YOUR INDY DAILY: PLEASANT LIFE #1

[MattBrady]

by Ryan McLelland

Pleasant Life #1
Idiothead Studios - $3.50
Written and Illustrated by: Adam Talley
Website: http://www.idiothead.com

Rating: 3 and ½ stars (of 4)

It has been several years since I’ve first reviewed Adam Talley’s book Pleasant Hymns. That first graphic novel introduced me to Lucas, his uber-geek roommate Mortin, and the rest of the college crew that inhabit Talley’s world. In those several years Talley has improved his artwork, gotten a better feel for his characters, widened his storytelling abilities, and a semi-name change. All these revisions are reflected with great passion in the relaunch of Pleasant Life which finds us falling into the end of summer vacation for those at Central University while allowing new readers to meet the characters for the first time.

The plot weaves around several smaller plots of the main characters. First up is security guard Ted Gross who heads the team at the local Indian casino. Ted is the sort who always gets his man and when a thief steals from the casino you’d expect the security chief dressed in all black to easily bust a cap in the man’s butt. However when the thief gets away, Ted finds himself rethinking his life. After only one guy getting away? Yeah that’s how into his job Ted is.

Ted is Lucas’s best friend which is how he fits into the big picture. Lucas is one of the main characters who are moving into an apartment with his dorm roommate, the porn obsessed Star Trek Geek Mortin. Helping in the move is Mortin’s hot yet geeky girlfriend and Lucas’s record store co-worker Amber. Amber, perhaps the best written character of the series, is a go-getter who readers can easily identify with and latch onto. She’s a journalism major who has just landed a paying writing gig that starts off with an in-depth editorial on life as a senior and how all those seniors out there can relate. With the move complete all the friends get together at the local pub to hangout and drink their butts off before their senior year begins. We meet those minor characters from the past and see how the resolutions from even this issue are weaved together.

I’m glad to see that Pleasant Life has come along way and that the character development has paid off in spades. The characters are at a point where I’m enjoying reading about them no matter who is on the page, which is how I feel about another one of my indy faves Box Office Poison. What happens in Pleasant Life to one character usually affects those around them and it is this intertwining that makes this series unique. It’s not a story about an Indian casino or about college. It’s a story about life and those friends around you that become family. It is also, hopefully, a story that will continue long after these friends have graduated college and went onto careers. If a nice character-driven drama is what you are looking for look no further than Pleasant Life #1. It’s a great jumping on point for those who have never heard of the series and more then a pleasant surprise for those who have read the series for many years.


Have an indy comic to review? Write Ryan at rdmclelland@hotmail.com .