All Nighter #5

by David Hahn

All Nighter has been a difficult series to pin down.  My first take on it was that it was a slacker comic, in the vein of books like Scott Pilgrim and Pounded, but then David Hahn kept introducing other elements to the story that, while they worked, kept causing me to reassess what this comic was supposed to be about.

For a while, it seemed like a romance story, as Kit became ever closer to her housemates boyfriend, and spurned her previous relationship with Dwayne, who is a thief.  Then it seemed like the comic was more about Kit's relationship with Marta, the mousy new housemate who seemed to be fixating on her.  Then, with the fourth issue, Martha disappeared, and suddenly, the series finished with the group of friends searching for her.

This last issue is easily the strongest in the series, as Hahn does some interesting things, both with the plot and the art.  I love how three pages use a parallel format to explain just how Martha's case went from being a media story to a hipster trend.  Later, as the characters track her down, the story takes a final, tragic turn that was, while not unexpected, still pretty emotionally powerful.

Hahn is a very talented artist, and I'd be happy to read another comic he writes and draws on his own.  This series will make a nice trade - check it out.