amysutton's review
2.0
There's someone out there for everyone, and everyone needs permission to grow into their better selves.
relright's review
2.0
if this had been a traditional novel instead of a graphic novel it probably would have gotten one star. But the illustrations and art direction are one of the more redeeming parts of the story. Essentially the Cute Girl Network is a network of hundreds of local women working to spread their experiences with their exes to potential new partners to save themselves grief. However the main characters of this story Jack and Jane are fucking hopeless hipster losers. Jane shrugs off every story provided to her including the truly heinous such as Jack going to the store in the middle of making dinner at his girlfriends house and DISAPPEARING FOR THREE DAYS because he got distracted at the store and went home instead. And Jane just thinks that story and others is quirky and fun???? Also every single one of the other characters in this is unlikeable in one way or another. It was also written in 2013 and it is painfully awkward in it’s attempts to seem cool and hip and still missing that mark.
sizrobe's review
5.0
This book is an object lesson about different kinds of bad relationships. The protagonist is a poor match for most people because he's scatterbrained and clumsy, but not deliberately an asshole or malicious. His roommate. on the other hand, is a toxically masculine douchebag who never gets past first dates.
I identified with the protagonist more than I'd like to admit. There was one line where dating him was likened to "dating a golden retriever" which hit a little closer to home than I'd like to say. Otherwise though, the exes that all hate him aren't particularly sympathetic. In a way I'd kind of relate this graphic novel to the league of evil exes from Scott Pilgrim.
I identified with the protagonist more than I'd like to admit. There was one line where dating him was likened to "dating a golden retriever" which hit a little closer to home than I'd like to say. Otherwise though, the exes that all hate him aren't particularly sympathetic. In a way I'd kind of relate this graphic novel to the league of evil exes from Scott Pilgrim.
elisala's review
3.0
C'est plutôt sympathique, ça bouge un peu les lignes des genres, mais ça finit un peu en eau de boudin.
joaniemaloney's review
2.0
I was bored and decided to flip through this because the cover looked cute. The premise of it sounded simple enough, and I liked the designs and illustrations, so I gave it a go.
Pretty disappointed. I thought there was potential here but these two characters ended up being rather bland. The meet-cute was cute, yes, but I'd say everything went downhill after the first date. I can see how they're comfortable with each other and the relationship can certainly work, but Jack seemed so much of a doofus - some of those stories from the other ladies made me cringe - that I lost the appeal in really rooting for these two, or even against these two. I can see them humming along for a while, but I don't want to read about it.
But the art was nice. Really. I loved all the details for those full pages. The character designs are charming and Jack did have some good puppy-dog eyes going on, and Jane had some good points about female representation in sport (skateboarding), but maybe there needed to be something more to this story.
Pretty disappointed. I thought there was potential here but these two characters ended up being rather bland. The meet-cute was cute, yes, but I'd say everything went downhill after the first date. I can see how they're comfortable with each other and the relationship can certainly work, but Jack seemed so much of a doofus - some of those stories from the other ladies made me cringe - that I lost the appeal in really rooting for these two, or even against these two. I can see them humming along for a while, but I don't want to read about it.
But the art was nice. Really. I loved all the details for those full pages. The character designs are charming and Jack did have some good puppy-dog eyes going on, and Jane had some good points about female representation in sport (skateboarding), but maybe there needed to be something more to this story.
lovelymissmonet's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
bluenicorn's review
2.0
I wasn't super into this, but I'm having a hard time putting my finger on why. I like the idea that someone else's bad date may be just right for another person; and I liked the concept that sometimes, everyone else doesn't know best. But... instead of Jack coming across as a little silly, he made a series of choices that would really give me pause. I mean, maybe it's "silly" that he put his phone in a bag of chips that was thrown away, but... it kind of communicates a few things to me: A) He is messy and inconsiderate enough that his roommate literally cleans up after him and B) He does not take care of expensive and important things like his phone. And, like, this happened recently- not when all of the other girls dated him. But peeing in a graveyard, poking a female stranger's chest because of the design on it, and talking with your mom about your sex life... sheesh... red flag city.
I respect that ultimately, it's Jane's choice- she knows what she is getting into, and she knows it may not be forever. It's still up to her and she chooses to be with Jack. It shouldn't matter what me or any of the Network members think. That is the strongest part of the book for me. The Network itself was sort of troubling to me- the women all came across as really catty and vindictive; you went on one bad date with a guy, and you feel the need to tell a stranger that she's throwing her life away with him? That's... weird. And the men, too, all felt like bloated stereotypes- no one in the skate shop realizes it's weird to harass women, and Jack's roommate literally says stuff like "Now make me a sandwich." There are some good moments of potential happening, and I don't think it's terrible; but I just don't think it works for me.
I respect that ultimately, it's Jane's choice- she knows what she is getting into, and she knows it may not be forever. It's still up to her and she chooses to be with Jack. It shouldn't matter what me or any of the Network members think. That is the strongest part of the book for me. The Network itself was sort of troubling to me- the women all came across as really catty and vindictive; you went on one bad date with a guy, and you feel the need to tell a stranger that she's throwing her life away with him? That's... weird. And the men, too, all felt like bloated stereotypes- no one in the skate shop realizes it's weird to harass women, and Jack's roommate literally says stuff like "Now make me a sandwich." There are some good moments of potential happening, and I don't think it's terrible; but I just don't think it works for me.
eraofkara's review
3.0
Definitely cute, but a little heavy-handed for me. I think this would be more appropriate for a teen girl navigating dating, sexism, and the topic of how you should be treated by a romantic partner.
zepysgirl's review
3.0
I wanted to like this more, but the main guy *clearly* has undiagnosed ADHD and it really upset me how mean about it almost everyone else was, and that it’s never actually named in the book. “Not everyone makes a good match for everyone else” is a good message, yeah, but also if you’re terminally forgetful, very easily distracted/lose your train of thought at the drop of a hat, were “a spaz” in school, commonly blurt things out without thinking first... there were just too many things going on here. It was obviously affecting his quality of life. I wanted to reach into the graphic novel and give the guy a packet on ADHD resources.
stiricide's review
4.0
The art is great, and I really like the essential core of this story - that just because someone isn't right FOR YOU doesn't mean that they're a bad person - but there was something about it that just keeps it from being 5 stars for me. Maybe it's the presence of a character who is basically MRA culture incarnate without ever getting punched in the face (though Jane DOES give her douchey co-workers a talking to and, hopefully, changes skate culture in the town), or maybe I just have a knee-jerk reaction to the entire presence of a whisper network being used to be catty instead of just to be safe. There's a lot of good in here, I just think it could have been better.