Curveball

by Jeremy Sorese

Curveball is a science fiction graphic novel telling the story of a waiter named Avery coping with the ending of a difficult relationship. Having spent years attempting to build something substantial with an indecisive sailor named Christophe, Avery stubbornly holds on despite the mounting evidence against him. The idea of the relationship has eclipsed it's reality and in Avery's already troubled life, the allure of something dependable is a powerful force.

Curveball focuses on the duality of hope and delusion. How ignorance is integral to surviving our day to day lives but can be incredibly destructive if allowed to blossom into 'optimism'.

This is the gorgeous debut of a talented young cartoonist telling the most universal of a love story.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Science Fiction, Queer, LGBT, Fiction, Romance

420 pages, Paperback

First published October 13, 2015

About the author

Jeremy Sorese was a writer and an illustrator for the Steven Universe comic book series.

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

A hugely ambitious queer sci fi graphic novel that is black and white and specked with bright neon orange throughout and bordered with that same orange, very bright orange, the brightest orange you ever saw on/in a book. I mention that because the orange is one of the first impressions you get of the book. It fits with the overall boldness, and it is also huge, 420 pages.

Notable aspects: very cartoony characters, strong lines, yet a kind of sketchy, loose feel, wildly varied page set-ups, panel arrangements. The book jacket calls it both stunning and sprawling. Sprawling seems exactly right, but it's a bit more overwhelming than stunning for me. Then it is sci fi, too.... but not so much Asimov robotty as Bradbury humane and vulnerable and human. Why sci fi? Oh, I guess because we need to get out of realism to capture the emotionality of it all. It is out there, for sure, original.

Curveball is a rollercoaster love story about Avery, a waiter on a cruise ship, and Christophe, a sailor, from Avery's perspective. Also it is goofily humorous, silly, disconcerting, uneven. The narrative is confusing at times, not usefully so. Maybe it matches the fact that many of the characters are gender fluid? It is not boring, that's for sure, because of all these elements and threads, but I did not always engage with it, truly. Maybe if I read it again or read some more insightful reviews than this here ramble I will like it more than the 3.5 rating I am thinking right now.

[Garrett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Visually pleasing but narratively weak, Curveball is the story of a boy named Avery trying to get over a failed relationship with a sailor named Christophe. It's a sci fi/ romance graphic novel that doesn't really have good pacing or a good story, and the world that it is set in doesn't really make much sense. I did find the character of Avery to be very sympathetic and relatable, but the story was just boring.

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book jacket describes this as "Isaac Asimov by way of Nora Ephron" and I was PUMPED for that. I was also thrilled to see that Avery is a nonbinary protagonist, and that there are several LGBT+ relationships. Pretty cool to find that without even looking for it!

But the style of this wasn't really for me. The futuristic setting is super ambitious, and I never really understood or felt comfortable in that new world. The art is also very confusing. It's exciting and bold: black and white, except for bright highlighter-orange to represent energy (which is almost always somehow present and visible in this world). But it's often difficult to figure out just what you're looking at. I totally admire Sorese's vision and think what he did is great, but it's probably more enjoyable for people who are more scifi-minded than me.

[Nate D · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a story so intricately elaborated through a digitized energy-cycling future metropolis, it's really very human. Doubly so via Sorese's always-fluid line-work and great two-color contrasts.

I actually found the first single-issue of this in a pile of rejected Xeric grants, and it bowled me over. I've been waiting for the full version ever since, now grown to a 400 page epic, with the original 30 pages from the first issue all now omitted. But that was great and this is great. Maybe if Xeric had funded this, it would still exist now? (unlikely, admittedly).

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great art style. Near-future art deco noir and kind of like sky captain world of tomorrow meets a popeye sunday comic strip.

[Mel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This comic is super pretty and a joy for the eye. I was excited for every next page to see how it looked. I especially love the neon orange colour that is used for everything technical in contrast to the black/white/grey.

But this was the best of the comic and the story itself was only meh. I do like the setting, though, in a world were energy is on the one hand low and people - by just existing - help built it back.

___________________________
Genre: dystopia
Tags: transgender protagonist
Rating: 5 stars for the art, 3 for the rest -> 4

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check out this Lambda interview

[First Second Books]

Jeremy' line is wonderful -- and his futuristic, apocalyptic world is wonderful! This is a great book about losing and finding love -- and surviving it.

Also: bright orange!

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was confusing, and, actually, the art was a bit confusing too. There were giant explosions and attacks, and it was hard to tell what was going on.

The story was a balance of Sci-Fi apocalypse and a very personal story, as well, and I didn’t feel like the personal story was well resolved, but it packed enough of a punch throughout to keep me reading and not give up on it.

It could have really benefited from chapter breaks, since the setting and time would jump, from one page to the next, and it would take a second to kind of catch up.

