Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
If I had to purely rate this for Vera Brosgol’s beautiful, colorful, expressive, joyous artwork, I would rate ‘Plain Jane and the Mermaid’ a 5 stars on 5! But unfortunately, the story doesn’t complement the creator’s stunning panels at the same level.
What’s the plot? Jane is a young woman on the verge of being thrown out onto the streets, despite being the daughter of a very wealthy couple—because they’re dead, and the story takes place in an era when women weren’t allowed to inherit property. Enter a distant, wicked cousin who arrives to claim Jane’s mansion, giving her just a week to vacate. With nowhere to go and no one to turn to, Jane’s only way to avoid destitution is to marry someone, allowing her to claim the generous dowry owed to her. But the only man who might marry Jane (to get away from his own family), is kidnapped by a mermaid, so Jane must save him and secure her freedom!
The first half of “Plain Jane and the Mermaid” wasn’t too fun to read, especially because everybody around Jane mocks her being ‘fat’ and ‘ugly’, and if that wasn’t bad enough, she seems to have no personality. I know this is fantasy fiction, but I couldn’t help feeling a bit irked by the lack of clarity on when the story is set. If it’s meant to take place a couple of centuries ago, people back then weren’t exactly obsessed with women being thin. Anyway, for a book whose ultimate message is about embracing oneself and rejecting societal beauty standards, Jane herself is very shallow – she is in ‘love’ with the prettiest boy in town, for no other reason except his good looks. “You could spend all day fixing your hair if you wanted,” Jane tells Peter, when he asks her what he would be doing if they get married. So she just likes the boy because he is beautiful and vain.
“Plain Jane and the Mermaid” becomes exciting only in the second-half, with a few new twists and legendary sea creatures being introduced. Vera uses familiar sea legends, like depicting mermaids as seductive sea sirens who lure men for their own needs. Although, the mermaids in this graphic novel aren’t as black-and-white, some are wicked to the bone, others are surprisingly kind.
Jane’s underwater adventures to save Peter from the mermaid is kinda fun and the only character I really liked in this graphic novel was a seal she befriends and calls ‘Mr Whiskers’. In the end, Jane finally decides to take destiny in her hands and learns there might be more ways to save her future than marry the prettiest boy in town. But it’s also more luck, than her own wit or hardwork that saves Jane from being reduced to rags. Overall, thanks to Vera Brogsol’s artwork, this graphic novel might be worth a read.
Rating: 3 on 5.
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Also Read: Nobody Wants This – Netflix Series Review (Short Audio Version below)
