Book Review: Murderburg by Carol Lay

Carol Lay’s second graphic novel for Fantagraphics collects a series of vignettes about the residents and visitors inhabiting a fictional small town. The burg is situated on a tiny island off the coast of Maine, putting it far enough out of public consciousness that all manner of shenanigans can occur virtually off the radar. With a cast of colorful characters and a tendency for many of them to wind up dead by mysterious circumstances, the town’s official moniker of “Muderburg” quickly earns its infamous nickname.

The town is run by its mayor, Leo Scazzo, a semi-retired mobster happy to engage in less-than-legal methods to advance his mandate. He’s also a family man, with his wife Antonia and their three children giving him balance to his criminal activities, something like The Sopranos mixed with the macabre nonchalance of The Addams Family. When hit men, tourists, grifters, and even storms encroach on the island, it’s up to Team Scazzo to right the ship by any means necessary. 

Lay’s work here is more cartoony and comical than her prior release, My Time Machine, reminding me most immediately of Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoons and comics in tone and design. That’s largely due to the diabolical Scazzo couple resembling the heavy-lidded Boris and Natasha, with the short, stout Leo a striking counterpart to the tall, willowy Antonia. Lay’s page layouts are far more dynamic than the static grids of the old Dell/Charlton Bullwinkle comics, and her beautifully clean lines are clearly superior, but Bullwinkle fans should feel right at home in Murderburg.

Lay’s association with Fantagraphics dates back nearly four decades to her limited series, Good Girls, while her work on Murderburg started with a story idea in 2010 that developed into a self-published, Kickstarter-funded issue released in 2013. The new book is a winner on its own merits, but its long gestation and Lay’s history with Fantagraphics give it added appeal as the delightful payoff to a long-term relationship. Readers with no knowledge of Lay’s prior work can simply enjoy it as a rollicking new tale, while fans familiar with her career in illustration, comic strips and Simpsons Comics will thrill to this rare long-form work.