book is about exposing common human experience, and the simple designs reinforce the relatability of the work, allowing the reader to insert himself or herself into each situation.

Internationally acclaimed cartoonist Lewis Trondheim always has cause to travel to comics festivals and other events, but despite his jet-set lifestyle, he never seems to be able to overcome the challenges of travelling. With each trip, he always forgets something or packs something in his checked luggage he needs or wants on the plane. He’s seen the same bad movies on airlines time and time again, and hotels always seem to have something lacking or unusual with which he must contend. Adding to his travelling woes is the development of a sinus problem — one that wouldn’t be so serious if he didn’t spend so much time at 30,000 feet.

Trondheim boasts a fun, light cartooning style. His choice to depict himself and everyone else in the world as animals not only allows readers to imagine themselves alongside the lead (or taking his place), it serves as a clear message we shouldn’t take ourselves or others too seriously. Life is almost literally a zoo in Trondheim’s world, and he’s devolved everyone, including himself (as a chicken). The figures are simple throughout, but the backgrounds and settings are richly textured. It was fun seeing a variety of international locales, and Trondheim skilfully conveys the diversity in the natural and architectural beauty of each destination.

It’s interesting to see how Trondheim uses the pacing and brevity of the basic three- or four-panel strip while casting aside the limitations of the linear, horizontal model to such cartooning. The full-page approach offers him more in the way of layouts, detail and depth. Sometimes he opts for a two-panel, stacked sequence, while at others, he employs five or six panels, with some narrow, horizontal panels shimmied in there in unconventional but effective manners.

I found the most interesting aspect of the book to be a running plotline later in the book about Trondheim’s health issue. He doesn’t resort to exaggeration to convey the concern such a development would give way to, but he nevertheless manages to convey the stress of the situation while seemingly being casual about it. Maybe one reason this aspect resonated for me personally was a recent health issue I experienced that resulted in a hospital stay and a referral to a specialist. The physical vulnerability adds to the everyman tone of the autobiographical storytelling. It’s as though Trondheim decided to reinforce his self-deprecating self-examination of his foibles with a physiological shortcoming as well.

The translation of this European work is quite good. It never felt as though sentiment or humor didn’t cross the cultural and linguistic threshold. Though I’m a bit rusty, I have a strong educational background in French, so I’m honestly curious to read this book (or like works from Trondheim) in the original French.

Trondheim’s message throughout the book is clear. Sure, the focus seems to be on the goofiness of how the human mind works, but really, it’s a celebration of the human experience and the magic hiding in the world all around us. It’s there in the subtitle, “My Shadow in the Distance.” There are moments throughout the book in which Trondheim pauses from dwelling on the inconveniences of life and the small mistakes he’s made to focus on the wonders around him. It’s particularly apparent when he snorkels off a tropical coral reef, but one can even find it in his amazement at his own body’s ability to expel something big and disgusting as it heals itself. 8/10

Follow Eye on Comics on Twitter.

January 29, 2012 Don MacPherson

Post navigation

Wound Up → ← I Wonder If Norman Osborn’s Middle Initial Is Dubya

One thought on “Frequent Flyer Smiles”

  1. Pingback: press : NBM Blog

Comments are closed.

Recent posts

  • Burnt-out Ends of Smoky Days
  • They Do Need Those Stinkin’ Badges
  • Future Tense
  • Teed Off
  • Scar Issue
  • Of Gods and Monsters
  • Genre Splicing
  • A Mouthful of Dollars
  • Striking the Wrong Chord
  • Extra! Extra! Bleed All About It!

Categories

Archives

Categories

  • Announcements
  • Editorials
  • Features
  • Original Comic Art
  • Reviews – Action Lab
  • Reviews – AfterShock
  • Reviews – AiT/PlanetLar
  • Reviews – Archie
  • Reviews – Black Mask
  • Reviews – Boom! Studios
  • Reviews – Dark Horse
  • Reviews – DC
  • Reviews – DC/Vertigo
  • Reviews – DC/Wildstorm
  • Reviews – Devil's Due
  • Reviews – Drawn & Quarterly
  • Reviews – Dynamite
  • Reviews – Fantagraphics
  • Reviews – IDW
  • Reviews – Image
  • Reviews – Indy/Small Press
  • Reviews – Legendary
  • Reviews – Lion Forge
  • Reviews – Marvel
  • Reviews – Miscellaneous
  • Reviews – NBM
  • Reviews – Oni Press
  • Reviews – Other Media
  • Reviews – Quick Critiques
  • Reviews – Radical
  • Reviews – Slave Labor
  • Reviews – Titan
  • Reviews – Tokyopop
  • Reviews – Valiant
  • Reviews – Zenescope
  • Reviews- Humanoids
  • The New 52 Review Project

Search

Recent Posts

  • Burnt-out Ends of Smoky Days
  • They Do Need Those Stinkin’ Badges
  • Future Tense
  • Teed Off
  • Scar Issue

Recent Comments

  • Marcelo Soares on Coming Clean
  • Perry on Scoop
  • R Phillips on “Fixed… With Tape”
  • Leslie on Avengers… Disassemble Those Guys
  • Perry Beider on 2018 Glass Eye Awards – Creators
March 2021
S M T W T F S
« Jan    
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031  

Archives

  • March 2021
  • January 2021
  • November 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • April 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • August 2007
  • July 2007
  • June 2007
  • May 2007
  • April 2007
  • March 2007
  • February 2007
  • January 2007
  • December 2006
  • November 2006
  • October 2006
  • September 2006
Powered by WordPress | theme cats456