The really great part was how graphic the colors were. Sketchy hand drawn drawn black and white with shades of grey and then any technology (like a phone or robot) was orange, throughout (there was a very good reason for this). The edges of each page were a bright neon orange, as well. Very cool.

[spoon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art here is amazing and there are so many cool ideas in terms of laying things out. As a story telling thing - sometimes stuff got a bit to busy for me and I got (imo) a bit to absorbed in the environment which took focus away from the characters who were driving the plot. Super didn't love that fully committed to be tenderqueer w the breakup plot at the end ... that kinda put a damper on it for me. (Let's just say I was not surprised when I read that the artist used to do Steven Universe comics.) Also didn't exactly love the way the work plot line wrapped up; didn't realize it had ended till I finished the book and nothing else was there about it. Also didn't completely like how there was such an emphasis on the attack at the beginning - I was invested in the attack/tech stuff, and it's fine that that wasn't a major plot point (like I don't have a problem that it was a human story w a future tech backdrop where the tech is a set piece more than a plot point), BUT I didn't get at the beginning that the point was (I'm guessing in hindsight) Christophe was on the ship and that was the major idea and not the big attack. A bit of scuttled expectations there that left me not getting the idea that the plot was the breakup and not tech warfare until like halfway through.

[Brendan Little · Rating 5 out of 5]

The neon orange used throughout this comic is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. Straight up the orangest shit possible. It’s electric and I don’t know how they did it this bright. The art style is also playful and fluid, looking quite unlike anything I’ve seen before. The character and scene designs are stupid fun, every ten pages there’s an image that I had to stop and really work my brain around. The plot is fairly simple which helps keep the book grounded in the midst of all the fantastic sci-fi imagery, and the characters are believable and lovable. It’s also cool to see that everyone in the future is gay and the main character is of nonbinary gender. You should read this to experience how orange it is mostly. I love orange so much.

[Erika Schoeps · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Patrick · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gets a 1 simply because Goodreads won't let me rate if lower. To "emphasize" some parts it uses a light orange background with a slightly darker orange text, nearly impossible for any one with even the slightest vision problem to read. Story line is extremely weak, artwork is extremely poorly conceived. One of the very few books I have ever been unable to finish reading.

[Matthew · Rating 2 out of 5]

Come for the artistic innovations, stay for the queer representation, leave for the story.

Curveball is a graphic novel that instantly hooked me with an ambitious sci-fi premise that is ingeniously represented by Sorese's sparing use of color: taking place in some futuristic vision of America, Curveball concerns a society that has found a way to freely circulate energy through atmosphere, architecture, and appliances, essentially generating a perpetually moving cycle of renewable energy that is powered by the mundane movements of everyday life. This atmospheric energy is depicted as neon orange flecks, glows, and streaks, while the rest of the page (everything that isn't powered by or receiving energy) is rendered in duller grey tones. This perpetual motion model of energy generation is generally pretty perfect, except for when energy jumps out of cycle in freak accidents called "snaps," which basically manifest as spontaneous combustion meltdowns that can occur anywhere, at any time. Further adding to the setting of a futuristic utopia is the optimistic treatment of Curveball's LGBT+ characters, who are everywhere and blissfully unremarkable in their sexuality/gender identity. The world of Curveball is replete with MLM relationships, WLW relationships, and characters absolutely everywhere on the spectrum of gender identity and expression. We even have a notably non binary protagonist!

So all of this sounds great, right? It's a shame then that this interesting sci-fi concept and lush world building is all in service of a truly low-stakes yawner of a plot. Avery, our main character, was once in a sorta-relationship with Christoph, a philandering marine with a big nose. Avery can't get over Christophe, Christophe can't stop philandering... you know how it goes. Not much of anything happens and it's difficult to care about this broken relationship when we jump in after the damage has already been done. The sniffly fallout that we are treated to doesn't exactly make it easy to sympathize with Avery, who is a mopey heartbroken mess for 400 pages until they decide they're over the whole affair and get on with their life. There's not really any nuance to the story either - Christophe is unambiguously a dick, Avery is a hashtag relatable goof-off with a sensitive side, and Avery's best friend Jacqueline is your stereotypical no-nonsense comic relief character. To boot, all of the characters are drawn with these really exaggerated facial expressions that are kind of off-putting and cringeworthy, and the art can sometimes resemble a rough storyboard moreso than a finished comic. I really hate to use this as a qualifier because it's loaded with all sorts of unfair connotations, but this really does give me Tumblr fan-art vibes. It's unrelentingly "wholesome" in the most cloying ways, everyone has a bad case of bean-head, and the queer representation, while refreshing, sometimes feels like it takes center stage over any kind of actual story.

