Night Fisher = Least favorite graphic novel

R. Kikuo Johnson’s Night Fisher is the only graphic novel we’ve read this semester that, after I finished, I couldn’t remember half of what I had just read. I think the reason for this has to do with Johnson’s simplistic style of writing, which allows for the illustrations to convey a significant part of what’s happening in the story. After perusing the book once more, I still wasn’t quite sure what to make of the material. What point was Johnson trying to make? Is Night Fisher just about a smart boy who does some stupid things or is there a greater lesson to be learned? Once drugs enter the picture, the protagonist’s life starts to spiral out of control, with his mind becoming a series of disjointed thoughts, which makes it difficult to get a feel for what is going on in Loren’s mind throughout the story.

One portion of the book that I don’t entirely understand is a dream Loren is awoken from when he falls asleep in class after pulling an all-nighter to write a twelve-page paper the night before. In the dream, Loren is fishing with Shane at night; this may be an actual memory or it may just be in Loren’s imagination. Loren and Shane are standing on top of a large rock or cliff, clutching fishing rods in their hands. On page 19, the dream continues in aspect-to-aspect transgressions. It appears as if Loren has caught something and Shane points his finger to indicate the direction of Loren’s catch. The two look out on some unseen object, their mouths open in wonder. Loren is reminded of his catch, which seems to be too large, which is why he orders Shane to cut his fishing line. In the last panel of the dream, Loren is alone, calling out for his missing friend. What I can’t understand is the meaning behind the dream. Is it foreshadowing the trouble to come for Loren? Or is Loren’s subconscious warning him that his best friend is slipping away from him?

Whatever the reason, the dream sequence depicts Loren being forced to face his problem by himself, after having been left behind by Shane. Another similar instance occurs at the end of the novel, in the aftermath of Loren’s arrest. During a cross-country race, Loren catches up to Shane, confronting him about his acceptance to M.I.T. and the fact that he didn’t discover the news from his friend. Loren tries to engage Shane in a conversation but Shane rebuffs his attempt, telling Loren that they shouldn’t talk until they get a court date. Shane runs off with no further comment or explanation, leaving Loren to fall behind. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I didn’t understand Shane’s actions. Wasn’t he the one who got Loren started smoking batu and introduced him to the wrong crowd? Why is Shane suddenly treating Loren as if he were a bad influence instead of the other way around? This sequence reinforces Loren’s earlier claim that he’s always playing catch-up to Shane but it’s unclear how far behind Loren has fallen and whether or not he’ll be able to recover from his latest setback.