Royal City Vol. 2 Discussion

Hey, this is Josh Keaton and you are listening

to the GeekCast Radio Network. Welcome to the

Comic Concierge Podcast, a podcast that believes

that comics are for everyone. The key is finding

the right one. Today is another one of my concierge

episodes where I bring someone on, I recommend

a book to them, and we discuss it. This is actually

a continuation episode as back again to discuss

Royal City is JD Rand from In Session Film. Welcome

back, man. Hey, thanks for having me. I am super

glad to be here. And boy, do I have thoughts

on the comic you recommended for me. Good to

hear. Good to hear. Yes. This is our second time

discussing World City. We talked about volume

one a few months ago. I will put that in the

show notes so people can check that out. I would

highly advise checking that out before getting

into this. But before we get into the actual

World City JD, because I know we talked about

your Comic book history last time but before

we get into oral city. Why do you discuss your

your podcast and session filming what you guys

are all about? Yeah, so over at In Session Film,

we talk movies, of course, and we have two versions

of the show. On our main show, we talk about,

you know, the new releases, typically your bigger

releases, a la your, you know, solo, your solos,

your Deadpools, your Ocean's Aids. And we have

Top 3 List and other fun banter for that show.

And then we have... um our extra film podcast

on fridays, which is dedicated to your Indie

films your art house films or classics that we

just don't have time for on our main show So

we do our best to you know cover a nice little

range there because we're Equally as interested

in the moonlights of the world as we are, you

know the infinity wars if you will so Yeah, you

guys definitely cover a lot and great discussion.

It's to me one of the best most consistent Filled

podcast. Thank you there. So highly highly recommend

it So you guys always have great discussion no

matter what you're talking about. So definitely

appreciate it. Yeah, so we're talking about Royal

City because Listening to your podcasts and knowing

your sensibilities like I'd mentioned last time

I know you're you're big into especially stories

that involve father -and -son dynamics in family

dynamics and then we last volume We definitely

got into that, but this is a little bit different.

We actually go back in time and focus mostly

on Tommy. We obviously know what happens to him

in volume one as his death is the major element

that is hovering over the book, literally and

figuratively. Now looking at volume two, how

did this work for you compared to volume one?

Oh, boy, Dan. I was very, very much moved by

this comic, and a lot of it comes down to what

you're saying. In volume one, and I do think

the two are very intimately tethered together.

I don't think volume two carries as much weight

if you haven't read volume one. But going into

this, having experienced volume one and... You

know, the characters of Richie and Tara and Patrick,

you know, they are very much haunted by Tommy's

death as you're talking about. And I do think

there's a lot of potency to that. And in this

version, we get more perspective from Tommy before

he died and what his life was like. And we come

to find out that he is. um experiencing some

physical pain he's having these massive headaches

and migraines that he just can't escape from

and on top of that uh it's coupled with this

depression or this he's just you know miserable

he wants to get out of royal city he wants to

have this life um but he's not exactly sure how

to escape He's not exactly sure how to escape

this melancholic feel that he is carrying with

him. Uh, he just feels like he is anchored down

and he's not exactly sure where to go. And there's

so much about the exploration of that by Jeff

Lemire that I find so poignant, um, and visceral

and human. Um, and I love how that connects back

to Richie and Tara and Patrick, the younger versions

of them and, you know, and how we see them interact

with Tommy when he's alive. Um, there's so much

concise writing and storytelling from Jeff Lemire

that makes not just a cohesive story, you know,

regarding the specific flashback that we're,

you know, witnessing, but It gives a lot more

weight, I think to volume one, when you see,

you know, where these characters are and why

they are haunted by Tommy's death. There's so

much that volume two gives to that. With those,

those, those specific characters that I quite

love, but with Tommy specifically, there's so

much going on with him that I was moved by, especially

issue seven. I sent you a text earlier today,

issue seven and issue 10 wrecked me. Both of

those issues just emotionally destroyed me for

reasons I'm sure we'll get into. As I'm rambling

on here, I'm saying a lot of words to say, I

quite love this, even though at the end of the

day, I'm probably as depressed now as Tommy was

in this comic. Yeah. We were talking beforehand.

