Wide Arsed Mole #2
Kirrily Schell
Reviewed by Darren Hick

Kirrily Schell's work is unquestionably an enigmatic blend. This issue of Wide Arsed Mole, at least, is composed of single-page, two-page and partial-page snippets of stories, ranging from the decidedly Zen "I Wish You Was Me Baby" to the dark and morose Alice in Wonderland homage, "Once Upon a Time." A great deal of her work is, if not influenced by, at least indicative of Edward Gorey's Gashly-Crumb Tinies and Dr. Seuss's children's books -- particularly the afore-mentioned "Once Upon a Time" and the book's only two-page story, "Shingles."

At times, it needs to be said, Schell degenerates into seemingly out-of-place bouts of base sophomoric humor. Admittedly, these episodes are few and far between, but where they appear, they are jarring, breaking up the otherwise striking flow to the book. (This is not to say that she does not pull off effective work in the bizarrely scatalogical vein. Her "Starry Starry Night," in its own way, is as effective as Pete Sickman-Garner's Hey, Mister. It simply breaks up an otherwise fluid collection of sometimes-ponderous, usually-awe-inspired, consistantly-inventive work.)

I find it difficult to say when Schell is at her best, as there is so much stylistic variation between her offerings. Although she seems to have a handful of preferred visual motifs, her visual shorthand is as adaptive and variant as her narrative choosing: Her "ZZZZZ" is dark and foreboding, grasping the same feel, without mimicking the style, of Al Columbia's work; and her "Fine Delights" and the unnamed footer running five pages through the strip leave me wide-eyed with an itchy combination of fancy and fear.

Schell is a careful artist, with a very purposeful line -- as strong in her brushwork as in her linework. Skilled in her comics storytelling, she seems to carefully adopt drafting styles that suit the wide range of her tales and jests. Her thin, dreamy and meandering lines add a tone of fancifulness and a hint of irony to "Stepping Out," while her scratchy, vague and often chaotic pen adds a childish, curious bent to "Shingles."

It seems obvious that WAM represents Schell's ventures into experimentation with the comics form. And though she has some technical hurdles to leap (her composition, at times, could use a little fine-tuning), it's clear that she is capable of a wide range of work. Will she continue to search out the possiblities of the medium, or will she settle into a preferred style? Perhaps she will move on to larger ventures (she's certainly capable); perhaps she'll continue to self-publish WAM. Whichever the case, Schell's strengths should easily establish her as one to watch in the near future.

WAM #2 contains no information regarding price (aside from the line, "WIDE ARSED MOLE is an unsponsored solo venture. Please send me $50," which I hope to be a joke). For more information, you can contact Ms. Schell at Wide Arsed Mole c/o Stinky Comix, LPO Box 194, Anu ACT, Australia, 2601.