How Good Little Boys Become Stalkers.

Review: Off*Beat
Updated: 9/29/05

Manga/Fandom

Reviewed by: Lianne

Title rating: 13+ for mischief and possible romance.

-3 manga volumes, published by Tokyopop, Volumes 2 & 3 not yet complete

Original English Language manga (also known as OEL manga), is the next big thing--that is, if Tokyopop has its way. An ungodly number of comics have flooded in from Japan, Korea, and even China these past few years, saturating our comic marketplace and dramatically shifting the market in a number of ways (such as helping bookstores, hurting comic stores, and teaching Western girls the joy of shoujo). So what's next? Creating original, English-language works inspired by Japanese comics and anime is by no means a new idea, nor has it ever been a Tokyopop exclusive. But instead of introducing a select few titles to a limited audience or launching a short-lived magazine, Tokyopop is putting a ridiculous amount of time and money into launching a huge, highly-publisized, and hopefully high-quality batch of OEL titles over the course of the next year. This is THE push, and those in the comic industry are waiting with bated breath.

One of the first titles in this recent OEL craze is Jen Quick's Off*Beat, a shoujo drama that hit stands no more than a month ago. If this little comic is any indication of things to come, OEL manga will be the best thing to happen to the comics industry since manga was introduced in the first place.

Manga

Christopher "Tory" Blake is a 15-year-old New Yorker with a mop of red hair, a blindingly-high I.Q., and an over-developed sense of entitlement. He lives alone with his mother in Queens and is regularly forced to fend off his neighbor Paul, a slacker college student obsessed with eating other people's food. Tory--like so many kids you knew in high school--thinks the world is boring because he's oh so smart, and bemoans a lack of stimuli for his giant brain.

One day, Tory's lame teenage life is interrupted when a mysterious boy named Colin moves in across the street--in the middle of the night. Strangely intrigued (and with nothing better to do), Tory starts using his considerable smarts to find out more about the elusive Colin…but the more Tory investigates, the bigger the mystery becomes. Tory eventually spirals from curiosity into obsession, and it becomes clear that whatever Tory can discover about Colin pales in comparison to what Tory can discover…about… himself!

Don't let Jen Quick's age (25) or lack of press fool you--this mangaka is no newcomer. One of a batch of intensely talented SVA graduates (among them Amy Kim Ganter and June Kim) and an integral part of the fan-favorite Estrigious artist team (which includes Becky Cloonan and Melissa deJesus), Quick has been writing, drawing, and publishing manga for years. Her publishing credits include the charming fantasy Soul Union (for I.C. Entertainment's ill-fated Amerimanga magazine) and the art for Oni Press's Once in a Blue Moon. Although always a woman of talent, Quick's skills as an artist and writer reach new and impressive levels in Off*Beat--proof positive that when talented people push themselves beyond their already-impressive abilities, the industry gets amazing books and versatile creators. Aspiring mangaka should be taking notes, because I'm not going to push you in the direction of awesomeness every day.

Colin + potted plant = intrigue!

Although Tokyopop has marketed Off*Beat as a drama/romance and Quick herself admits to the story having "a bit of shounen ai," Off*Beat is largely a coming-of-age story that speaks to anyone who struggled through adolescence (read: everyone who ever exited). Off*Beat is engaging and believable, and is told in a beautiful East/West hybrid: Quick's storytelling has the subtlety and thematic significance of indie comics with the faster pacing and clearer focus of manga. Quick's art is practiced and smooth, and her creative use of varying tones and backgrounds does a god job of keeping the eye interested. While I'm sure some fans will dislike Tory and co.'s dumpy noses and big lips, Quick's character designs are appropriate and unique. Seriously, what 15-year-old boy who prefers reading in the dark to exercising isn't floppy-looking? Her variety of character designs adds to the realism of the story, as does her fantastic representation of Queens.

Probably the most impressive aspect of this manga, though, is Quick's expert story buildup. Plenty of manga and even respected anime titles *cough*honeyandclover*cough* like to waste the audience's time with useless filler episodes, beaten-to-death messages, and/or vapid character development for bad characters. Almost every single scene in Off*Beat has a significant purpose, be it to give depth to the setting or to illustrate Tory's escalating obsession; as a result, character actions are justified, the story is linear, and everything is terribly believable. Quick's buildup is so successful that even simple discoveries carry a surprising amount of weight. Some girl's random revelation in Honey and Clover that she (gasp!) likes ones of the boys has little to no emotional impact, but watching Tory peek under his quiet neighbors' blinds to find bars on the windows? Cryptic as hell.

Unfortunately, the buildup of this manga can also be seen as the story's biggest fault--Off*Beat is paced pretty slowly. While the second half of the book is longer than it needs to be, and Tory, sadly, makes only limited progress in his investigation, these are small weaknesses in an otherwise well-constructed manga. A crawling pace is also a common aspect of slice-of-life stories, largely because life is boring.

Fandom

Although Jen Quick has a decent fan following because of her many years of work, Off*Beat is a brand-new piece and hasn't yet garnered its own fandom. Quick's deviantART page can be found here, and features some Off*Beat colors pieces, page scans, and a slew of other projects. Also of note is a wonderful Newsarama thread that features information on Off*Beat, a mini-interview with Quick, and commentary from fans. It's information, but interactive! Thank God for science.

Tory and Colin simultaneously think they'd look fabulous in those boots.

Overview

Admittedly, Off*Beat may not be everyone's cup of tea. Those who are uncomfortable with mild themes of shounen ai and want explosions in their manga should go read...I don't know, something about fire robots. But if you want to learn how to write and draw a manga, at least consider studying Off*Beat. Jen Quick does something every OEL and Japanese/Korean/Chinese mangaka should strive toward--a fantastic job. 4.5 stars out of 5.