I'm like, next time we get you on, I got to get

you more of a cheerful book. This is not... It

is dour. It is very dour. Yeah. And I think you

make a good point about how this definitely...

Informed the first volume and as and I agree

that I think you probably wouldn't have as much

weight without without that But obviously that's

the way that the story is told and it's just

interesting reading this volume in is seeing

the relationship all these you know all the brothers

and sisters Richie and Patrick and what the relationship

to Tommy and just thinking back into the way

they envision him currently especially the one

that really caught my eye was was Richie because

Was interesting going back and seeing their their

the way they interact within this volume because

you know, considering the fact that he sees him

as a reflection of himself, he sees him as like

very much an extension of who he is. I would

went into this thinking, OK, well, their history

must be that they were very tight, that they

had a strong bond, but. That that is not the

case. Not the case. Yeah. They're very distant

from one another. And so I'm just that to me

then leaves the door open to where exactly is

that coming from? Because, you know, obviously

the mother, you see why she feels the way she

does. She does have such that motherly motherly

quality to her. She is very much looking out

for him. But some of the other characters. They're

you know, especially Richie as I mentioned It

just seems like his his point of view seems to

be swayed based upon past reflection And I don't

know if that's obviously we still have a little

bit more story here But I found that the most

intriguing aspect of it one of the most intriguing

aspects of this volume. Yeah, absolutely And

it's interesting to see Where Richie goes at

least in volume one anyway comparatively to volume

two, but there's so much about volume one that

makes more sense as to why Richie responds the

way he does, why he is the way he is given the

events that unfold here in volume two. And it's

heart wrenching where this goes for me. It's

really heartbreaking. And I think Lemire does

a great job of not only, you know, rendering

a reflection of... Richie and his relationship

with Tommy, but Tara as well, the sister character,

I think has a smaller role here, but a significant

one. I mean, Patrick as well, given that he's

a writer and, you know, there's parallels between

Tommy and Patrick in that regard as well. And

the fact that all three siblings, speaking of

Richie, Tara and Patrick, they end up at they

end up at the same place at the same time at

a pretty pivotal event and the way Lemire builds

to that it's actually handled with subtlety and

perhaps it's a little bit obvious but I think

that obvious is the obviousness is crucial at

least for me given you know the fact that all

three of them have been haunted similarly and

given the symbolism here and we talked about

the symbolism in Um, you know quite heavily in

volume one I think volume two while it doesn't

have the same kind of symbolism regarding tommy

being this haunting figure It does make sense

of why all three of them become, you know equally

as haunted but perhaps in in different ways and

Um, it was pretty affecting for me Yeah, you

mentioned mentioned the haunting nature of it

and one thing that For me that felt like it was

pertinent throughout and you know it's even called

out directly by Tommy at one point is is the

loneliness is the isolation that this person

resembles you do get a lot of situations where

rarely are characters in the same frame together

they're often always separated even when they

are taught you know when they are together rarely

are they discussing or talking once in particular

that that really spoke to me was with. With Patrick

and his dad going to work and they're driving

and just three three panels of them and there's

like no conversation they're just going there's

just there's just a Lack of connection there

and I think that is kind of key throughout This

is that all these characters for whatever reason

there's it's almost if they were a family based

upon happenstance we you know, you know the background

of why the parents were married and it's almost

because of it's almost like that they're Was

like, you know going to back the future with

a wrong family getting people get married It's

almost like that happened and there's just no

connection and I just found that that was really

key to me It was just like yeah everything there

was just a loneliness and an aspect to it that

yeah especially from Tommy's point of view where

just he's searching for that connection and Even

he can't find it. Even if like when it's family

is together. There is just a barrier there for

him No, I completely agree. There's this aura

of loneliness and disconnect with the mom and

dad characters that very much cast a spell among

all of the children. And it does create this,

you know, this ambiance of dysfunction among

this family. And I love the dramatic irony of

that given the title of this Royal City. Royal

having this meaning of like high glamour, at

least, you know, that comes to mind and this

is anything but that. So I kind of, you know,

love that dramatic irony. But yeah, I think Lemire

does a great job of not just offering this depressive

state for the sake of it. I do think he's saying.

something fundamentally about how we react when

we are in these depressive states that I find

very provocative. And because this volume focuses

heavily on Tommy and his story before he died.

