Local (comics)
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Local is a 12-part Oni Press comics series written by Brian Wood and illustrated by Ryan Kelly. Each issue is intended to be a stand-alone short story, taking place in a different town across North America. A recurring character, Megan, provides a thread for readers who follow the series in sequence. Megan is the main character in some issues, while in others she is a spectator or background figure.
Local resembles a previous series of Wood's, Demo (published by AiT-PlanetLar), which also spanned twelve issues, each of which was a self-contained story.
The first issue was released in November, 2005, and the series continues throughout 2006.
[edit] Issues
#1: "Ten Thousand Thoughts Per Second" - Portland, Oregon
Oregon resident (and recurring character) Megan McKeenan as she finds herself in sticky situation she needs to get out of, fast. In that crucial split-second, Megan lives out the possible repercussions of her choice. (released November 16, 2005, second-printing released March 2006)
#2: "Polaroid Boyfriend" - Minneapolis, Minnesota
While Megan's at work, he finds her hidden key and lets himself in to her apartment, spending the day reading her books, rummaging around, and relaxing on her bed. He's gone when she comes home, leaving behind short love notes scrawled on the backs of the photographs he takes of himself. Is this just sick, twisted stalker games, or is he Megan McKeenan's new "Polaroid Boyfriend"? (released December 14, 2005)
#3: "Theories and Defenses - Richmond, Virginia
After more than 15 years of recording and touring, Richmond, Virginia's favorite indie rock supergroup returns home to call it quits. But after so much time away, re-integrating themselves back into the city that formed and defined them isn't quite the joyous experience they hoped it would be. (released January 25, 2006)
#4: "Two Brothers - Missoula, Montana
The quiet peace of Missoula, Montana is broken when two estranged brothers are reunited and the definitions of what makes a "good" and "bad" sibling become blurred. In a series of violent and disturbing scenes, poor Megan McKeenan plays an unwilling witness to the ultimate in family breakdowns. (released March 1, 2006)
#5: "The Last Lonely Days at the Oxford Theatre" - Halifax, Nova Scotia
After the traumatic events Megan survived in the last story, we next find her as the sole employee at a run-down arthouse movie theatre tucked way up north in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Lost in her own head, she joins the small but loyal crowd of patrns that gather each night for the second-run films, learning that the stories of the moviegoers themselves can, more often than not, rival what's up on the big screen. (released April 20, 2006)
#6: "Megan and Gloria, Apartment 5A" - Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn, New York. Home of the 400 sq. foot, two-bedroom apartment. Between their hectic work and school schedules, Megan and her roommate Gloria never, ever see each other, and that's the only thing that makes such cramped living conditions possible. But a sensitive word document left open on Gloria's laptop one day catches Megan's eye, and she's drawn into the strange and disturbing life of her invisible roommate. (released May 24, 2006)
#7: "Smash the State!" - Tempe, Arizona
Nicky McKeenan, age 16, annoyance to his parents and a major blight on the suburban Tempe, Arizona neighborhood he reluctantly calls home. At his best, he's a sullen teenager who likes to bully, and at his worst he's a budding sociopath well skilled in the art of property damage. Regular postcards from a half-sister he's never met keep him from going too far over the edge, but will that be enough to save Nicky when it matters the most? (released June 28, 2006)
#8: "Food as Substitute" - Wicker Park, Chicago
Working as a waitress a popular restaurant, Megan starts a passionate love affair with one of the young chefs, and at the same time negotiates an awkward relationship with a much older customer. Late nights, good food, better sex, steamy kitchens, love triangles... all set in the diverse and artistic neighborhood of Wicker Park, Chicago. (released July 27, 2006)
#9: "Wish You Were Here" - Norman, Oklahoma
After hearing news of her parents's death, Megan McKeenan travels to Norman, Oklahoma to see the exact location where her parents first met, in front of the Bizzel Library on the UO Norman Campus. She has a old family photo from that moment in the past, and in an effort to process her loss, she attempts to recreate it with her new boyfriend in tow. (released September 20, 2006)
#10: The Parents" - Austin, Texas
The flipside to the previous issue of Local, this Austin, TX-based story tracks Megan's brother Matthew McKeenan, as he also reacts to the news of their parent's death. While Megan's journey was proactive, sentimental, and in the end rather uplifting, Matthew's process is radically different, and possibly dangerous. (released November 15, 2006)
