Comic review: Morro Bay

By Contributing Writer on Tuesday, September 16, 2008 - 22:26

by Comic Girl - Contributing Writer

A couple of years ago I was skipping school and spending time in my favorite comic book store. I was browsing through the new releases when my eye fell on a most interesting cover - a cover with two girls kissing. I took a copy and without looking at the price or the text on the back I bought it. I went straight home to read it as any lesbian comic book lover would. On the way home I was really excited, I kept thinking ‘a lesbian comic book, this has to be good!’. So when I got home I went straight to my room and locked the door. I needed to concentrate on this new gem in my comic collection!

I started by studying the front and back cover. When I read the two short lines that were on the back cover I was a little bit alarmed: why were they talking about fishing and white worms?!? I brushed my concerns aside however and after enjoying looking at the front cover once more, I started reading. A male teacher, Mr. Grothum, is talking about Walt Whitman. He asks if anybody knows a quote by Whitman. Evangeline is the only one who can answer the question.

After class some students tease her about her crush on the much older Mr. Grothum. In the next scene the students are at the gym playing basketball, when Eva gets knocked out. Miss Scott, the gym teacher, sends everybody away to get changed. Being alone with Eva on the court she said: ‘Don’t move, my love. I’ll take care of you.’ Meanwhile, in the locker rooms the other girls are discussing Miss Scott’s sexuality. At this point I’m thinking: ‘A lesbian storyline involving a gym teacher, I don’t believe that’s been done before…’ and ‘How creepy is it that Miss Scott is talking to Eva like that while she’s unconscious.’

But against my better judgment I was still hopeful. Morro Bay may have had a slow start, but there actually was some lesbian content in it! Unfortunately it didn’t get any better, in fact it got worse. I won’t go into much more details about the rest of the story, in case someone wants to read Morro Bay after having read this review… In short, Eva finds out that Miss Scott used to have a relationship with ‘Swamp’, a great basketball player.

She’s intrigued and together with her best friend and sister she tries to find out more about the Miss Scott's past. Their search reveals that Miss Scott is indeed a lesbian/bisexual (it’s never really clarified) and leads up to a weird and unbelievable climax at the end of the book. The only thing I’ll say about it is that it involves dead people and white worms… not a good combination! And that’s just the story line! Don’t get me started on the quality of the drawings… Most of the characters are just plain ugly and the coloring leaves a lot to be desired for.

The only good thing about Morro Bay is that it has some lesbian content. Miss Scott is revealed to have had a lesbian relationship and Eva and het best friend kiss each other. The focus of the book however is not these lesbian relationships. Eva and her sister flirt a lot with Mr. Grothum and it is more than once implied that Eva has a crush on him. Also Miss Scott may have had a lesbian relationship, yet she also had a relationship with the most popular boy in town. And Eva’s friend kisses her to know how Miss Scott kissed Eva after the basketball incident. Eva however doesn’t like it and pulls away disgusted. So even on the lesbian content Morro Bay doesn’t really deliver!

Disappointed I closed Morro Bay, vowing to never read it again. Unfortunately I had to read it again to write this article, and you know what: it’s still as bad as the first time around!!!

(Authors: Jean-Luc Cornette and Jean-Louis Bocar; Editor: Casterman; 2005; 13,75€; available in French and Dutch)