A 250 word (or less) review of Sweet Tooth volume 5
By Jeff Lemire and Matt Kindt, Vertigo Comics
Sweet Tooth: Unnatural Habitats continues Jeff Lemire’s
post-apocalyptic story about a mysterious plague decimating humanity and the
emergence of mysterious animal-hybrid children. Specifically Sweet Tooth
focuses on Gus, a teenage human-deer hybrid, and Jeppard, a hard man and
consummate survivor, as they try to unravel the mystery behind the plague.
Unnatural Habitats is split into two stories. The first, set in 1911, tells the
tale of an expedition to Alaska to rescue Jesuit missionaries which uncovers a
horrible secret. The second chunk of Unnatural Habitats returns the lens of the
story to Gus and Jeppard and their journey to Alaska for answers. This part of
the comic feels like the conclusion of the second act: it concludes a bunch of
lingering storylines and seems to set the stage for the conclusion of the
story. It’s a satisfying read that pays off a lot of what comes before. Something
occurred to me while I was working my way through this chapter: the
juxtaposition of cartoony, animal-children with all the bleak and monstrous
things in Sweet Tooth is CREEPY. I mean, the expressionist artwork of Lemire
and Kindt is expressive and uncouth enough to generate a metric ton of
atmosphere alone, but render some adorable pig and deer kids and suddenly there
is this uncomfortable dramatic tension between the grim reality of post-plague
life and the optimism, potential, and innocence of children. It’s an effective
storytelling approach. Anyway, Sweet Tooth: Unnatural Habitats is a great
chapter in a great comic.
Word count: 248
Previously:
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