I want to spend a few moments on what moved me

so much within that because, you know, you're

right. You're talking about, you know, Patrick

and his loneliness or, you know, the familiar

loneliness that we see in all of these characters.

But there's one moment that really spoke to me

with Tommy where he's talking about his parents

and the fact that, you know, they are you know

kind of lonely their marriage isn't necessarily

you know super strong or great by any means but

he says this line that rings so loud to me where

he says i don't want my mom or dad to get any

smaller i want them to see i i want them to seem

big and grown up i need them to because the truth

is i'm really scared oh That's a heart -wrenching

line for me when you realize the emotional state

of Tommy, the physical state of Tommy, the turmoil

that he's experiencing for his parents to revel

in their own loneliness. It has this massive

effect on this character that only becomes more...

It just becomes more despondent as this story

unfolds, and it's just heartbreaking. I don't

know what else to say about it, but I find it

heartbreaking in a way that it's earned and it's

ultimately satisfying on a thematic level. Yeah,

and I agree. That certainly is a very poignant

moment. Just seeing, obviously, this kid who

is just legitimately the weight of the world.

in some ways is on his shoulders even if it's

not not directly designed to be but it just seems

like he you know he's just trying to do what

he can to get by and It just seems like everyone

around the lack of support isn't there though

One of the moments that like you mentioned like

moments that moved you one of the moments that

moved me was one of the few instances in which

we do get that connection and what was with his

sister sitting on oh, yes sitting on the roof

the rooftop or and then And it just then you

know, it's it's tied back to me the the first

volume where you see her Having such a motherly

quality with him and how you see glimpses of

that here They like they do seem to have some

sort of connection and just the honesty that

that's there She's obviously going through a

lot and she wants to be reassuring but She in

her own right has a lot of things on her mind

and but there is just that the the one specific

shot panel of them just slightly leaning in and

just you know what then looking out into the

world it's like one of the few moments in which

you saw two people connect and that was like

an image that just really stuck with me and I

think that's why there was. You know, it wasn't

a beat down of sadness when we did get those

moments of actual of glee or even somberness

it was effective and I think that that means

specifically just it was One of the biggest pieces

of this volume that like tied everything together

that made This entire journey like worth it because

you see that. Yeah, there is there is caring

here. Even if it's not perfect. Yeah I completely

agree. There's another moment of connection that

I really liked. And this also goes back to issue

seven. The, you know, the moment I was talking

about before was also an issue seven, but you

know, this issue ends with a moment where Pat,

where Tommy is in the car with his mom. And this

is after they've, you know, they visited the

doctors, the doctors are, you know, they suspect

something is probably wrong and they give them

some medication to kind of help in the meantime,

till they get some more answers. And they're

just in the car. There's actually two panels

where again, there's nothing talking, going back

to what you were saying with Patrick and the

dad moment. They're just there. And then his

mom just leans over and calls out his name, Tommy.

And he just says, yeah. And she simply says,

I love you. And it kind of ends on this really

beautiful moment of connection, these two characters

that hardly interact in this issue. And after

seeing all of this familial dysfunction and depression

for You get this moment of hopefulness that I

found quite riveting. And, you know, I think

it's pretty clear. I mean, perhaps, you know,

you can tell me if you feel differently, but

I think it's pretty clear with this volume. It's

it's still bridging what another part of this

story that's going to come. So there's going

to be a volume three. And I imagine that we'll

see. you know, the mom, you know, the dad, the,

the siblings kind of respond to, you know, the

events of this. And of course, volume one. And

I think you have to go to the extremes of Lemire

does here, given what he did in volume one. And,

and so there's something about the bleak nature

of this volume. The fact that you get these little

moments of connection here and there, which is

great. I just, I don't want it to get lost that

you know because we're talking a lot about how

you know this is a a dour volume and I don't

want to dissuade people from reading it because

of that because I do think we're going to get

to more of a you know a hopeful resolution with

these characters later on down the road. But

I think you have to go to this territory. And

I'm glad that Lemire never sways from that. I

love that he sticks to those convictions. I think

it makes for powerful storytelling. Yeah, and

I definitely agree and it's interesting you talk

about, you know building to the next volume or

there's more story here and Lumiere just recently

indicated that there's gonna be one more volume

volume three and he's gonna end it there and

He actually intended it to be more of an ongoing.

