PositiveThe Financial TimesMark’s blue-collar dissatisfaction has much to say about contemporary America — but where Off Season excels is in its representation of the achingly sad breakdown of a couple and an extended family. Sturm handles Mark’s narration with painful precision; rarely able to articulate feelings other than anger, when he does, Mark’s spartan thoughts are doubly effective ... At times Sturm is less delicate — five panels of Mark upturning his house in search of his phone feel like a thin excuse to illustrate the squalor of his lifestyle. But the majority of Off Season rings true with natural (and depressing) ease ... The unadorned style of Sturm’s drawing contributes to the book’s emotional tug, focusing our attention on the characters rather than the world around them.
