HEY, WAIT…

FANTAGRAPHICS BOOKS
CARTOONIST: Jason
(Edited and translated from the Norwegian original by Kim Thompson)
64 pp., B&W, $12.95

Hey, Wait… is the graphic novelette that introduced Norwegian cartoon Jason (born May 1965 in Molde) to American audiences.  Mean old Gary Groth and Kim Thompson of Fantagraphics Books first published an English edition of this Norwegian comic in 2001, and it made Time Magazine's short list of best comix that same year.  The story that is Hey, Wait… was serialized in two issues of Jason's semi-regular comic book series, Mjau Mjau (translation: Meow Meow).

A story of childhood tragedy and friendship, it begins with two preteen boys, Jon and Bjorn, who wile away their days with the things that boys do: pranks, games, reading comics, climbing trees, spying on people, etc.  A single moment in their young lives changes everything.

Hey, Wait… is the story of lives wasted, but lives more lost than wasted.  It is also a tale of a life lived, maybe not the way one would hope, but nonetheless lived.  With dramatic shifts in time, sparse effective dialogue, and minimalist but rich art, it is a poignant and beautiful story hell-bent on, as cartoonist Dylan Horrocks (Hicksville) wrote, breaking your heart.

The little graphic novelette aptly displays Jason's talent as a cartoonist and comic book storyteller.  He characters are drawn in a mixture of anthropomorphism and funny animal with a blend of naturalism and surrealism.  He understands panel arrangement and pacing, he can draw characters or objects and backgrounds and tell stories in comic book form.  It is effective communication of his story by an artist who challenges the imagination of the reader.