So I’m late to the party on this one because Simon Hanselmann’s Megg and Mogg books went from a great first book in Megahex to meh in the next two - Megg and Mogg in Amsterdam and One More Year - and I thought this was the holding pattern here on out. Well, I’m sorry for doubting Simon Hanselmann because he instead came through with the best book he’s done yet in the magnificent fourth book in the series, Bad Gateway!
This was one of those books that I foolishly decided to start around midnight on a weeknight, thinking I’d read a few pages and then finish it the next day, then got totally caught up with, deciding, well, fuck it, I guess I’m sleeping at work then!
There wasn’t a single bad story. With Owl moving out for good, things go from depressing to worse to worst for our heroes, Megg, Mogg and Werewolf Jones. Megg has to put on a remarkable performance to continue receiving government benefits while Mogg goes looking for a job anywhere. Both storylines are funny and inventive. And then there’s the outrageously depraved Werewolf Jones who ends up staying home and getting chem-sexed?!
Jones (basically Florida Man) is such a great character. He’s a total scumbag who deserves everything he gets - and he gets more fucked up in this book than ever before - but he’s so interesting to read about because he’s so unhinged and completely without boundaries. He repeatedly takes any drug he can lay his hands on, has sex with anyone, anywhere, locks up his kids in bins and bird cages - he’s utterly insane. Things went so far in this one, and so very dark, I had no idea what to expect later on in the Bird Cage story - it’s totally unpredictable.
Hanselmann’s portrait of Megg continues to develop in new and interesting ways. She’s in love with the trans character Booger but can’t break up with Mogg. She hates that she has to sell her childhood toys - the Roller Blades story - for drug money but can’t stop. And then she has to go back and help her junkie mother at the end with the book closing on a harrowing flashback story of her teenage years.
Really every character is well-developed here. Mogg’s depression and overall pathetic behaviour stemming from his unwillingness to grow up and Jones’ brief attempt at sobriety, were all brilliantly depicted - we see both desperately trying, wanting, to change and tragically failing. And mixed into this artistic, thoughtful writing are really funny jokes like Jones’ idea for an arcade box scam, Mogg’s stint working at a cat cafe, and the whole amyl episode.
Simon Hanselmann is a master cartoonist - this is comics storytelling at its finest. The craftsmanship is there in every panel, none of which are wasted, the narrative beats are perfect, and the writing and art is always on point. I especially loved the painted splash pages that open the book, showing Hanselmann’s artistic abilities that don’t always come off in the comics pages.
At the end, he writes that this book took a year to make - this was his 2018 - and 3764 work hours. That’s 72 hours a week - every week. That’s just insane. But the dedication paid off. You can see how good a creator he is for having put in that amount of time. What does Malcolm Gladwell say about outliers - 10,000 hours of practice to become a master of something? Hanselmann’s definitely surpassed that at this point creating his four books. Bad Gateway is a showcase of what someone at the top of their game looks like.
Had I read it a couple weeks ago, this would’ve easily been in my top 10 comics of 2019. Anyways, I read it now and I loved every minute of it. Funny, sad, entertaining, real, superb cartooning, the definition of a page-turning read - Bad Gateway was never boring, hooked me from page one to the very end and I’ma recommend it to one and all.
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