Gossip, sex, death, beer, landscaping, witchhunting, dogwalking: the residents of this medieval village have plenty to attend to, and so does the reader. Damien Jay gets back to basics with a deftly drawn, character-driven historical comedy-drama.

Part sketchbook, part insanely well-crafted solo jam comic, this cheerful little slab of free-association features guest appearances by Leslie the crank, Gerald Ford, Germany, the author, and a bunch of sea monsters.

Hans Christian Andersen is faithfully adapted in a lush full-color painted comic worthy of classic Disney, cute as all get out — but preserving the questionable ethics, bloody mayhem, and just plain unsettling bits (think puppy dogs with big eyes are cute? think again) that never made it into the movies.