He thought it would go longer But in writing

the story and moving it he felt that he actually

came to an endpoint that it just found itself

So he didn't keep going but so It's kind of the

the aspect of comic book storytelling how it's

a little bit different in the sense of you know

You you can have it that your your end point

isn't always determined you think you have an

idea where you want to go but eventually things

change and so i'm curious to see like how how

this all wraps up, but I do you do make a good

point that Obviously, you know, we're talking

about the emotional impact of this but it is

it is not like, you know, like I mentioned it's

not just It's not exploit exploiting this the

sadness there it it arms it and I think ultimately

Especially with that first volume you do care

about these characters There's just a human quality

to them and it's through that human quality that

you know, we do you know, we do see loneliness

and I think That opens up the ability for it

to be such a relatable story because I think

we've all had those situations where you know

We especially you know this taking place with

most of these characters in high school Just

getting out of college where it's just that lack

of direction that we're you're just trying to

find and how that you know how that can can impact

you so I agree that there are moments in here

where even if it's a connection that you know,

we see Connections that maybe aren't morally

100 % Correct in the sense of past loves coming

up and the conversations that began but it just

informs us about You know, it doesn't make you

paint anyone out to be the villain which I think

I was concerned about with the first volume But

I think by this volume we just see people for

who they are. Yeah, absolutely I think there's

an argument to be made that Richie comes out

the worst but I think you could argue that in

volume one as well, though. I mean, there's just

something about his personality that's different

than everyone else's, but there's a consistency

to it. And I respect that in Lemire's writing.

And I think another reason this volume works,

given its dour state, and not just the fact that

we're going to build to something that will hopefully

not be quite as bleak in volume three. I think

it does make sense to end after three volumes,

but it's just the overall storytelling here is

just so concise and it has a purpose like I don't

think there's a wasted frame in this entire comic

I think he interweaves all of these characters

the three siblings Tommy gets the most focus

but you got the three siblings the the two parent

characters as well so we are bouncing back and

forth a lot but there's something about the pacing

of all of that and um just the timing of everything

comes together that makes sense so even though

it's um it certainly um isn't an emotional story

I feel like the through lines of all of these

threads coming together are are very stirring

and evocative in a way that is or unlike like

you were saying so it's you still engage with

these characters you're still interested to see

where it all goes and honestly with with Tommy

himself Given the fact that, you know, we all

know what happens to him physically, his arc

here actually ends on a very beautiful note,

on someone of an uplifting note. And I didn't

expect that, but there's something kind of profound

about that, I think. Yeah, that's a good point

in the sense of it is building to that what we

assume, what we have learned that Ventral dread

and you're going into this this this volume.

