Graphic Novel

Octopus Pie is an online web comic series that was printed into several graphic novels. The story is about two friends, Eve and Hanna who are in their 20's and sharing an apartment in Brooklyn. The novel deals with problems any person our age can relate two: shitty jobs, relationship drama and wasting time with your friends. The novel addresses the whole spectrum of emotions that comes from graduating college and not knowing where to go in your life. You are no longer a child but barely feel like an adult and that is what the comics express with humor and heart. The graphic novel is drawn in a very fun, simple and expressive style. The comic is single tone, in the case of the first novel “There are No Stars in Brooklyn” various shades of green. The characters and situations are all very relatable. The novel begins with Eve being reunited with Hanna, a girl from her childhood that she is now going to room with. The comic deals with that awkwardness that comes from reuniting with someone from your past. The novel could be classified as slice of life. While the comic is drawn in a very cute, simplified style, the characters are very much dealing with real adult issues. The comic involves frequent drug use and the characters are sexually active and swear like real people. To me, it feels like the style of the comic is drawn in a way that makes the reader feel nostalgic for a more simple time. It looks like a cartoon from childhood. But the content is made for kids who grew up on cartoons and are now adults trying to make it in the real world. The novel is filled with details that reveal the fact that this is a very personal work from the author, Meredith Gran. It’s clear she has taken a lot of her personal experiences and incorporated them in this novel. The graphic novel is one of the most accessible art forms to tell your life’s story. A lot of comic artists take advantage of the multi-panel format to let you take a peak into their lives in a way where they have total control of the content and style. The drawings even give you a chance to embellish life in a way that only cartoons can do. Another example that I can think of that displays this fact is Persepolis. While Octopus Pie is about the present, Persepolis is a coming of Age tale that tells the story of its author’s entire life. From her childhood in Iran to her more rebellious teenage and college years.