“Paris”, an original graphic novel by way of Image Comics, tells the story of Juliet. A young oil painter, Juliet is struggling to find her way in 1950’s City of Lights. 
She’s broke and struggling to make ends meet. Then, she has an opportunity to paint a portrait of an English girl, who is visiting Paris. But the girl’s chaperone is a tough character, prickly and domineering. She’s pressuring Juliet to hurry up and finish the darn painting, pronto! And no more sittings!! It’s a situation filled with drama and impossibly high expectations!
Paris is a beautifully illustrated volume. The drawings by Simon Gane (They’re Not Like Us, Godzilla, Ghost Tree, etc) are done in medium weight line, with wash tone, on yellow background. Simon’s style knits smoothly with the narrative by author Andi Watson (The Book Tour, Kerry and the Knight of the Forest, etc).
The British slang of Chapman and her young sitter Deborah is priceless. Thick, almost incomprehensible to today’s ears, the words are class-aligned and classic. The scenes of the Parisien streets, the cafes, the markets. All rendered with substantial detail in a thick angular line by Gane. It’s like a page out of the Where’s Waldo visual vocabulary, this salad of shapes and contours.
The drama is tangible, the atmosphere hypnotic, the pace frantic, and “Paris”, is a baguette, with little cheese, and many slices of life. *Paris was originally published in 2005-2006, with many pages of new artwork and extras added for this edition.
Image Comics, Paris Graphic Novel, $24.99 for 152 pages of content. Teen +
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