Graphic novel review: Decrypting Rita

Self-published graphic novels can be a mixed bag, to say the least. I forget where I first heard of Decrypting Rita, but after browsing a few pages on the website, I was interested enough to purchase the graphic novel.

I'm glad I did: Although the author makes the entire thing available on her site, she also takes advantage of some stunning features of print design. (And even though I spend most of my life online and I love my Kindle dearly, I still prefer to read comics in physical format.) The quality of the physical book is top notch, with glossy covers, a sturdy but flexible binding, high-quality pages, and some great printed effects.

Author Egypt Urnash effortlessly blends science fiction and cyberpunk tropes with cutting edge comic book style, all without objectifying or marginalizing women. In fact, almost all of the characters in Decrypting Rita are female, which is such a reversal of common conventions that it feels downright revolutionary.

The basic story is simple: In the future, a robot lady (the eponymous Rita) gets caught breaking into a building. She is captured and rebooted into a fractured consciousness. The story splits into multiple color-coded narratives, which interweave, hiccup and occasionally collapse.

Artistically, Decrypting Rita is incredible. Urnash brings a life and lightness to her figures which plays effectively against the blocky illustration style. And the technical ability she brings to the drawing board is clearly boss-level.

Decrypting Rita is sometimes a difficult experience, but not in a bad way. However, newcomers to comics may find it a challenging read. The design, artwork, layout, and storyline don't offer a lot of hand-holding. But this leaves the author free to explore multiple narratives and special effects that are truly stunning. In other words, this is a comic geek's comic book.

However, those same challenges are what provide the meat of the story, so to speak. This would be a great choice for a book club.

Image copyright egypturnash