Customer Reviews

Strangers In Paradise: It's A Good Life (Bk. 3)

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This is the third Strangers in Paradise trade paperback, and compiles the following issues into one volume: Volume 2, Issue 10: The Homecoming; Volume 2, Issue 11: Queen of Hearts; Volume 2, Issue 12: Goodbye; Volume 2, Issue 12: It's a Good Life. If you have not read the previous two volumes (Volume One and I Dream of You), I recommend you do so before reading this volume, otherwise you will be missing vital backstory.

This collection continues with the stories of Katchoo (the tempestuous blonde with a heck of a past), Francine (the neurotic brunette with self-confidence problems), and David (the keeper of the torch for Katchoo). All three are in need of some peace and quiet and recovery time from their adventures in I Dream of You, but the world isn't content to let them get it.

Above all else, this issue is about defining relationships. Where do Francine and Katchoo stand? How about David and Katchoo? Can Katchoo forgive him for the role he played in her betrayal and injury? What about Freddie, who's decided that he can't live without Francine? Does Casey even figure into all of this? And what is it with these people's fascination with Hawaii, anyway?

If you're reading Volume Three because you enjoyed Volume One, you'll probably be pretty pleased with the story. If you're looking for more of the over-the-top intrigue and violence and mystery of Volume Two, this book is significantly more calm (at least, in that sense) from the previous volume. All in all, however, it's a great continuation of an interesting story.

After all the events and revelations that took place in "I dream of You" this book is a little more at ease and is really wrapping the volume up. No new big events come into play but instead things that emerged in "I Dream of You" are being worked out between the characters (Moore doing a very good job at that I think). Terry Moore does some of his best 'dialogue-writing' yet in here. He's making it funny, he's making it dramatic and most of all, he makes it all logical. These characters aren't your everyday comicbook-characters. They act like REAL people would (slightly exaggerated and funnier now and then, but in essence they do).

About the story: Former events have really made a big impact on all three of our main players (Katchoo, Francine and David) and now all three of them are trying to sort their feelings, and where to go from here, out. Be it through arguments, be it through conversations, be it through acting on impulses. David is trying to convince Katchoo that despite everything that happened he never lied about his feelings for her. Meanwhile both Katchoo and Francine aren't really sure anymore which gender they love, let alone who in specific. And to make things worse Francine's former boyfriend Freddy tries to become a part of her life again.

For people who've read "I dream of You" this book will be a very welcome continuation (and ending) of the volume. You've seen how the adventure ends, now see how it all affected Katchoo, Francine and especially David (who turned out to be something more than expected at first in the previous volume). The quality you've seen in "I dream of You" stays at the same good level here, only there's a lot more room to expand on the relationships between the characters (meaning that as a positive thing). For people who haven't read "I dream of You" (collecting #1-9) I would suggest to either get "I dream of You" and read that first (which would be a smart thing to do in my opinion because I really think this is one of the best non-superhero books out there), or don't bother at all. Without knowledge of the events that took part in the previous volume this book (which collects #10-13, the last four issues of the volume) won't make sense at all.

We have left Francine and Katchoo in the aftermath of emotional and physical trauma, caused by blast from the Katchoo's past, and now is the time to deal with it. Katchoo is recovering, David is back in their lives with dire news, and Francine's ex-boyfriend becomes progressively more obsessed with her. All in all it's an average day in life of these two girls that we grew fond of. Terry Moore writes an excellent dissection of life and life's peculiar wonders. It's a story about those almost neglectful events that we pass by each day, events that make us happy or sad and which make this bothersome burden of living so worthy. There are no superheroes here, only average girls (or young women if you like that phrase better), average boys and interaction full of confusion. Somehow, reader is familiar with all of this, despite never reading this book before. Terry Moore managed to capture the essence that works so well in any part of the world, despite the civilization and cultural boundaries present everywhere (of course, this is sort of a generalization but you get the picture). We all grew up in the similar manner, we all dreamed similar dreams and Terry Moore pulled them out from our collective consciousness and drew them on the paper. And because of them every reader can insert his own story into the lives of Francine and Katchoo, every reader can identify himself with a certain aspects of their lives, and most important of all, every one of you out there will manage to read through the story with a queer feeling that you're looking into the lives of close friends that you never have met before. "It's a good life" closes a story line which began with "I dream of you", though closing might be relative term here. Real story and real troubles are yet to begin. Everything that we have witnessed before is just setting of the stage for larger drama, and dramatic it will be. This drama doesn't have anything to do with soap-operas and those afternoon movies of Danielle Steel, you may picture it rather as a story about everyday survival, le combat ordinaire as Manu Larcenet said in his work.

There are action bits here and there, there is dash of noir sprinkled on the pages, but story does not suffocate from these elements. Katchoo and Francine are still independent, troubled women which hate this world of male dominance and try their best to live in it. Be warned, this is not a book about feminist activism, though it has been hailed by feminists as a positive example of male writing on subject of male-female relations - this is the book about your neighbors (peculiar one but everyone had those at some point in their lives) and, in a paradoxical and roundabout way, book about you. Maybe the question that you're asking yourself now is: "Why would I want to read about my neighbors or myself". Well, there is no straight answer to that one, maybe the best one would be that Art always did so. This is not a comic book in a general sense of that word, this is Art speaking through peculiar media - media which, if you never acquainted yourself with it, might surprise you yet. Maybe "Strangers in paradise" won't be so strange after all, and maybe this is the best place for you to immerse yourself into the wonderful world of comics. (That being said, do start from the first volume and not the third one, hope that goes without saying ')

I know I'm new to Strangers in Paradise, but of the few issues I've read, these have been the best. Buy if you're a fan. Buy if you're not a fan. You'll still like it.