A new graphic novel from Daniel Clowes, author of the excellent Ghost World and David Boring among others, is always a big deal. As one of the most obviously “literary” writers working in the comics medium, Clowes always delivers sympathetic characters and bizarrely believable storylines with his trademark mix of superficial kitsch and everyday grotesque. Clowes’ latest offering, Wilson, promised to be a particular treat for fans, being as it is his first all-new graphic novel (all of Clowes’ previous graphic novels have been collected editions of serialised narratives that most often originated from his anthology comic Eightball). Written in a single page gag format and drawn in a variety of styles, Wilson is perhaps the funniest and most deeply affecting tale that Clowes has written so far.

Wilson is an opinionated, middle-aged loser who, despite being a self-declared “people person”, cares about his dog and seemingly no one else in the world. Compelled to undertake a never-ending and stupendously unsuccessful quest to find human connection, Wilson badgers acquaintance and stranger alike into a series of one-sided conversations, punctuating his own lofty discursions with cutting comments as well as a brutally honest, self-depreciating sense of humour. After his father dies, a father he had admittedly frequently thought to have already passed, Wilson realises that he is now irrevocably alone and so returns to his hometown in the hope of rekindling his relationship with his ex-wife. Despite his utterly charmless ramblings, Pippi, the beaten down ex, does agree, at least temporarily, to cease hostilities and try to cultivate some romantic feelings towards Wilson. Pippi ultimately informs Wilson that she was pregnant at the time their marriage ended and that the baby, a daughter, was given up for adoption. Insistent on their tracking the girl down, Wilson eventually forces all three to try and reconnect as a family – a doomed mission that will surely, inevitably backfire.

While Wilson the book is immensely enjoyable with the power of the short vignettes giving it an almost addictive quality, Wilson the person is actually quite repellent. He is a fairly odious codger who swears at, chides and cajoles all of those with the misfortune to come into contact with him. Having said that, he certainly draws the reader’s attention and his rudeness makes for compulsive reading. There’s something disturbingly delightful about the misanthropic Wilson and the almost oblivious way he bulldozes through life. He would be insufferable to actually deal with but reading about Wilson’s often hilarious misadventures (I’m going to be extra suspicious of anyone who asks me to hold a parcel for them in the post office now) is highly entertaining and really quite cathartic. It does often help if you have a weak cringe reflex though. The single page gag format that Clowes has used for Wilson is an excellent device for reflecting the inner workings of Wilson’s mind and for emphasising the emotions that go with his frequently outrageous actions. For example, when Pippi first informs Wilson that he has a daughter, the panels are muted in colour, almost washed out, in a nice reflection of the emptiness that Wilson feels. Likewise, as the book draws to an end, the tightness of the panels allows them to close in on Wilson’s face as his loneliness and depression crushes down upon him. While never giving in to sentimentality, Wilson takes the reader along the path towards the ultimate destruction of a man who was foolish enough to care about nothing except for his own smug sense of self-satisfaction.

You’re unlikely to love Wilson himself but with Wilson Daniel Clowes leads us on a delightful, epic journey towards the epic failure of a compellingly flawed man. Giving vent to almost every anti-social instinct possible, Wilson is the kind of anti hero that you encounter on a Sunday morning in M&S – misguided and foolish though he may be, there’s something about his impotent rage that makes Wilson stick in your memory far longer than he really deserves. Wilson is quintessential Clowes and is sure to be a hit.

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