Anthologies have been a staple of British comics for longer than most lifetimes, with weekly comics featuring a selection of short stories by different writers residing in the mainstream for generations. In the US, the monthly single-story format reigns supreme in the mass market, but the last few decades have seen a rise in the anthology, especially as a showcase for superior, more considered and often underground comics. It’s easy to forget, for example, that Pulitzer Prize-winning Maus was originally published chapter by chapter in RAW magazine.
Holding a torch for such publications is MOME, Fantagraphics’ anthology of stories from a dozen of the most interesting creators of the moment. This volume is a great jumping on point, featuring the first chapter of Lewis Trondheim’s autobiographical At Loose Ends, alongside the works of Russ Manning, Jonathan Bennett, R. Kikuo Johnson, Tim Hensley, Jeffrey Brown, David Heatley, Paul Hornschemeier, Anders Nilsen, Sophie Crumb, Martin Cendreda and Gabrielle Bell.