Comics Class is a short memoir of when Matthew Forsythe attempted to teach comics to a class of disinterested 11 year olds – and it’s hilarious!
Forsythe’s ruthless self-deprecating humour is what makes this such a delight. He got his teaching expectations from the movies and it’s so funny to see them instantly and repeatedly shattered when the kids turn out to be completely unimpressed with him and comics in general. Some of the kids tell him deadpan that they read his comics and thought they sucked, while one kid tells him his mom thinks “those who can’t, teach” which really gets to him!
Forsythe also shows his lack of training as an instructor by arm-wrestling the kids, telling the class about his depression and lack of direction, and teaching them about Lone Wolf & Cub, a manga that is definitely not age appropriate!
The black and white art is quite rudimentary though this is balanced out by a strong and effective understanding of sequential storytelling as well as top-notch comedy writing.
How much of this is true and how much is made-up? Probably a healthy mix of both but when the end result is this funny and enjoyable, who cares? Matthew Forsythe’s Comics Class is an absolute riot – definitely worth checking out for anyone looking for some big belly laffs!
On a related note, Koyama Press is now on Comixology which is where I picked this comic up so if you’re interested in reading this, as well as more of their excellent back catalogue (I highly recommend Julia Wertz’s books), check them out here: https://www.comixology.co.uk/Koyama-Press/comics-publisher/9776-0?ref=c2l0ZS9saXN0L2Rlc2t0b3AvbGlzdC9wdWJsaXNoZXJMaXN0
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