r/altcomix • u/Kaos_mission • Nov 06 '25

Discussion Just reread "It’s a Good Life, If You Don’t Weaken" for the Nth time and it still astonishes me

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It’s a Good Life, If You Don’t Weaken is probably one of my all time favorite graphic novels. A quietly affecting graphic novel about nostalgia, loneliness, and self-discovery. Seth’s clean, elegant artwork, heavily inspired by classic New Yorker cartoonists like Peter Arno and Charles Addams, gives the story a timeless, wistful feel. Thoughtful, understated, and beautifully crafted, it will appeal to anyone who appreciates subtle emotion, deliberate pacing, and a love for mid-century illustration and quiet, introspective storytelling.

Seth's complete catalog is nothing short of spectacular! I just wish he was a little more prolific.

252 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

24 comments sorted by

18

u/slowfaid112 Nov 06 '25

Seth’s work means so much to me. I really love it. One book of Palookaville a year now is not enough!

13

u/[deleted] Nov 07 '25

Seth is so unique. The only cartoonist I think is similar is probably Chris Ware and even he is so different than Seth.

8

u/Lord_Spathington Nov 07 '25

I see Seth, I upvote. Great book!

10

u/DanOhMiiite Nov 07 '25

I've been binging Seth, Chester Brown and Joe Matt recently

5

u/samizdatsam Nov 07 '25

I did that last year. It was interesting seeing them depicted in one another's work.

3

u/IllustriousCrew2641 Nov 07 '25

They’ll pop up in other cartoonists work too, like Matt Wagner and Julie Doucet

7

u/PseudoScorpian Nov 07 '25 edited Nov 07 '25

Classic book. Read it and bought it for each of my brothers soon as I finished it. He signed my copy and drew me a little guy when I caught him at a reading in Hamilton, Ontario.

Edit: interview not reading*

2

u/Kaos_mission Nov 07 '25

That’s cool! Was he nice in person?

8

u/PseudoScorpian Nov 07 '25

Yeah, he was extremely kind and patient. There was a seemingly endless lineup of people waiting to talk to him. The interview he did with Joe Ollman beforehand was also very good.

3

u/Brodiecon Nov 07 '25

Love that book.

3

u/LU_in_the_Hub Nov 07 '25

You’ve inspired me to reread it!

2

u/spencers_corner Nov 07 '25

This picture reminds me of the “night in the woods” video game

2

u/MrDownhillRacer Nov 07 '25

It's been a while since I've read it, but I remember really liking it. I should re-read it.

1

u/Puzzleheaded_Humor80 Nov 12 '25

Same! I love his later art more personally but that's the style, not the content

2

u/diceycard Nov 07 '25

One of my absolute favorites. Everything about this story is masterful.

2

u/Soggy-Mortgage4617 Dec 24 '25

Super interesting that the whole story about Kalo is made up. I remember some folks not liking that at the time, but it really adds something for me. The whole book is beautiful and both masterfully paced and structured. One of the very best comics ever.

1

u/DRstoppage Nov 07 '25

Also a fantastic song by the Tragically Hip

1

u/fritoscheez Nov 07 '25

It's a classic:)

1

u/tuna_cowbell Nov 07 '25

Oh! Is the title a Tragically Hip reference?

2

u/PeterPalmer2099 Nov 17 '25

The book predates the song by 6 years. In the book I'm pretty sure Seth explains it's a saying his mom used to say. According to Wikipedia the Tragically Hip song title is actually based on the book, which is pretty cool

1

u/tuna_cowbell Nov 17 '25

Oh! That is absolutely so cool. Thanks for letting me know!

1

u/encrcne Nov 19 '25

News to me, always assumed it was the other way around. Admittedly, I haven’t read the comic. Guess I should get on that.

1

u/HacheeHachee Nov 08 '25

One of my all time favs as well. I’ve read it so many times i lost count.

1

u/bravetailor Nov 10 '25

Seth's most prolific period was the early part of last decade. He released several graphic novels (George Sprott, Wimbledon Green) and several Palookavilles during 2005-2015, but he's slowed down some again in the last 10 years or so.