Did You Hear About Mimi Green? #1 – The Rise and Fall of an Influencer

Mimi Green has it all. She’s a well-known online influencer until an old blog post in which she cruelly mocks fat people resurfaces. When the post resurfaces, it’s the spark that ignites a viral firestorm. This comic’s debut from Connor Goldsmith sees Mimi check into an isolated and pricey mental health retreat to ride out the viral wave. What happens when days of sound baths and crystal healing are met with nights in alternate dimensions that seem designed to punish vanity?

This review is brought to you by Nerd Initiative’s Eda and Shawn!

Creative Team

Writer: Connor Goldsmith
Artist: Josh Cornillon
Letterer: Ariana Maher
Cover Artist: Josh Cornillon

Writing

Eda: Being a debut comic writer can be a gamble. You’ll be great, in the negative or somewhere in the middle. For me, Connor Goldsmith is that “somewhere in the middle”. While reading, if someone didn’t read the author’s note at the end, they’d be a bit confused, like I was. Are we supposed to root for Mimi or hate her? Is the message for or against cancel culture? For both, without the context, it’s a bit unclear where Goldsmith wants us to be. That being said, figuring everything out intrigues me enough to read the next issue.

On a total side note, being a queer trans-woman in this space, it felt awesome as hell to get this amount of representation in a book! It can be hard to come across a character I can relate to, let alone someone in the background. This was like a breath of fresh air.

Shawn: This was a pretty solid debut from Connor Goldsmith. I thought the story was interesting and had a really unique premise. The words feel natural, and the characters feel lived in, but the story still needs some fleshing out. The author’s note is a must-read at the end of the series, as it really helps you understand what Goldsmith is going for in a way that is not always evident throughout the issue.

It’s very clear that through this four-issue series, we are going to be treated to a deep dive into the psychological impacts of body dysmorphia, shame, and the toxic life of influencer culture. While that much is made very clear, the narrative still leaves room for more clarity on how this series feels about those things. Cancel culture will be a central tenet of the story, but I would have liked to see more clarity around if the narrative is truly addressing cancel culture or taking the often-seen route of society, where accountability for actions and words is labeled cancel culture.

Art

Eda:Up front, I really couldn’t help but love the art and colors here. Josh Cornillon & Ariana Maher really showed they know how to put work into a page. The moments of horror felt truly terrifying while the scenes set in the hospital evoked a whole range of emotions through the use of color. Josh and Ariana should be proud.

Shawn: The art and colors here are phenomenal. Josh Cornillion really set the tone right out of the gate. The body dysmorphia and psychological thriller really come through in the art that Cornillion utilizes throughout the issue. Cornillion really also nails it on the coloring. Not only does Cornillion pick the right colors, but there are times when there’s a more glossy look and times when there’s a flatter look that just seem to work. Ariana Maher as always, does a great job with lettering. While her work with the big two is phenomenal, it’s independent series like this where she’s not beholden to traditions and expectations for established characters and fonts that her work truly shines.

Final Thoughts

Eda:8/10. While not perfect, “Did You Hear About Mimi Green?” by Connor Goldsmith is still worth a look. Even with the mixed messaging, the moments of terror truly hit and the artwork is stunning.

Shawn:8/10. This is a solid first issue of a comic. I would have liked to see a little more clarity on where the characters in the story fall on the issues addressed in the opening issue, but this is worth the pickup. With only four issues, I’m expecting we will get some real clarity on how the topics this creative team is addressing are deeply intertwined with the narrative in the next issue.

Overall Grade: 8/10

Are you picking up this new series? Let us know in the comments