Review: “Johnny the Homicidal Maniac: Director’s Cut”

Christine Grant // Blog Writer

Dear Die-Ary:

I’m in love with Johnny C. (Nny, as he likes to be called) and his development into absolute lunacy. Nny is the main character in JTHM.

JTHM: Director’s Cut stands for Johnny the Homicidal Maniac and is a collection of all seven individual JTHM comics written by Jhonen Vasquez.” This graphic novel has followed me since high school. In the four-or-so years I’ve had it, I’ve read it more than any other book I own. People that would like this graphic novel are those who appreciate sarcasm, satire, random thoughts, and complicated, non-linear plot development. I allowed a peer in my design class, Kimberly Huynh (Emerson ’12), to read JTHM and she said that some parts were really funny while others she had a hard time getting though because it was too grotesque and intense. If you like reading comics like Lenore by Roman Dirge, comics that aren’t about super heroes, Dexter, or enjoy the show Invader Zim, then this is a good read. Especially since, well, Vasquez created Invader Zim.

I love his attempt and then absolute failure at a relationship. Failure being when Devi slammed his face into a mirror when Mr. Eff, one of many hallucinations/ apparitions, tells Nny to “immortalize the moment.” On top of that, despite his terribly crippled social abilities, he still has the capacity to care about his neighbor, Squee, killing the pedophile that tries to lure Squee into an alley. He even has a random tunnel that connects Squee’s house to his basement… his very, very deep basement that has many, many levels of people he’s trapped below. These all may look like unconnected details but that’s how Vasquez structured the plot of JTHM.

JTHM is a stream-of-consciousness interrupted with the side comic “Happy Noodle Boy” that really doesn’t have anything to do with Nny but offers a break from the main plot. The plot is all of Nny’s musings about life as he kills hundreds of people. He hates the word “wacky” and kills everyone in a taco joint to the sound of Beethoven. He also has to keep a wall in his house wet with blood. Why? You’ll just have to read. All the while, Vasquez includes his own little narratives and/or comments in very tiny print in the frames. For example, he writes, at the end of a strip, “This strip had nothing to do with the storyline. Still, it’s adorable don’t you think?”

But do not be deceived, Nny isn’t a serial killer, he’s a mass murderer. Serial killers seek some sort of psychological gratification from their killings. Nny is a mass murderer. He just kills people and doesn’t get any sort of gratification from it. The only thing that mass murderers and serial killers have in common is that they are screwed up beyond repair. This distinction is incredibly important to why Nny does what he does. There is an evil force that haunts him that manifests in the forms of Nail Bunny, Mr. Eff, Doughboy and Hamburger Boy, who makes his appearance near the end. Eventually, Nny gets to meet Satan. This helps Nny fill in the details of his existence, but it’s still left with enough ambiguity that the reader can create his or her own twisted fantasy as to why Nny is who he is. It’s silly and violent and has lots of blood and body parts flying around in the frames.

Vasquez’s style of art complements Nny’s conflict. Vasquez’s drawing style is incredibly simple with rectangles and squares as the main shapes he uses, but he makes it look incredibly intricate because he includes a lot of detail. Many of the frames are not square or organized. The outlines for each sequence are jagged which emphasizes the chaotic sequences in this graphic novel. The jagged structure makes the frames look like they’re vibrating on the page. Vasquez also uses the stark contrast of white and black to help create the angsty or dark tone of this novel.

JTHM is split into seven parts, representing the seven smaller comics it’s made of. Each part begins with a mostly black page with a drawing of one of the characters and ends with a “Dear Diary” full-page frame. These frames offer a conclusion to what Johnny did in each section and they get better as they go. An important art technique that Vasquez uses on the “Dear Diary” pages is gray space. These are the only places in the comics that there is gray space. It creates a calming effect that helps solidify the conclusion to the section with Nny’s most important and private thoughts. The final “Dear Diary” is after all of the extra good stuff: character profiles, original sketches for Johnny, summaries of each comic, and an interview with Vasquez. It’s the last page of the novel and offers a satisfying conclusion to the entire collection.

Another piece that’s important is the characters Squee and Devi have their own comics. The characters cross over into JTHM quite delightfully and, having read Squee’s Wonderful Big Giant Book of Unspeakable Horrors, it’s nice to see certain characters cross over and know more about them. It makes JTHM enjoyable on a different level. What works well here is that the audience isn’t left out of any inside jokes and each comic is easily comprehended on its own, without special foreknowledge. It’s just an entertaining perk. This isn’t for everyone. It is a satirical take on our society as a whole, dealing with concepts of violence and being an outcast and it is dark humor. I’ve never found this book in a brick and mortar store like Barnes & Noble or Borders (R.I.P.). Though, you can buy it online and that’s only on the B&N Marketplace. It’s probably best to buy it directly from publisher Slave Labor Graphic’s online store. slgcomic.com. It comes in hard cover ($44.95) and paperback ($21.95). SLG also sells the original individual trade issues ($2.95 each). I can’t tell you the page count, this book doesn’t have page numbers, but the spine is about 1/2” thick. And one last note I want to leave you with: don’t take it seriously. It’s all a wonderfully gruesome joke.