Jar of Fools

There's an old adage that a story should always be about the most important event in the characters' lives. Jar of Fools is about the aftermath of this moment, which is a vital moment in itself.

Lutes' simplistic art and storylines full of stark reality is a breath of freash air in the graphic novel medium...that is when you give yourself a chance to take that breath! Must read for everyone...the only downside is the book is very delicate.

Jason Lutes, Jar of Fools (Drawn and Quarterly, 2003) I've read some pretty good graphic novels in the past couple of months, but Jar of Fools was impressive on levels that a number of them never even thought to explore; it was definitely the best of the early-January batch. You have a burned-out magician, dangerously close to being homeless, pining over his lost girlfriend. You have the lost girlfriend, also pining. You have the mentor, stuck in a rest home. You have the con man, trying to get money to feed his kid, who shortchanges the lost girlfriend. And in weaving this tapestry, you have a wonderful little story about love, loss, and sacrifice. Lutes' touch is spare when he's drawing, and light when he's writing. There's enough here for you to understand what's going on without having to go back and re-read anything, but you'll make a mental leap or two while you're going through it (this is a good thing). Everyone here is rather simple, though in no way does that mean they're two-dimensional; Lutes creates complex characters, but the timespan of the book is so short that we only get to see what he wants us to. It's a subtle, and impressive, move. This is really a fantastic book; definitely one worth checking out, whether you're a fan of the graphic novel form or not. This might be the perfect book to show you that they do stand as literature; it's not quite on the level of something like Charles Burns' Black Hole, but you're not going to invest as much time, either. A perfect place to begin. ****

Not to be hyperbolic, but Jar of Fools is quite literally one of the best realistic graphic novels ever produced. Yet for some reason, very few people have heard of the work, which is quite a shame. Its creator, writer/artist Jason Lutes, has been brilliant in his recent series Berlin, in which he explores the characters of an ensemble cast in the historical setting of Germany between the two World Wars. Jar of Fools should be similarly noted and acclaimed for its fantastic characterization, albeit in a more modern setting. Currently published through Drawn and Quarterly (as is Berlin), Jar of Fools revolves around failed stage magician Ernie Weiss. Ernie's life has been headed downhill since an unfortunate "accident" involving his brother's act as an escape artist. Now alcoholic and destitute, Ernie feels trapped by his past and is unable to overcome the demons that plague him. At the same time Ernie's former girlfriend Esther is stuck in a relationship that's going nowhere and in a dead-end job she hates, while Ernie's mentor Al Flosso tries desperately to escape both his nursing home and his memories of brighter days. The revelations about each of these characters as the narrative unfolds are both heartbreaking and, paradoxically, uplifting. These characters have each metaphorically "lost the magic" in their lives and long to be free from the problems they face in their daily lives: their sexual dysfunctions, their inability to form relationships, their lack of self-worth. Yet the story focuses not on the endless tragedies they must endure but instead on how, by coming together, each of these people are able to conquer difficulties that overwhelmed them when alone. This is not a story about hitting rock bottom, but one about climbing back up again, about the hope that we draw from even the simplest contact with our fellow man. These themes are explored with such power and subtlety through Lutes's inspired use of symbolism. For example, the ball and chain Ernie's brother wore as part of his escape act repeatedly appears and represents how Ernie is weighed down by his past, as does the top hat Al Flosso constantly wears. Dreams also play a large part of this narrative and reveal a great deal about the characters, especially Ernie's recurring dream remembrances of the day of his brother's death. Rich in symbolic meaning, rife with very human characters, and permeated with thematic exploration, Jar of Fools is the epitome of what graphic narratives can offer. I have used the book in my classroom and would use it again, for it is not just a brilliant comic. It is a brilliant work of fiction, standing up to any work of literature in any other medium. It deserves to be studied alongside those other great works, to have a place not only in the classroom but on your bookshelf.

Since it's a comic people probably don't pay as much attention to it as they should, but those people would be wrong. What Lutes has created here is a neat little tale that is both poignant and beautiful, tragic and uplifting, all at the same time. The story of a failed magician, doubly haunted by both the death of his brother and the failure of his last relationship, watching his mentor slip into senility, Lutes weaves the themes of magic and loss into the stories of his characters. None of the characters, from the con-man trying to raise his daughter, to the ex-girlfriend trapped in a dull existance, seem to be where they want to be, but that seems to be as much their own fault as the fault of life itself. Lutes evokes a sense of sympathy for his characters, even when they fail to see what their actions do to themselves and the thrill of the story is seeing whether they'll realize it in time. Lutes uses the comic format to its fullest, creating a fine synthesis of words and pictures, letting the art speak for the story when necessary (the silent moments are perhaps the story's finest pages) without forcing it to labor under weighted prose. In the end he creates a tale as richly detailed as any prose story, made that much better by the comic (I'm sorry "graphic novel") format, a medium he does his part to prove it can be so much better than it is. Get this and maybe more comics like this possible.

Jar of Fools is an amazing story that stands as one the best graphic novels ever written. Jason Lutes is an author to be watched.