Hugo: Graphic Novel

[stoutfellow]

All five nominees for Best Graphic Novel this year are a bit problematic. All of them (I can say definitely in two cases, almost certainly in two more, probably in the last) are part of series. Much as I love Girl Genius and Schlock Mercenary, I seriously doubt a novice, confronted with either volume, would be able to make head or tail of it. For the other three, I was that novice, and found myself at least slightly confused by all of them. Grandville Mon Amour seemed to stand alone best; unfortunately, the story wasn't all that entertaining (to me, at least), and the in-jokes (e.g., a bulldog named Drummond) seemed pointless. Unwritten: Inside Man seems like it's part of a powerful series, but there were too many pieces missing for me to follow clearly. Fables: Witches was likewise not particularly self-contained, but it came closer than Inside Man, and it was less unrelievedly gloomy (the battle with Baba Yaga was pretty funny), so I think that's the one that will get my vote.