‘Wash Day’ Review: A Day In The Life of a Black Girl

Wash Day popped on my radar thanks to its Kickstarter campaign that I wrote about previously. The 27-page story was written by Jamila Rowser and illustrated by Robyn Smith, with script edits by J.A. Micheline. It follows Kimana, a 26-year-old woman living in the Bronx, as she cares for her long, thick hair. As Kim goes through her Sunday morning rituals, readers experience the highs and lows of her day — fresh coffee, rising rent, girl talk, and catcalls. It is a welcomed addition to the growing world of indie and alternative comics taking up real estate in my heart. “Wash Day is a slice-of-life comic that pays tribute to the beauty and endurance of Black women and their hair.” Wash Day opens to Kimana waking up one morning after a night on the town, taking a look at herself in the mirror, and after messing around with her hair saying “Alright. Time to wash you”

From jump, Rowser has penned this story to have this air of familiarity that I instantly connected to. This is a slice of life genre narrative that is more or less a “Day In the Life Of” a Black girl. Seeing Kimana put in work while in the shower and detangle and comb and apply product to her hair isn’t something commonly seen in comic form when you think of Black women in comics. Not something you see routinely in mainstream comics at least. I’m always here for authenticity when looking at representation of Black girls and women in the media I consume, and this is an accurate one and great to see. Seeing Kimana walk…