Li’l Depressed Boy #11 Review

There are plenty of titles that deal with depressed or alone characters; the lone hero is a strong archetype and an example of effective story telling. Li’L Depressed Boy #11, however, is not.

The official description from Image:

THREE SKETCHES OF A WORKPLACE CRUSH
New job? Check. New crush? Check. Know her name? Not making that mistake again. How will the Li’l Depressed Boy handle such close proximity to a girl he likes.

These aren’t comedic sketches. The plot is rather bland, as if there’s an underlying statement that’s never quite made. I understand the mood the titles going for, the limited color and simple layouts drive this point home effectively; life is dull. Unfortunately, that makes for dull reading. There’s little to no dialogue or action, but neither is there any tension or suspense to make this worth while.

The main character, known as LBD, is, in my option, just bland. Even if the character suffers from some form of depression, as the title assumes, that’s no excuse to make him so bland or devoid of a personality. Maybe its just a bad issue. The rag-doll appearance doesn’t make him any likeable either; with no facial features of any kind he’s a hard character to root for.

I get the point, obviously. Whilst it does suit the needs of a character who feels ignored, alone and plain, it makes him literally blend into the backgrounds. Artistic and thoughtful, sure, but a potentially poor choice for a recurring comic character. Honestly, if you don’t love the main character, but you don’t hate him either, I’m not sure why I’m meant to follow his ‘antics’ every issue.

Perhaps, worst of all, is that there isn’t a driving narrative. These ‘three sketches’ read like newspaper strips that go on for far too long without a punchline. There’s little development, perhaps plot would add greater interest? Maybe, but I can’t see how interest the average comic reader is going to invest in a monotone rag doll. All 3 sketches more or less repeat the same theme. Repeating itself constantly in one issue surely can’t be a good sign.