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3.46 AVERAGE
3.46 AVERAGE
Revised rating to add a star after rereading before donation
Though not a fun read, the flawed characters of this book still succeed in providing a conversation starter about race and sexuality in relationships in a way that feels real.
Though not a fun read, the flawed characters of this book still succeed in providing a conversation starter about race and sexuality in relationships in a way that feels real.
Somehow short, yet packed with a nuanced and deep exploration of multiple themes, which though surround race and sexuality, are limited to neither, for the situations are applicable to anyone. I loved that instead of focusing on character growth and giving a traditional 'happy ending', Tomine depicts the messiness of human irrationality and flaws, making the characters real, instead of ideal.
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
ive have a lot of thoughts on this, so please bare with me. i grew up in a predominately white part of australia, and even though i possess a level of asian heritage, the way my genetics played out is that im white passing (barring the ability to grow a full beard). as a result, ive never been aware of the complex asian-australian, asian-american, or asian-X struggles that many have faced. while ive also been aware of the commodification and fetishisation of various races or of attributes (had someone tell me once i was only attracted to those who were more well-endowed), ive never seen it played as well as tomine does here.
116/2022
Cuando su novia se va a estudiar con una beca a Nueva York, Ben se replantea muchas cosas de su vida. Pero por lo que sea no se replantea lo fundamental.
El dibujo es precioso pero la historia no me ha interesado nada, el protagonista es insufrible y no es capaz ni de verse a sí mismo.
Cuando su novia se va a estudiar con una beca a Nueva York, Ben se replantea muchas cosas de su vida. Pero por lo que sea no se replantea lo fundamental.
El dibujo es precioso pero la historia no me ha interesado nada, el protagonista es insufrible y no es capaz ni de verse a sí mismo.
Shortcomings feels like a natural narrative progression for Tomine after his creatively successful short stories. It maintains the Tomine trope of unlikable characters that feel like people you actually know, but with the reader more involved with their life. Not only do we stay with Tomine’s cast of characters longer, he introduces a more traditional narrative. Instead of a snap shot into people’s lives, we follow the main character from the start to the end of his problem.
This novella follows Ben Tanaka through the deterioration of the relationship with his longtime girlfriend Miko. From the start we see them argue and bicker which aptly sets the tone. Miko announces she’s leaving California for New York for an internship and we follow Ben as he deals with his girlfriend leaving town. There’s also Ben’s lesbian best friend Alice who serves kind of as Ben’s sidekick and confidant. She feels like a very stock character at times. Her dialogues with Ben felt a little too typical relationship drama movie best friend if that makes any sense. This isn’t a diss on her character alone however, Ben falls into that unlikable protagonist caricature pretty well but the book subverts the genre throughout to varying degrees of success.
Tomine’s art and story telling is great as usual. It doesn’t hit the highs of the stories featured in Summer Blonde or Killing and Dying, but it’s an improvement over the other early Optic Nerve stories. Reading his output in order has actually been a pretty fun journey and I’m happy that I’ve committed to it.
My criticisms of the book were as stated previously, it feels like a typical relationship drama at times. What saves it is definitely Tomine’s bleak and pessimistic take on everyday life, but that doesn’t excuse the times it does rely to heavily on what’s been previously established in the genre.
Shortcomings is another positive addition to Adrian Tomine’s bibliography and I’m happy I read it. Watching him grow from Sleepwalk to Killing and Dying has been such a great journey and I can’t wait for his 2020 graphic novel.
7.5/10 (3.5 stars closer to 4)
This novella follows Ben Tanaka through the deterioration of the relationship with his longtime girlfriend Miko. From the start we see them argue and bicker which aptly sets the tone. Miko announces she’s leaving California for New York for an internship and we follow Ben as he deals with his girlfriend leaving town. There’s also Ben’s lesbian best friend Alice who serves kind of as Ben’s sidekick and confidant. She feels like a very stock character at times. Her dialogues with Ben felt a little too typical relationship drama movie best friend if that makes any sense. This isn’t a diss on her character alone however, Ben falls into that unlikable protagonist caricature pretty well but the book subverts the genre throughout to varying degrees of success.
Tomine’s art and story telling is great as usual. It doesn’t hit the highs of the stories featured in Summer Blonde or Killing and Dying, but it’s an improvement over the other early Optic Nerve stories. Reading his output in order has actually been a pretty fun journey and I’m happy that I’ve committed to it.
My criticisms of the book were as stated previously, it feels like a typical relationship drama at times. What saves it is definitely Tomine’s bleak and pessimistic take on everyday life, but that doesn’t excuse the times it does rely to heavily on what’s been previously established in the genre.
Shortcomings is another positive addition to Adrian Tomine’s bibliography and I’m happy I read it. Watching him grow from Sleepwalk to Killing and Dying has been such a great journey and I can’t wait for his 2020 graphic novel.
7.5/10 (3.5 stars closer to 4)
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Incredibly authentic feeling characters in a pretty draining story.