Male Chauvinist Aardvark

Reason writers around town: At The American Spectator, Brian Doherty bids a fond farewell to the epic Cerebus, and to the strange, poignant masculinist campaign of its controversial creator Dave Sim.

Comments

[ron]

thanks!

[Tripp]

I'm just glad Sim's lettering was touched on. I've said for a decade that Sim's personal politics and self-publishing evangelism have far eclipsed the fact that he may be the best letterer ever to work in American comics. In a just world, should he desire it, he should be able to sit back and letter books for a living now. Heck, people should beat down his door. I think, reading Cerebus, one realizes how much computer typesetting can really take a backseat to GOOD lettering.

[Tripp]

I'm just glad Sim's lettering was touched on. I've said for a decade that Sim's personal politics and self-publishing evangelism have far eclipsed the fact that he may be the best letterer ever to work in American comics. In a just world, should he desire it, he should be able to sit back and letter books for a living now. Heck, people should beat down his door. I think, reading Cerebus, one realizes how much computer typesetting can really take a backseat to GOOD lettering.

[Les]

Besides being the greatest letterer in the history of the medium, Sim is comedically (is that a word?) brilliant in his pacing and wordplay. The recurring character of Lord Julius is a perfect representation of Groucho Marx's wit and style.

Then there's the Oscar Wilde character and the excerpts of his "book" which are a beautiful facsimile of Wilde's style. He also nails The Three Stooges and Margaret Thatcher, to name just a few.

If you're unfamiliar with it all, go to your local comic book store and pick up "High Society" (the first "novel in the novel" which follows the first book, which is actually a collection of humorous fantasy adventures). The artistic and literary accomplishment (of "High Society") is made more amazing by the fact that it was written and drawn by a high-school drop out in his mid to late twenties.

I've been reading Cerebus monthly for sixteen years (I don't know what I'm going to do with myself in April) and there's no way in hell I could have written anything about it that was half as good as Brian's essay. Thanks, Brian.

[Les]

I looked it up. It's a word.

[Dink]

Never heard of it.
Am I the geek, or...?

[Les]

No, no, Dink. Don't worry, you're no geek. But if you read "High Society" you might think that being one isn't so bad.

[Les]

No, no, Dink. Don't worry, you're no geek. But if you read "High Society" or "Jaka's Story" or "Melmoth" or "Guys" or "Going Home" (those are my faves, anyway) you might think that being one isn't so bad.

[chthus]

His "Islam, My Islam" in the back pages of several issues in the months following 9-11 was an interesting read. Does anyone know if there's an online version of this anywhere?

[Jeff]

It was Dave Sim, through Cerebus, who taught me that the speaker implies, and the listener infers.

[dink]

No offense, les, and thanks for the tip. I'll google 'em and see where that road leads me.
Regards,
The Dink

[ron]

okay... i need to know if this article has spoilers or not. i have been reading cerebus for years and following sim's descent into insanity with a great deal of interest, but at the same time he is a great writer and artist, and i dont want to know anything about what happens in the final issues of cerebus before i read them.

[MALAK]

I remember buying Cerebus for the first three years it was available. Wildly entertaining stuff. Doherty's article is a fitting send off. Now, whatever became of Boris the Bear?

[Sir Real]

Ewww... I think I got some of Brian's "masculinist" Sim-love on me- anyone have a moist towelette?

[Alex]

Ron - there are no real spoilers in the article. He does give one spoiler warning, but it just describes a general event which is incidental to the plot. Depending on how far along you are, you may have already read it.

[Les]

None taken, Dink. I actually aspire to geekdom, but it takes more energy than I have.