We knew where it ended up We didn't know how

or why and you know get some early hands obviously

with his health concerns and putting the pieces

together thinking of how we get there though,

I think the Expediency in into which it seems

like we're getting there was quicker than than

expected But you do make a good point to the

sense of where you're thinking. It would be building

to this ultimate moment of just tragedy In which

it is there but there's there is some sort of

yeah completion there. There is yeah, there is

this there is of that longiness is just at least

put to a side for a moment and Making it almost,

you know making it worthy not worthy but worth

this journey because there is something Tangible

that that occurs and he isn't completely lost

Even even if it's just for that moment Yeah,

no, I completely agree. I mean even though I

mean there's there's heavy foreshadowing going

on for sure. I mean you can You can see where

this is going to go. I mean and even without

that foreshadowing I mean, we all know that this

is gonna go given what we know about Tommy in

volume one but Again, I think there's something

about that storytelling that I find really striking

and how it all works here. And I love that, you

know, it kind of ends on this symbolic moment,

like this thematic moment with Tommy, instead

of relishing and the fact that, oh, here's this

dreadful moment we all know that's coming. And,

you know, Lemire kind of avoids all of that to,

again, tap into something that is human, something

that a lot of us can relate with. And given Tommy's

arc and you know this loneliness that he's feeling

for it to end on a note that is kind of the antithesis

to that I find really evocative like I said I'm

kind of curious what you thought of the artwork

here we talked about that in volume one and I

and I quite loved it I think the it's obviously

a very similar style I feel like you know I haven't

read volume one since we talked about it last

but My recollection. I feel like the artwork

here is a little bit darker at times darker colors

To kind of you know represent that the mood of

this version, but overall I still really love

the artwork here. I'm curious what you thought

Yeah, I really do and I feel like with this volume

and it could just be me not miss miss remembering

But I feel like when it comes to his panel layouts

and stuff like that. He's playing with it a lot

more Oh for sure like you know we And there's

obviously a lot of that the continuous motifs

that we keep seeing with how music is often portrayed

with that like wavy line and and also just like

there's some really, I think, specific moments

in this to how it even like. Transitions to like

legitimate like notebook design where you're

yeah Which again just makes you realize that

this perspective of this volume is coming from

Tommy Even if it's not he's not really within

within the story at the moment And I like the

little the handwriting like the actual like words

on the page, you know mimics like handwriting

Yeah, yeah, I felt like I know I know the mirrors

Style is not for everyone because it's it's got

somewhat of a sketch like quality to it But it

speaks to me and I feel like the aesthetic of

it fits with the story Specifically specifically

and especially, you know the the water coloring

there, you know There is a the running this to

it in a way like it's fitting like it does it

fits with with the mood of the book and a lot

of like sometimes the mirror does black and white

which he did with Essex County, which is his

first book, but I felt like with this The coloring

I think plays a huge role, especially as we're

definitely We're within these two time frame

two periods, you know in the 90s and present

day I do think the color palette is is a little

bit different. It does have a darker texture

to it But also just stylistically it's a little

bit different, but I like how this takes place

in the 90s but it never feels like it's Pushing

that to forward, you know, you get some, you

know, calls to the music of the time, but it's

not like Everyone's wearing grunge pants and

the grunge pants or thing wearing, you know,

classic 90 gear It feels a little bit timeless

in that sense. But yeah, I'm a huge fan of the

artwork and I thought like I mentioned that some

of the panel choices like there's a great moment

with showing Tommy and Again talking about the

foreshadowing him looking In the car in the early

sense with with Richie and his girlfriend, and

he just gets this. Vision, I guess you would

call it with all the different versions of himself.

So again, tying back to that, I love that. I

love that moment. Yeah, tying back to the aspect

of is there some sort of supernatural element

here? Is this you know, how how does this tie

back to the like the ghost like that we've seen

the first one? But yeah, I'm a huge fan of the

artwork, though. I like I mentioned I know for

some that like the more realistic piece, it may

not work, but. Enjoy it. I think like you mentioned

with the storytelling how it gets a lot out of

a little it's the same thing with Lemire Like

you can get a lot of emotion out of a character

with only a few lines. Yeah now I completely

agree the 90s aesthetic is certainly there for

sure and it parallels the Dialogue at times in

some interesting ways the the whole Nirvana is

not gonna be remembered in 20 years line So there

is at least one moment of levity in the whole

thing, but yeah, no, I love the artwork and I

love the varying, I guess, stylistic elements

because you're mentioning the moment, or there's

a few moments, I guess, where it kind of mimics

panels where it's just white with, you know,

the characters kind of small, you know, just

kind of, you know, just kind of soaking in, I

guess, this complete white background, which

I thought was very interesting and kind of unique

as well. So and then there's a couple of, you

know, spurts where, you know, Tommy is kind of

in this dreamlike state. And, you know, I kind

of like how all of that is designed as well.

And sometimes it's just, you know, like. the

simplicity of it. Earlier, you were mentioning

this moment that Tommy has with his sister Tara

as they're just kind of sitting on part of the

house, I guess. And there's something really

stirring to me about it where it's just... you

know, we're seeing them from behind, you know,

and Tara is just kind of resting her head on

his shoulder. And they're just kind of looking

out in the Royal City. And there's nothing complex

about the artwork there, but there's something

about the simplicity of it and how it kind of

helps complement that moment on a dramatic level

and an emotional level that I just find really

evocative. So I love how Lemire is able to make,

you know, You know the complex moments work the

simple moments work. It just all comes together

beautifully. I think yes speaking of that let's

like especially with with the coloring there

because You know how their backs kind of intertwine

and almost like come together Near the touching

of their heads, you know, I think it really Complement

how they they're relating to one another and

just the open space, you know how they're in

the corner Yes, and where the sky is dominating

that that that page and it just that I think

that that hopefulness comes because of that it

just there's openness where Much of it's been

confined, right? We're confined in the factory.

