Tall Tale Features / Tall Tale Radio

Today, the TTF crew will review “Misery Loves Sherman”, a webcomic by Chris Eliopoulos. Misery Loves Sherman can be found at http://www.miserylovessherman.com.

Reviewers: Lucas Turnbloom, Chip Skelton, and Mike Witmer

Synopsis from MLS’s website: Misery Loves Sherman is about a shy and sometimes snarky kid who lives in two worlds. the outside world where he gets beat up (especially by his sister, Fran) and is tortured daily by his parents, teacher, classmates and, especially, his sister. In his room, however, two aliens live with him and provide a whole different world of adventure, excitement and chaos.

Rotation: New strips post Monday thru Friday.

Art

Lucas: I’m going to say something that’s probably pretty obvious “Misery Loves Sherman” is a beautifully illustrated comic strip. I can’t look at it and not be impressed with his character designs, usage of contrast, line control, and layout, etc. Let’s face it, dude knows what he’s doing.

One of my initial thoughts when I was introduced to “MLS,” was it was reminiscent of the first few years of “Calvin and Hobbes.” However, I soon realized that my first impression was wrong. Sure, Watterson’s influence was there, but Chris’ style much tighter and cleaner, where as Watterson treats ink more like a wet medium. No, “MLS” appears to be more heavily influenced by the 1940s and 50s Googie/Populuxe art style. In my humble opinion, “MLS” has more in common with the “Jetsons” “Ren and Stimpy,” and the “Incredibles,” than it does to “C&H.” Which is just as cool.

One of the things that has fascinated me about the strip is the characters’ appearances haven’t really evolved much from their introduction. Sure, Sherman’s hair is constantly changing, and he’s shrunk a little — as have Benny and Zort — but the overall look has remained pretty solid. This isn’t a bad thing, of course. It actually says a lot about Chris as an artist. He’s sure of his craft, and of his characters. I wish I could say the same.

Chris is a pro when it comes to lettering. Seriously, Google him sometime. It makes me jealous. Very, very jealous. However, early on in the strip, Chris started using a heavier line for his lettering. This made the panels feel heavier in a way, and was somewhat distracting. Especially, when he started using more contrast in the strip. I think Chris may have noticed this too, because he eventually went back to a thinner line. Which was absolutely the right choice. The thinner lettering compliments his art beautifully. Dig through the archives, you’ll see what I mean.

I love this strip. Not only is the art rock solid, it’s family friendly. Which is refreshing in the world of webcomics. Do yourself a favor and check it out. Buy the book while you’re at it. I did.

Mike: I do get rare flashes of Calvin in the Sherman character. I hate to say that because it’s become so cliche. But Chris’s art style is so well thought out (or at least it feels like it). He has a knack for directing your eye thru each panel.

Writing

Chip: When I started reading Misery Loves Sherman I was immediately struck by how much it brought to mind my all-time favorite strip, Calvin and Hobbes. Instead of a stuffed animal, however, MLS has aliens. Unfortunately, the comparison did not favor Misery Loves Sherman. I loved Calvin because I could identify with him. Heck, my Dad (who looks alot like Calvin’s Dad) often said that I did a lot of the same things Calvin did. Calvin wasn’t always a victim, nor was he always a jerk. He was someone we either knew or were.

With Chris Eliopoulos’ Sherman I found the perpetual victim. He is a cute punching bag for everyone. Sherman just seems to drift through life buffeted by the whims and aggression of those around him.

Similarly, those characters around him seem to only exist to use, abuse, or disillusion the poor kid. This worked for the first several strips, but the running gag grew tired and depressing after a while. By the time I reached the current strip, even though I liked some of the jokes, I was sort of numb to the whole affair, and found I had detached from the on-going story of poor, old Sherman.

I think the strip has a very wonderfully diverse and creative cast of characters. From Zort, the wanna-be world dominator to Larry the Leech, Chris has a great sandbox to play in. I love the characters. My favorite is Mort, the kid Death that appears now and again. It’s a shame that these great characters only have one cord to play. With such a strong and original ensemble cast, I really wish they could be more well-rounded, and less dependent on the cliches they seemed trapped to play.

Overall, I think both the characters and scenes in the strip should be allowed to breath.

Life isn’t always a purposeless downer. Maybe Sherman’s Dad could be something other than a jerk, or Zort could profess his tender love of kitty cats, or Sherman could be something either than a victim. Surprise me. Let me invest in these characters by making them more than walking and talking personifications of a manic-depression.

Mike: I’d have to disagree with Chip on this one. I did feel some of the comparisons to C&H when the strips centered around Sherman’s family. But I love the aliens and there were glimpses of personality flaws with them…example: Zort getting the hairpiece. I feel they add a bizarre take to the strip that compliments Sherman’s existence in the panels.

Lucas: I think I have to disagree with Chip too. I don’t know that I see Sherman as a perpetual victim. More like the straight man surrounded by zany personalities. And honestly, that doesn’t bother me. I actually kind of like it that way.

Mike: Plus, the title IS “Misery Loves Sherman.” Seriously tho, I can see how some folks would feel this way. I guess I was distracted enough by the cast.

Character Design

Mike: I went thru a large portion of Miserly Loves Sherman to get an idea of who the characters were. I came out being a bigger fan of the strip because of it.

Thanks to Chris’s drawing style and brush lines, it’s easy to immediately compare his main character, Sherman, to that dreaded comparison that every “young boy” comic strip unfairly receives…Calvin. Hell, MLS COULD be drawn by Watterson…the influence is there, there’s no doubt about that.

The truth is, I found myself not caring about the humans in Misery Loves Sherman. Not much, anyway…

I believe MLS’s strongest characters are the non-human types. I tend to find myself captivated by Zort and Benny, Sherman’s alien roommates. Whenever they appear, they steal the show. Great antics. Great expressions. Chris seems to have invested time in getting to know who they are. So, to me, they were the most appealing.

Same goes for the more obscure characters: Action Figure Guy, The Sock-Eating Monster, Death, The Tooth Collector (don’t call him a fairy!), Larry the Leech. These were the characters I felt drawn to because of the “color” and uniqueness they brought to the strip.

Lucas: Ditto with what Mike said. The strongest characters are absolutely the non-human types. Which if you read my strip, I’m all in favor of.

Final Thoughts

Mike: Okay, I’ll take this one…My only complaint about this strip is that I wish Chris was a little stronger with his web presence. It deserves to be seen. His website is a little vague. If I were behind this strip, I definitely wouldn’t be afraid to “pimp” it out a little more.