Monday, September 24, 2018

"The Agency," By Katie Skelly is as Fun as it is Frisky!

I am of course a big fan of Katie Skelly, having said she was one of my favorite writer-artists of 2017 thanks to her works such as, "My Pretty Vampire." She has a new book out from the Fantagraphics' line, "Fantagraphics Underground," titled, "The Agency," and I loved it! "The Agency," collects a number of web-comics she did for Slutist (a sex-positive and feminism-focused cultural website) and self-published over a few years, all about various women with agent-number designations.

Skelly's writing as well as her artwork are both just amazing, with a mixture of subtlety and clever wit expressed through the dialogue, plotting, and gorgeous illustrations. "The Agency," has a heavy focus on the agent-women and their adventures in space, at the lairs of mysterious villains, or simply having a peppy photo-shoot. A lot of the stories result in sexual content, but it is never portrayed in a nasty or dirty way, instead given a fun and frisky element, often loaded with humorous content (a space-skeleton giving a massage to Agent 8 that turns decidedly raunchy is both erotic and hilarious).  Also, throughout each story an overall plot starts to emerge about mysterious individuals, cults, and other intriguing mysteries the book slowly unveils.
Katie Skelly's books are always such a delight to read. Her artistic talent and masterful storytelling are truly a marvel to witness, and "The Agency," is another example of her genius put to paper. I would without a doubt recommend acquiring a copy of, "The Agency," via Fantagraphics' website, or via asking your local comic shop to order you a copy. This is for sure a stupendous addition to my bookshelf!
5 out of 5 stars.

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