Box+Office+Poison+Synopsis

= = toc =Box Office Poison=

Synopsis
//Box Office Poison// is a 602 page graphic novel by Alex Robinson. It is his first book and it was first published in collected form by Top Shelf Productions in 2000, although it was originally released in the format of a 21 issue serial by Antarctic Press beginning in 1997. //Box Office Poison// is a character or ensemble piece. It offers a voyeuristic view into the lives of a wide cast of characters living in New York City during the 1990s. Through these characters Robinson tackles an array of real life subjects such as jobs, love, and friendship. It focuses on protagonists Sherman and Ed as they finish college and enter into “the real world” in search of careers and romance. Sherman is a struggling writer who hates his job working at “Matthew’s Book Emporium”. He complains constantly about his work and swears to quit but can’t seem to be able to alter his current life-path. Ed is Sherman’s best friend who is an aspiring cartoonist. Ed is somewhat of a “comic-nerd” and is incredibly self-conscious around women. Both men are struggling to build a career and find love in the big city. A wide number of characters flow seamlessly in and out of the book who are equally endearing in their realistic plights. A sub-plot worthy of mention is that of elderly Irving Flavor, a golden-age comic artist who Ed works for as an assistant. Ed discovers that Mr. Flavor is actually the creator of the cash-cow “Darkstalker”, the //Box Office Poison// equivalent of Batman. Darkstalker has grossed millions of dollars from merchandising and movie spin-offs since Mr. Flavor sold the character to comics giant “Zoom” in the fifties for $55. A portion of the book follows Mr. Flavor in his battle against “Zoom Comics” to reclaim his stolen creation and fortune. This plotline is self-referential to real issues of creator ownership in the comic industry, a problem which still plagues creators to this day. This is the central theme of the book as each main character is involved in some creative endeavor in the pursuit of fame, money, recognition, and happiness. Their own personal "box office poison".

Artistic Style
//Box Office Poison// employs a realistic yet abstracted and exaggerated style. McCloud classifies the level of abstraction in artistic style and writing style (within graphic novels) on a picture plane. Much like other independent graphic novels released in the 90s, //Box Office Poison’s// art style falls somewhere in the middle of the plane between realistic and abstract while its writing style remains on the lower side of abstraction.



The appearance of the characters within //Box Office Poison// is of utter importance as it is an ensemble work which relies on characters and dialogue as the central drivers of the plot. Each character’s distinct look complements their unique personality. The characters are “cartoony” in appearance; a trait which seems to support the wide range of emotions Robinson is able to convey through their facial expressions. This is important as almost every panel in the book is centered on a face. In scenes of intense emotion facial features are often exaggerated to great comedic and emotional effect. Backgrounds are often blank or minimal to prevent distraction from the characters. Iconic abstraction supports the excellent characterization achieved in //Box Office Poison//. The simple yet expressive art style lends a charming and relatable quality to its cast.