Comparing Bruce Mutard’s latest to most other comics is like putting an arthouse film next to a Spielberg schlockbuster. This is a book of subtlety with Mutard working every panel to convey character, build his story and sneak jokes into the background (a box office sign advertises Ring Out The Tills as a new release film). It draws you into every panel. Choosy McBride works for a Sydney art gallery and her painter boyfriend is hitting a creative brick wall until an alluring art work draws them north. The mysterious artist displays their work in the middle of nowhere and seems to want no reward for it, but Choosy is determined to exhibit their work.

It inspires a debate-cum-argument that tears at their reltionship. Available for the first time since US publisher Image Comics passed on it in 2005, The Silence is a graphic novel that’s more Richard Linklater than Richie Rich. Reading a comic book that tackles art and relationships for grown-ups is refreshing but combined with Mutard’s intricate illustration it makes a book of depth and wonder.