In short, I really enjoyed the experimental approach to concept and art employed here, but it was kind of a chore to read past the first 30 pages or so. Luckily it all goes by pretty quickly, so it's easy enough to read this, appreciate what there is to appreciate, and then move on. I hope Jeremy Sorese continues to develop his style and profit off of his bevy of good ideas, but this one just didn't do it for me.

[zoë · Rating 2 out of 5]

Visuals? Stunning. Storyline? Confusing.

I actually really enjoyed the black and white graphics with the bright orange intermixed. Although at times overwhelming and difficult to perceive, I thought the art was very attractive for the most part.

However, the story was very difficult to follow. The sci-fi setting had no background explanation so much of the plot was hard to comprehend. I did like the fact that the main character was non-binary and there were many queer relationships, which you don’t tend to see in many novels, graphic or otherwise. But it was hard for me to enjoy that aspect of it because I didn’t understand what was going on half of the time.

[Patrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Visually stunning. The orange trim is so bright, it almost burns your eyes--in a pleasing way. The illustrations are really a feat. People on the subway were asking me what I was reading. The plot meanders a bit, and gets lost at times, but I'm a sucker for anything dystopian so really enjoyed this. A creative premise whose narrative is somewhat poorly executed, but the artwork more than makes up for it.

[MariNaomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each page was take-my-breath-away stunning (such gorgeous production value--Nobrow does it again!); the cartooning was masterful; the world-building was epic. Despite the ambitious enormity of the project, the characters were all heartbreakingly human. Loved it.

[Ruby · Rating 2 out of 5]

This could have gone somewhere. Unfortunately, it didn't. I enjoyed the dystopian side of it but it was left largely underdeveloped.

[Comics Alternative · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://comicsalternative.com/comics-a...

[Greta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really cool art style (one of the most compelling covers I’ve seen, which may be why I grabbed it from the library- IRL the colors are super rich and vibrant and the goodreads image doesn’t do justice), black and white with splashes of neon orange. The drawings are fun to take in, especially with the futuristic environment this is set in. That being said, I had super high hopes for the plot given the inner jacket’s description of a world where “after years of technological advancement and automated convenience, complacency has set in and the robots that humanity depended on are breaking down.” That sounded super interesting and relevant! But that was more of a backdrop to a somewhat loose narrative of the main character dealing with a heartbreak. Still cool to think about and relevant in that we are also just out here focused on our lives with our own backdrop of weird tech and war and climate doom, but I think I hoped it would get into building out more of this. At the start one of the characters says “I can’t remember the last time I learned to do something on my own” and that felt very apt to where we seem to be going with this whole AI thing being shoved down our throats encouraging people to outsource their brains. I guess I was hoping for a little more of that eeriness to factor into the plot! Regardless really well done and impressive, so so nice to look at.

[Dylan Bateman · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had some interesting aspects to it, but I was honestly just confused most of the time. I read other reviews, and many seem to have felt the same way. The book uses orange colour over black-and-white images to express the technology in this imagined future, which is nice visually. Sometimes the technology is rebelling or at war with this city, maybe, but it's really not clear what's happening with the technology much of the time. It looks nice, but it's also very confusing. The story, too, wasn't for me. It follows Avery, a genderqueer/non-binary person, but Avery doesn't have that much of a personality outside of their obsession with this no-good deadbeat guy that they obsess about but that treats Avery terribly. I thought there would be some payoff and a move towards something more exciting that tied into everything going on with the technology, but it's mostly Avery pining over the guy and then getting over him as the main resolution of the book, which is okay but not exactly what I thought would be the outcome of such a big and sweeping graphic novel. This book felt to me like watching Christopher Nolan's Tenet, a story that made sense inside the creator's head but didn't quite hit when given to an audience.

[Vince · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sorese sketches a future of perpetual war, a post-technology dystopia. Advanced robots and telecommunications coexist with random electrical storms (think: electrical tornados), air raid shelters and crowded neo-gothic, digitally constructed (presumably nanotechnology enabled) cityscapes.

Amidst this neon and charcoal riot, recognizable and sympathetic characters wrestle with mundane work, finding love, and figuring out how they feel about the uncertainties around them. Sorese's characters exist in a post-gender society. Cultural expectations centered on biology have given way to finding and celebrating compatibility.

Where this story succeeds, Sorese conveys familiar emotion and models friendship and support. Where Curveball comes up weak beyond the length of the narrative is the aggressive portrayal of the future, which takes some time to figure out. The choice of neon orange ink to depict technology is interesting and at the same time hard to view, perhaps vividly illustrating the difficulty experienced by most of us when facing the miracles of computing and technology that surround us.

I'd have enjoyed this more of it were a bit tighter, say 25%-33% shorter. Three stars.

[dragonriderjinx · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

I loved the art style of this one omfg. The way the backgrounds and buildings and tech and outfits were designed and the way color was used was so visually pleasing to me you have no idea !! I found out after reading that the artist also worked on the Steven universe comics and yeah that absolutely tracks in the best way.

