By turns funny and heartbreaking, Terry Moore's 90s, pseudo-feminist, melodrama, Strangers in Paradise, illustrates the struggle between searching for love and loving yourself.
Francine and Katchoo (short for Katina Choovanski) have been best friends since high school. Now as adults they share a home, but they couldn't be more different. Francine is a romantic with her head in the clouds, currently in love with Freddie but generally in love with any good looking guy. Freddie's feelings for her are a different story, but Francine couldn't be more oblivious. Katchoo is a wild and crazy feminist artist, and she thinks Freddie, and men in general, are the scum of the earth. Francine is the center of her world and she's fiercely protective. She's also completely in love with her, a fact that Francine is aware of, if only subconciously, which she chooses to completely ignore. When Freddie breaks Francine's heart, more than just sparks fly, and he's in for more punishment than he bargained for in the form of a very pissed off Katchoo.
SIP is well written and enjoyable if not amazing. It's a modern twist on a classic formula, and almost reads like a grunge era, alternative soap opera, complete with amnesia. Francine plays the damsel in distress, while Katchoo is an admirable knight in shining tank top. She is fresh and fun to read; strong, but vulnerable when she needs to be. At times, her man hating attitude can be a bit abrasive, but she softens up a bit once she meets David Qin, an art student. Francine can be utterly exhausting, her choice to ignore the obvious in favor of preserving an "ideal" relationship is maddening. However, it's this past attitude of subservience and self-depreciation that makes her eventual change in attitude that much more satisfying.
Moore's drawings are also fantastically expressive and fluid. They stand out head and shoulders from a mob of other black and white indie books. More attention to detail and movement is strongly evident in each panel, which fits perfectly with the zany, mile-a-minute, slap-dash dialogue and plot. You race through the pages, needing to know what Katchoo will do next. I hope to read more. I give this book a B+.
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