Sticks Angelica, Folk Hero

After her famous father is caught up in a political scandal, Sticks Angelica flees Ontario for the wilds of Monterey National Park, where she keeps company with a lovelorn rabbit named Oatmeal, a bear with literary pretensions, an otter with a mushroom growing out of his head, two geese (one of whom has a mosquito living in his head), and a moose who dreams of transitioning into a human woman. Sticks's life is thrown into turmoil when a small child is spotted wandering the forest, naked and alone. Yet writer/artist DeForge (Big Kids) is less concerned with plot than episodic explorations of unrequited love, regret, and the laws that govern animal life in the park. Fans of the animated series Adventure Time will recognize the author's illustration style and quirky sensibility, as he's a longtime designer on that show, but this offering is unmistakably aimed at a more mature audience.