Graphic Novel Review: ‘Dogs on Dates’ by Luke Healy, from Drawn+Quarterly

Dogs on Dates

Dogs on Dates by Luke Healy, published by Drawn & Quarterly, chronicles the relationship between two anthropomorphic dogs as seen through their dates, numbered one by one. Like Healy’s Self-Esteem and the End of the World and The Con Artists, the vivid characters and energetic near-real-world situations carry the story through a clever, dramatic narrative.

Though portrayed as dog-people, the characters in Dogs on Dates are very human. Bernie is a wisecracking art-school dropout working at his family’s deli, more interested in experiential adventures like finding the perfect sandwich truck than trying to map out long-term life goals. Brad is big-hearted, not only in his daily kindness but also in his moral choices (the root of his vegetarianism), as well as in his career working for a nonprofit promoting the environment.

They bump into each other in a meet-cute, although the literal bumping is a glass wall. Bernie only slams into it, but Brad, costumed as the nonprofit’s mascot, carries far more force, and it shatters between them. Riding in the ambulance together, with bits of broken glass sticking out of them, they ask each other out, and the dating begins.

The story in Dogs on Dates is told through enumerated dates. The first one is a near-disaster as Bernie faces trial upon trial: the brakes on his bike going out on a steep hill, losing his wallet, and a lost goat eating the flowers Bernie had bought for Brad. Brad, meanwhile, waits at the restaurant even when the waiter suggests he would be better off taking the apparent no-show as a sign.

Brad leads a discussion on trust and taking a chance on love, since “If you can’t believe in a cute, funny boy who was nice to you once…what can you believe in?” Other patrons join in, sharing cynical and hopeful arguments, until Bernie finally, triumphantly, arrives, leading to all-out chaos.

Bernie and Brad’s relationship grows through dozens of dates. Some are quick single-page stories, such a making absurdly high bets playing mini golf, or both being noisy slurpers on straws to the point of annoying everyone else in the café.

Others go into more detail, showing the drama of the dogs thinking their relationship is cursed or Brad ditching his overbearing brothers for a beach day. Everyone carries baggage, such as exes and parents, and Bernie and Brad must carry them together if they are going to make it.

Healy’s art in Dogs on Dates makes the fantastical almost real. Backgrounds show intricate detail, and characters stand out with vibrant designs, even down to their clothing. The panels are regular and almost always the same size, usually six to a page, which creates a rhythm that draws the reader in. Readers might soon forget they’re reading about dogs at all, instead focusing on the genuine humanness of two guys just trying to be a couple in a world packed with awkwardness and responsibilities as well as amazing snacks and belly laughs.