BOYS WEEKEND is important to our current moment

Boys Weekend

Created by: Mattie Lubchansky
Publisher: Pantheon
Publication Date: June 2023

Boys Weekend is a narrative about having to confront that you’re a completely completely different individual later in life and that your life is so significantly better at house, the place you will have those that love you for who you grew into being. Sammie is a girl who has been requested to be the very best man at an previous pal’s wedding ceremony, which occurs to embrace a bachelor journey to El Campo (mainly future Las Vegas). But this previous pal knew her earlier than she transitioned, and as one in every of “the boys” in faculty. When requested by her coworker if her previous pal is good with gender stuff, Sammie says “Could be worse. I mean, he’s trying!”

The introduction to Sammie and her state of affairs is one of many first issues I cherished about this graphic novel. We meet Sammie in an artist’s workshop the place she is developing a really giant sculpture as a work-for-hire artist’s assistant. Sammie and her coworker are in industrial aprons, with security goggles, and so they’re speaking about this journey that she’s mildly dreading. It seems that her previous pal from earlier than doesn’t know the whole lot about her transition, or what her life is like now. But by speaking via it together with her buddies in a playful manner, we find out about her: she’s transfem, she’s not going to have the awkward dialog about taking hormones with him, and he or she is going to have to go guy-mode. Then, after work, we see the place she lives together with her accomplice and the dialog continues. It’s a extremely efficient manner to present Sammie in her life and provides the reader a way of perspective. This is the place she desires to be, this is the place she is secure and comfy to be herself. And she has to go away it for… effectively, future Las Vegas.

Boys Weekend is separated into the numerous days of Sammie’s journey to El Campo. At the highest of the part are: The day, the itinerary, and a textual content message from her accomplice, Mia. This is an excellent mechanic to let you recognize the place within the weekend we’re (beginning on Thursday with the flight out to El Campo), and what the plans are supposed to be. For instance: “Thursday Night: General chill at the Urbanian Casino and Hotel, everyone fends for themselves for dinner. Take it easy, you animals!”, which is adopted by a textual content message from Mia asking about her flight. As the graphic novel progresses, it’s enjoyable to see how this straightforward mechanic falls in or out of sync with what is taking place on the web page. Because would you imagine the Boys Weekend goes a little bit off the rails?

Created by Mattie Lubchansky, Boys Weekend has a visible model that works effectively for the tone of the story. It is rounded, in some methods, and a few exaggerated options turn out to be useful when the visible language of the graphic novel begins to bend and play with Sammie’s expertise (and stress). In some methods the innocence of the model doesn’t absolutely put together you for the darker themes later within the story, which I feel is an effective way to convey the out-of-place nature of the occasions. Sammie is making an attempt her greatest to slot in, however the group of individuals (and the very nature of the setting) are making it exhausting to be cool with the whole lot that is taking place round her. One of the plot components on this story is that lots of the groom’s buddies are sort of uppity tech individuals who get simply swindled right into a Silicon Valley-esque guru seminar ( cough Cult *cough) state of affairs.

After my first learn of the graphic novel, I believed there have been too many plot components. Too many issues including up to the larger image, distracting from the actual central theme of the story. But interested by it extra, this ingredient is what makes it such a relatable and considerate story about id and life. It’s not simply as simple as surviving the weekend or having a private speak with an previous pal you fell out of contact with. There’s additionally the issues of society and interpersonal struggles that aren’t associated to the wild misconceptions individuals have about gender. Sammie calls house throughout a very making an attempt time within the plot. It’s Friday evening, she’s made it again to her room earlier than dinner. She calls her buddies to ask for recommendation. Her pal says to dump the groom, however she doesn’t assume she will as a result of she cares about him as an individual. But however, she doesn’t assume that she will commit to the friendship when he can’t absolutely settle for her life. Her pal says “we all lose people post-transition and I think hanging on to the ones you can isn’t necessarily a bad thing.” But additionally, however, “you’re so much happier with everyone else! With Mia, with your job,” and together with her buddies again house. And throughout this dialog, one of many groom’s buddies comes into the room and says “Hey man, you ready for dinner?”, misgendering her as they’ve been doing all weekend. So she decides to lastly put on her favourite purple costume, which her accomplice packed for her secretly in an try to remind her who she is. With her favourite costume on, it’s time to deal with dinner with the boys, and no matter it is they’ve unleashed as a part of their bizarre tech cult.

Books like Boys Weekend are extremely important in our current moment within the United States, the place trans rights are underneath an excessive assault in lots of states. Sammie’s life, her friendships, and her relationships, play a essential function in telling the story of somebody’s expertise. It’s humorous, deeply insightful, and much more wild than you’d anticipate for a narrative a few hedonistic future-tech-Vegas.

Boys Weekend is due out June 6.