We're confined in these cars Where that was one

of the few moments where you you feel like there

is an actual openness here and it weirdly parallels

when his mother's talking to her former boyfriend

and on the lake again, it's one of the few times

where It just seems like they're the world's

open again. So it I know that's a big piece of

you talked about simplicity, I think that's why

that's a good example of that by just opening

it up and Not what's not said and what's not

there speaks volumes Yeah, I completely agree.

Another aspect to my experience that I want to

mention, and this is sort of of a side note,

it doesn't directly affect how anyone listening

could view this comic in terms of what it has

to offer and its quality, but it was a major

influence into my experience for it. And a lot

of this played out naturally. Like I didn't...

set out to do this intentionally because, you

know, I like to listen to music as ever what

else does, but I wasn't listening to 90s bands,

I guess, to get in the mood of this comic, but

I listened to a lot of movie scores as one can

imagine. And we talk about movie scores often

on our show. And randomly, as I'm reading this

comic, the score that came on my Spotify list

was Friday Night Lights, the movie, not the TV

show. And a lot of that soundtrack was done by

Explosions in the Sky. And if you're familiar

with their work, you'll know that their music

would probably complement the mood of this comic,

as we've been talking about it quite well. And

I didn't really catch it, honestly, until we

were near the end, but I think there's something

about listening to that soundtrack as I'm reading

this that actually kind of put me into the right

mood. So it was just kind of weird how like,

I guess, divine interaction, I guess, kind of

played a role into why I was so moved because

as that music is just kind of blaring in my ears

and I'm reading this really emotionally stirring

comic that's really well written and well constructed

for the reasons we've been talking about. That

was... It was just perfect. So I guess I would

recommend that if you want to if you want to

read this it certainly helps certainly The comic

works on its own very well, but it did make the

experience for me. I think You know more memorable.

I think that's interesting because I think to

Jeff Lemire actually has like playlists that

he creates that he that he recommends. I think

there might be in Spotify or something like that.

They correspond with with nice with the book.

But maybe maybe that's on it. That's a good point.

Yeah, it does. I mean, that's the thing about

comics. They do don't have a score. But in a

way, you know, there's ways ways to portray music

and in some occasions. But yeah, I think I could

certainly see how like, it gives you that little

extra oomph of, you know, emotional impact. Yeah,

so Basically, that was a long spiel to say that

movie scores can be effective. And because I

wasn't even thinking about it, it just kind of

something that happened. It was like, man, I'm

finding myself really moved. And then I was like,

oh, I'm kind of listening to this music that

I think is helping a lot. But it's also I don't

want it to get lost. And it's also the writing

of, you know, Lemire's work here is what makes

it more affecting than anything else. But I thought

that was a Interesting, you know, side note.

Yeah, very, uh, uh, not serendipitous. Maybe

I don't know the word for it, but very cool.

Was there anything else you wanted to talk about

before we bring this episode to a close? No,

I mean, really my only final thought on it is

that I cannot recommend it enough. I mean, it

is one of the most heart wrenching things I've

ever read, but it's equally as provocative and

just so satisfying in every single way. So I

found myself quite emotional at the end of it.

And it was interesting because... As soon as

I finished, I usually like to, you know, to do

some like audio notes on my phone to just kind

of, you know, purge my feelings and, you know,

just kind of try to articulate how I felt about

it. And I struggled to do that exercise this

time around. If I was to play those audio notes

here on this show right now, it would be... Awfully

embarrassing to be honest with you then because

I I struggled I mean I I got I broke down quite

a few times doing those notes I was I was I was

a wreck after this and I think I think a big

reason why is because as a parent And I'm sure

you could feel the same But I I could when I

put you know, like if I exchange Tommy's name

with my son's name and then I see how this plays

out Um, it, it just, it speaks volumes to me

as far as like how this situation could happen

to anybody. Right. And, and so then it affects

like the way that I parent and it affects the

way that I look at my son knowing that, you know,

I, this is the last thing that I would want,

you know, for my kid and And I think that just

speaks to the quality and how engaged I was with

this more than anything else. I view that as

a good thing for this comic, that I was able

to go to those lengths and grapple with this

on such a deep emotional and personal level.

