Geisha One-Shot
[Oni Press $4.50 US $7.00 CAN B&W]
Written & Illustrated by Andi Watson
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Jomi Sohodo is a synthetic being who was adopted and raised by a human to prove she would develop like any other child. Jomi has developed normally and is now a young woman, making her way in the world as a painter. The original Geisha four issue mini-series from Oni Press chronicled Jomi’s struggles to prove herself and this one-shot picks up some time after those events.

The story, entitled “Out of Tune” is a quiet tale that reads more like an intermission piece between minis. Jomi struggles with her muse and hangs out with her gossip columnist friend, Boychik. Cherry, Jomi’s brother, has a small part in the story and he makes a momentous decision about the future of his music.

This one-shot gives the reader a good idea of the tone of Andi Watson’s Geisha. My only complaint is that it might not entice new readers to continue reading his Geisha stories. The reader is plunged into Jomi’s world without much explanation and while you won’t be confused you may not be intrigued enough to pick up more Geisha stories.

Watson’s stylized artwork is solid. It’s always a delight to watch a master of panel composition in action. The artwork is black and white and his use of zip-a-tone shading (whether he does it by hand or by computer I don’t know) is masterful and gives the simple figures depth and realism.

If you want to give this series a try write to Oni Press, Inc., 6336 SE Milwaukie Avenue, PMB30, Portland, OR 97202 or visit their web site at www.onipress.com. You can visit Andi Watson’s web site at www.andiwatson.com.