Allegory by its very nature is, of course, a perfect narrative delivery system for deeper truths. By couching life lessons in the fantastic or the relatable their messages become all the more connective with their audience. Clio Isadora’s Wiggles Wart Beauty is one such tale. It’s a minicomic from the artist – whose graphic novel Sour Pickles from Avery Hill Publishing got a rave review here at Broken Frontier a few years back – that may seem slight in page count but is striking in intent.
Wiggles Wart Beauty has elements of magical realism and outright fantasy to it, dressing very real social concerns in the trappings of the bizarre and fanciful. The story begins with a young woman walking through the woods. There she encounters a worm-like creature known as Wiggles Wart. A kind of woodland entrepreneur. For a small favour Wiggles Wart promises her the secret of unlocking financial freedom. But this is no act of philanthropy. Instead our protagonist finds herself part of the worm’s team of “change-makers”, selling worthless cosmetics that plunge them into fiscal chaos. All while propping up Wiggles Wart’s precarious scam empire…
This is a perhaps obvious but nevertheless witty piece of social commentary on worker exploitation and pyramid scheme selling operations that is soaked in the appealing storytelling eccentricities we have come to expect from Isadora. By taking it one step back into a fantasy unreality she ironically emphasises the harsh truths of the comic’s themes all the more forcefully; from the useless products concerned (lice-giving shampoo) to the sliminess of the capitalistic fraudsters (as embodied in the creepy-crawly Wiggles Wart).
Visually this is full of the familiar idiosyncrasies of Isadora’s artistic style. Skewed perspectives, angular characters and frequently changing page structures. And with a colour palette that embodies both the slightly magical tone of events with a fairy tale flourish but also manages to be strangely unsettling at the same time. An ominous and relevant comics fable.
Clio Isadora (W/A) • Self-published, £5.00
Review by Andy Oliver
Clio Isadora is a guest artist at the Gosh! Comics and Broken Frontier Drink and Draw IN-PERSON on Friday, August 1st. Details here. (Poster below by Mark Stafford)