While I loved the art, the story to me felt really ambitious, and didn’t really come together for me. The interpersonal aspects were really well done in my opinion; I really liked the relationships between the characters and the way the “letting go” narrative was done. But everything going on in the background with the war felt like an afterthought almost? Who are we at war with and why? What’s the point of the war if they’re just going to leave after bombing the city and forcing everyone into hiding? And is the war causing some of the tech failures or is that just time? I have so many questions that unfortunately were never answered.

Overall it was still a really fun and unique reading experience and I’d definitely read more from this author bc of the art style

[Joey Nardinelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another random pull off the shelves of my local library. I don’t know anything about Sorese or this book, so I went in 100% cold. I’m not opposed to a cartoony art direction for a graphic story, but this one felt like it was at odds with the intellectual highs it was aiming for with sci-fi, though much more relatable given the attempt at such a character driven narrative. Avery was hard to connect to, not because of their non-binary orientation but because they felt defined solely by their relationship (or lack thereof). Their ex, Christophe, was mildly more interesting, but I think I was the most engaged with Jacqueline given we got something much more akin to an arc in the background with her. I struggled to follow the sci-fi framing — I know it’s meant to be almost post-modern dystopic, but it just read confusingly. If I saw something else by Sorese that was half this length or even shorter, I might give it a skim but this felt so, so long for what it was. The Asimov/Ephron comparison from the book jacket totally oversells this.

[Travis · Rating 1 out of 5]

I saw this in a used book store and thought it seemed a bit interesting. Fortunately I didn't buy it, but rather requested it through my library since it proved too irritating to finish, or even to get more than a quarter of the way through. Everything about it is annoying: the eye-searing day-glow orange that highlights the pages; the whiny, obnoxious characters complaining about their relationships; the poorly explicated yet improbably seeming setting; the heavy-handed moralizing about how people shouldn't rely on technology so much, but should learn things on their own. I often feel bad about not finishing a book (and so usually finish them even if I'm not enjoying it), and especially when it is a relatively quick read like a graphic novel, but I got far enough in this one to see it wasn't worth going any further.

[Megan Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really sweet and visually arresting book. I love the way queerness and tranness is so naturalized, normal, sweet, and everywhere. It felt like a beautiful world while not being idealized or sanitized. I loved the reading experience and really felt seen by how difficult it can be to let go of relationships, or things even less than that. A really interesting concept as well with the world and executed soooo well with the neon orange. A unique, pleasant, and beautiful read. I think the ending could have maybe had a bit more of a kind of cumulative thesis, but maybe it was there and I just didn’t see it, or maybe the (relative) absence is a thesis in itself. Not really an issue with the book just personal taste I guess. Really beautiful and spectacular.

[Sylvie · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED IT!!! while i'm not a huge fan of sci-fi as a genre, i love stories that feel so uniquely and totally human. the technological aspect of this world comes second, what comes first are the people who live in it and must learn how to cope with daily life, with emotions, with friendships and complex romances and so much more!!!! plus, the queer aspect of it made me exceedingly happy. also, just a side-note, the physical copy of this book is positively stunning. lined with neon green at the sides, i though someone had grabbed a highlighter and steamrolled through the sides, but it was a wonderful surprise to see the bright orange be featured within the book!!!! an unexpected surprise, but a welcome one!!

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are so many moments that I loved. The characters are great. I love the positivity or frequency of non heteronormative relations and the casual and everydayness that surrounded them. The setting is fantastic, as is the style.

With all this praise I waffle between the 3 and 4 star rating because, where is the story, what is the story? Perhaps that is one of the points, maybe I missed something, either way I enjoyed it. The story feels like it needs more, luckily the characters are very lovable that it’s okay for the story aspect to take its time. I hope that there’s more.

[Cae Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A messy-breakup story with some cool but occasionally hard-to-follow artwork. The plot kind of ambles along, things just happen and don't necessarily feel connected, which sure, maybe life's like that sometimes but it doesn't make for a satisfying narrative. The worldbuilding was neat but most of the time I felt like the characters were just rambling on and even by the end I didn't know what the point was.

[Colvet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cover art and use of orange fluorescence to indicate electronic communications was well done.

Panel art is not my style. Too sketchy.

Story bounces all over the place without clean segues between scenes.

Too character focused for me for a sci Fi GRAPHIC novel. Lots of opportunities missed

Very Asmimov Robot City-esque but not as good and lacking in science.

Interesting concept, poor execution.

[J Poolner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once I got used to the drawing style and coloring (black/white/highlighter-orange), the story unfolded very well. I liked the conceit of electricity being a shared resource in this universe. There were some side-storylines I wish were more fleshed-out, but all in all it was a good story about finding fulfillment in life and love in a scifi semi-dystopia.