Written by Kevin Hayes
Artist Jay Juch
Published by Ace Comics
A blast from the past, the late 1990’s saw an explosion of independent comics being sold by independent labels like Ace Comics. The output from these smaller studios is only matched by the pre-comics code authority late 1940’s to early 1950’s comic book system. In the 1950’s it took “think of the children” to shut down a lot of interesting scary titles, but in the late 1990’s it took the collapse and near death of the comic book industry to shut down the creativity. Love Sucks is one of the better examples of really good independent comics that were coming out at the time, but never got shelf space to make it an economically viable way of making a living.
We have all been in relationships that seem more like stunt or death dating. Or relationships that seem more like jabbing a nail into your brain than anything else, and that is where “Love Sucks” comes into the readers’ world view. Love Sucks is all about the really weird and at times damaging relationships that Nelson, Adrian, and Wendy get involved with. We are introduced to three single friends and their relationship woes in New York City in the late 1990’s. That era right before the implosion of the internet industry, and when “greed was still good”. Each character represents a facet of American dating. Nelson is sensitive and dependent, just coming out of a serious relationship with a girl. While Nelson seems a bit whiny for my tastes, it is interesting that his story revolves around lost love, and the feeling he will never embrace that love again.
Adrian is the self-proclaimed ladies’ man, cocky and brash; he has no trouble meeting the women. We all have had friends like him, a butter fly boy that is more interested in the chase than anything else. What is funny is while he technically knows what to do after he has the girl; he has a very hard time holding onto anything because the world really is about him. It’s not about the relationship it is about getting the hot chick, then calling it a day. Wendy can’t get a break as she goes from one person to another trying to find someone, anyone at times that is worth the time of day. What is interesting is that the Wendy character seems to always go for the hot guy who seems nice, but then gets all possessive and engages in stalking behavior. She likes the bad boys, not seeming to get the cost of those kinds of relationships.
It’s an interesting premise, and the comic books are technically well done. While the comic book never seemed to get off the shelves and ended up as back room inventory, this one is worth rediscovering. Easy to read, well drawn, and a very good example of the awesomeness that was the latter half of the 1990’s in the comic book market. Prices are still reasonable, and they can only be found online.
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