Finder (comics)

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Finder is a science fiction comic book series written and illustrated by Carla Speed McNeil, beginning in 1996. It is published by McNeil's imprint Lightspeed Press, which has also collected most of it in trade paperback volumes. It has been critically well received, winning numerous awards, but the series has consistently sold poorly, leading McNeil to move in 2005 to web-only distribution and sales of trade paperbacks.

[edit] Overview & Setting

Talisman trade paperback, collecting isues 19, 20 and 21 along with extensive background notes

McNeil describes Finder as "aboriginal SF." The series is set in what may be an Earth society in a fairly far future, or a parallel universe, or a distant planet with a human colony. High- and low-technology civilizations are intermingled, with nomadic tribes traveling between domed cities; most people belong to one of several genetically and culturally distinct clans, including some with animal features similar to the anthropomorphic characters in furry comics. Besides clans, there appear to be no stable political structures larger than a city, although corporations and the mass media wield considerable influence. Despite what seem to be fantasy elements, many aspects of life remain familiar—especially in the cities, whose customs are partly a satire of modern pop culture—and work and family relationships are central to the stories.

In a sense the series is a sociological portrait of that world, seen mostly through the actions of Jaeger Ayers, an individualistic and somewhat opportunistic member of a secret society of "Finders", who are basically scouts and detectives. Jaeger also acts as a sin eater and has great regenerative abilities, which may be connected to his low boredom threshold and periodic need for intense physical sensations.

There are story arcs of various sizes, some featuring Jaeger in nearly every panel, while in others he is barely present or indirectly present. The series makes allusions to various genres of science fiction and fantasy; apparent influences include Ursula Le Guin, Samuel Delany, and cyberpunk for thematic content, and a wide range of work for the visual aspects, from old horror comics and simple line cartoons to the science fiction work of Mœbius.

McNeil's spin-off series Mystery Date follows the life of another character in the same world as Finder.

[edit] Move to web distribution

For quite some time, sales of the periodical Finder comic-book pamphlets were not profitable, but McNeil had continued to publish them as a form of "advertising" for the profitable trade paperbacks.

At the 2005 Small Press Expo, however, McNeil announced that Finder #38 would be the last single issue published, and that further content would be published twice a week on her website. Publication of the trade paperback collections will continue normally.

[edit] Trade paperback collections

1. Sin-Eater, Part One. Introduces the series, and the recurring characters in the Grosvenor family. ISBN 0-9673691-0-X
2. Sin-Eater, Part Two. Jaeger enters into a dangerous conflict between Emma Grosvenor and her estranged husband Brigham. ISBN 0-9673691-1-8
3. King of the Cats. Jaeger encounters members of his own tribe and a society of humanoid lions while trying to find work in a city that is also a theme park. ISBN 0-9673691-2-6
4. Talisman. One of Emma's daughters ponders her memories of Jaeger and her discovery of the little-used art of reading. ISBN 0-9673691-3-4
5. Dream Sequence. A man whose brain hosts a popular virtual reality environment is haunted by a murderous specter. ISBN 0-9673691-4-2
6. Mystery Date. Portrait of a young student at a college for prostitutes. ISBN 0-9673691-5-0
7. The Rescuers. Jaeger investigates a kidnapping at a manor house. ISBN 0-9673691-6-9
8. Five Crazy Women. Jaeger details an unlucky string of intimate relationships, and further describes his mysterious disease. ISBN 0-9673691-7-7

[edit] External links

• Lightspeed Press
• "McNeil's Finder Goes Online." Douglas Wolk, Publishers Weekly, 10/04/05.