And it just kind of affected my day. I mean,

I immediately went home and... you know, grabbed

my boy and gave him a big hug. And a lot of it

just comes down to reading this piece of art

that I think is really wonderful. So, you know,

I just I can't recommend it enough. I mean, it

is dour, it is bleak, but it's beautiful. I can't

recommend it enough. I'm very glad that definitely

worked for you. And I agree, I think. being a

parent of myself, just the idea of the lack of

control in that type of situation, putting putting

in the shoes of seeing a sibling or loved one

or child, like be forced with this, like, you

know, ultimate horror of the unknown and what

that could possibly mean. And also, you know,

we didn't talk about this a lot, but also the.

the irresponsibility of everyone involved, right?

I mean, because there are moments in this where

people aren't sympathetic toward Tommy's situation.

The fact that he's having these physical ailments,

you know... They just kind of are like, it's

Tommy being Tommy, like this is how he's always

been. And, you know, the parents are struggling

with their own things. The siblings are doing

their own things. And so there's just a general

lack of empathy and responsibility for Tommy,

who was the youngest of this entire family. So

then to see him, you know, to see his art crystallize

the way it does, it just adds a level of, you

know, as a parent, it's like, OK, I need to make

sure that I'm. I don't fall into these traps.

And I think this film does a great job of, you

know, flashing the warning signs, if you will.

Yeah, yeah. And, you know, as I was the youngest

of five kids, so I completely kind of relate

with Tommy because I could see, you know, if

you're your your siblings are very quick to call

out when they feel like you're, you know, you're

just calling for attention. So I think that is,

again, a very realistic piece of it. But irresponsibility

is a good point. It's even, you know, The father

in this who is who you know at the beginning

of the first volume He is a central figure because

he's the one that is dealing with some major

ailments in this again seeing He has some moments,

you know, I do love the moment of of wouldn't

Richie or sorry when Patrick determines he's

actually gonna he's gonna quit and just the the

eventual smile that kind of gets around his face

just Seeing that like, okay He's not gonna go

down the same path that I did and that again

another small moment of hopefulness there and

connection but how often he is he purposely isolates

himself and you know how he finds sort of sort

of connection within you know his radio or just

walking or Yeah, I think if anything, he's probably

the one character I felt like probably got out

left out the most but I'm don't know if that's

where we'll dive more and Yeah, I agree. I think

we're going to see more of that. I assume we're

going to see more of that in the next volume,

because it certainly plants the seeds of, you

know, where we see them in volume one, like you're

talking about. So, yeah, I mean, it should be

interesting to see how I guess they, you know,

Lumiere kind of connects all of that. But yeah,

there's so much about this that I love. Yeah,

and I feel back some I'm one issue ahead of you

excited I've read the most recent issue and I

think the next volume will this will be complete

within the next few months So hopefully get me

back on and uh, yeah and do the trilogy because

then that will definitely be great But uh before

we go, why do you let everyone out there if they

want to follow you learn? Hear more from you.

How could they do that? Yeah, so you can follow

us On the social medias Facebook Twitter Instagram

at in session film just search in session film

You'll find us you can email us in session film

at gmail .com And you can find links to not just

our social medias, but our podcasts our reviews

Everything is at our central hub in session film

calm and thanks for having me. This was a lot

of fun Yeah, I think definitely for coming on.

I appreciate you taking the time to read it and

then talk about it I know it was great having

you on and Definitely have to do it again sometime,

but if you want to communicate with this show

you can do so by I'm on Twitter at movie revolt

the shows on Facebook and Instagram just search

comic concierge can also go to the pot go to

the website geekassradio or nerdly .co .uk and

leave a comment there. And if you would like,

you know, leave us a review on iTunes because

those are very helpful, especially for a newer

podcast. But for now, again, I want to thank

JD for joining me. And just remember that comics

are for everyone. The key is finding the right

one until next time. Thanks for listening.