Dave, the main character in this graphic novel, The Red Monkey Double Happiness Book (Fantagraphics), is an illustrator living in Cape Town, South Africa. He often gets frustrated by the freelance assignments he must accept to make a living (like drawing bricks for a catalog that the client insists must be "curious," "unique," "tasteful," and "reliable). He also has feet like a monkeys, which enable him to easily climb trees and buildings.
His best friend is Paul, who seems to have been permanently altered by ingesting too many psychedelics. Dave and Paul have good hearts, but they end up getting themselves into odd and dangerous predicaments that are never quite what they seem to be on the surface.
Joe Daly, the creator of of the characters, is a terrifically gifted artist with an ability to depict an environment that rivals Herge's. I loved studying the scenery when Paul and Dave drive through the city and hills of Cape Town, while they are engaged in long, funny conversations.
The two well-crafted mysteries contain twists that tricked me until the end. The first story involves a menacing Mexican man who lives in Dave apartment and wants to kill him. The second story starts with a hunt for an escaped capybara that leads to the discovery of a plot to destroy some wetlands to make room for a housing development. Daly's fondness for absurd situations might not be everyone's cup of tea, but if you liked The Big Lebowski or Pulp Fiction, you'll have no problem with Daly's brand of storytelling.
Interestingly, the artwork (especially the coloring) is tighter and more polished in the second story, as if Daly gained technical chops between drawing the first story and the second. But no matter, both stories are a lot of fun. I'm looking forward to more from Daly, who was nominated for an Eisner Award in 2007 for his other book, Scrublands.
