Octopus Pie: There Are No Stars in Brooklyn
The Web comic Octopus Pie is about twenty-somethings, the smart but surly Eve Ning and her flighty roommate, Hannah Thompson, navigating the complexity of life after college and all the potholes their particular paths encounter—guys, jobs, reencountering childhood nemeses, baking, drugs, how to correctly market organic foods, skating, old flames, parents, hipsters, emos, rival cliques, injured birds, renaissance fairs, and, of course, what to wear. That is to say that Octopus Pie is sort of all over the map and a bit chaotic. But that’s OK because such chaos suits its ongoing story. Its alternation of unpredictable madness and fits of continuity reminds readers that they’re looking at pieces of Eve and Hannah’s lives and helps them connect with the characters as if they were just two more of their slacker friends. Well paced and grounded, ranging from funny ha-ha to odd observational humor, featuring stylized and quirky artwork, Octopus Pie’s ultimate hooks are its flawed but genuine characters. A really good read. --Tina Coleman