Wednesday, June 27, 2018

I Had Issues! A Review of Cathy Leamy's What's the Word?



Small offering for the archive this week, but it involves someone I like a lot. It was always nice to review a small press talent for my old gig. Not my first or last time with members of the Boston Comics Rountable. Published Originally published May 21, 2011. Edited to fix minor errors.
 
Cathy Leamy is a local min-comics wizard whose work has been showing up more thanks to the Boston Comics Roundtable, which seems to mean less of her signature title Geraniums and Bacon.

I remember some reviewer speaking of Tony Consiglio, saying his work was perfect for mini comics, suggesting limitations (this was before he came out with 110%). I don't think either Consiglio or Leamy have those limitation, but Leamy's diary format and simple drawing style in a zine format is every bit as charming as the work of Carrie McNinch, ableit with a much lighter, more humorous tone.

There are no new Geraniums and Bacon issues collecting her Inbound work (either because she wants the still have the books sell or she hasn't gotten around to it). For those new to her work,What's The Word, available at those finer comic book stores you hear about, is a great introduction to her work, giving a print home to a new style of diary comics she has been posting for some time.

Sometimes a single panel, so far no more than eight, this is a very light serving compared to her longer works, but I hope she continues it. Whether it's attending new events beyond Boston like New York's Mermaid Parade or just documenting her nightlife, Leamy has a very curious and investigative mind that keeps her life and her comics interesting. In a perfect world where journalism wasn't dead, a paper or website local to her hometown of Cambridge Massachusetts would be posting her comics work regularly.

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