ARM'S LENGTH is a collection of short stories from newcomer Mark Price. The featured story, ‘My Favorite Roadshow’ is by far the longest at 26 pages. The others, ‘The Artist at Sixty’ and ‘Beat the System!’ are smaller (five pages and one page, respectively). While the latter are more of a testament to Price’s sense of humor, the former is far more impressive representation of his unique skills as a storyteller.

"It’s actually one of the more character-driven stories this reviewer has come across this year."

‘My Favorite Roadshow’ is about Tim, an aspiring stand-up comic. Wait -- a comic book about trying to be funny? No, not quite. It’s actually one of the more character-driven stories this reviewer has come across this year. By way of a carefully minimized plot, the character of Tim is allowed center stage, so to speak -- his personality becomes more visible and pronounced, certain flaws in his character can be picked up on. We find there is a peculiar dichotomy in his approach to comedy: he obsesses over being spontaneous -- trying to "learn" spontaneity -- while not realizing the true meaning of the word.

Price’s line is subtly detailed. It is obviously deliberate, but a adding a few well-defined brush strokes or thicker lines wouldn’t harm the book and might make it even more visually appealing. This is not to say that the art looks incomplete, but there were several panels where some thicker lines might have drawn the reader’s eye more effectively.

The visual storytelling reads easily, yet he still sometimes does without a panel and succeeds. One scene in ‘My Favorite Roadshow’ takes place on a bus, where an appropriately placed pole creates the illusion of a panel border when, in fact, the cartoonist has fit multiple images in one panel. Not using panels is a remarkably difficult technique, and few cartoonists can make it work, Price included among them.

"Price’s manipulation of the medium itself is what makes the book unique."

What I especially liked about Price’s technique in ‘My Favorite Roadshow’ is that he occasionally smatters a panel with little panels that accentuate the face of Tim’s "audience" at the time. For example, Price will put boxes around the eyes of Tim’s audience at the Improv, giving each face individuality, timelessness, and accentuating it in such a way as to provide a visual foil for Tim’s narration. Price does the same thing with mouths. What he is ultimately able to do is to create symbols without sacrificing his detail for line. More than Tim’s character, Price’s manipulation of the medium itself is what makes the book unique.

The other two stories in this small collection are worth a laugh or two. ‘The Artist at Sixty’ is a cynical, amusing look at the artist’s future (where McDonald’s and Disney have merged to become McDisney). Ultimately, it is a five-page dig at the often-overlooked prejudices people have towards strangers. ‘Beat the System!’ is a hilarious one-page gag, but doesn’t add anything to the book.

For a cartoonist’s first comic book, ARM'S LENGTH is a pleasant surprise. The work is quite powerful and worth a look.

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Paul Hanna is Reviews Editor of PopImage.