The Feast of the Seven Fishes Reviewed

Somewhere in time, I spent the holidays away from my family for the first time. I was living in Massachusetts and working at Sunshine Stage in Lenox. We had shows on Christmas and New Year’s Eve and I was working at the theatre and couldn’t get back to Jersey. And I was so extraordinarily lonely.

I cuddled up to any man that seemed like a nice guy just so I could feel a family atmosphere again. That’s when I met the Gray Fox. Graham Davies Wilcox was an old reprobate, but had the soul and talent of a poet. [The book I’ll Be Right Back, Love Gray is proudly displayed on my shelves and his letters to me are legion and legendary.] I was drinking [of all things] at Mundy’s, A Congenial Bar [Fred Mundy, Proprietor], in scenic Glendale, MA, when I happened across an old man at the end of the bar who was drinking vodka—straight. And I said, “What are you doing here during the holidays? Haven’t you got a family to go to?” And he said, “Yes, and no. I have a family, but I’m not going there.”

Gray and I formed a friendship that night in 1977 that lasted until he died in 1997. We were both lonely and both wanted to be loved. Months later, he gave me an engagement ring, but that’s another story. Like many of you, I’ve been reading Bob Tinnell’s The Feast of Seven Fishes right here at Worldly Remains. Tinnell’s been there. That’s obvious. The grand thing about this comic strip is that it’s so pleasant to be with these people. They’re okay, all of them. The ‘good guys’ and the ‘bad guys’ are all family and that’s the way it is. You care about every one of the characters he presents. That’s important because if you don’t care, well—you don’t care, you know?

This charming journey through a small northeast town with its inhabitants reminds all of us on some level, how it is to be out there alone, and yet somehow, not alone. Here we are in Greentown, PA [I assume—perhaps West Virginia?]. Joey and Beth meet up accidentally in their home town. They both have family there but they’re alone anyway. Many of us know that feeling, right? And they like each other.

Maybe because it’s different, maybe because it isn’t, maybe because it’s there: but they’re together this Christmas and that’s what matters. What’s gonna happen next? Beats me! But I sent in MY vote. Did you?

FEAST began with one artist and moved on to another. You could see a certain style difference if you looked hard enough but Alex Saviuk has stayed true to Ed Piskor's vision. Said Tinnell of Saviuk’s contribution… “Alex has done a fantastic job on FEAST—not only in terms of execution of the art—but in storytelling. He's always bringing something to the table—no pun intended—and bringing the overall quality of my words to a higher, more emotional level. So when he said he needed this break, I had to honor the request.” When asked about it, Saviuk said, “I hated to do it, but I just overbooked myself. Between the holidays, and my work on the Spider-Man dailies and a new comic of THE PHANTOM—I was just drowning. And I don't want the strip to suffer. I really enjoy working on it and I love the reaction we're getting.” *

Don’t miss this charming tale from one of the foremost comic writers working today. It’s right here at WR in “Daily Comics” and if you haven’t been there yet, it’s all archived for your convenience. As the song You’re My Girl insists…. “Get in there!”

—Jessie Lilley

* In the midst of this heavy workload, Saviuk had also recently assisted his former teacher and mentor, the late Will Eisner, on a SPIRIT/ESCAPIST crossover story, and as a tribute to the great man, had an original Spirit sketch available on eBay. Proceeds go to the American Cancer Society in memory of Eisner.

NOTE: FEAST OF THE SEVEN FISHES, oft-described as MY BIG FAT ITALIAN DRINKING PARTY appears every weekday at www.SunnyFundays.com. Anyone who wants the strip to appear on their website for free may do so by visiting SunnyFundays.com and copying the free HTML code made possible through the miracle of Tooncasting.