EPIC THREAD TIME? It sure is! Let's talk about CEREBUS - or more specifically, the surprising Cerebus/Wondermark connection. 1/ - ThreadSky

davidmalki.com • 11 days ago

EPIC THREAD TIME? It sure is!

Let's talk about CEREBUS - or more specifically, the surprising Cerebus/Wondermark connection.

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Comments

lartist.bsky.social•11 days ago

A really great thread on a fascinating chapter in your career :) I was early on Cerebus as a comic teen but fell away not long after Jaka's Story. I've tried to read the rest via a dedicated friend who has them all somehow but ....yeah. No. Dave Sim is quite the mad genius. Thanks for sharing it all

davidmalki.com•11 days ago

https://wondermark.com/check-out-this-guy-read-all-of-cerebus-so-you-dont-have-to-plus-the-surprising-cerebus-wondermark-connection/

If you, like me, haven’t read all of Cerebus, but are curious what actually happens in those last few books, good news: https://freakytrigger.co.uk/wedge/2024/02/there-are-three-aardvarks, in a book-length series of blog posts. (cc: @freakytrigger.co.uk)

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davidmalki.com•11 days ago

Like many people who read comics during the 1990s and 2000s, I have an awareness of Cerebus, the epic 300-issue saga widely acknowledged as one of the most monumental achievements in comics by a singular creator (which is not to minimize the contributions of his artistic collaborator, Gerhard). 3/

davidmalki.com•11 days ago

I may have read a few issues of it at some point; I definitely had a copy of some crossover comic Cerebus (the titular aardvark character) featured in. They were lousy on the ground, in the ’90s.

But about the content of the comic itself, I only really ever knew the following:

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davidmalki.com•11 days ago

• The creator, Dave Sim, was well-known to be a fierce champion of independent publishing and creator’s rights.

• Cerebus began as a parody of Conan, then came into its own as an original story. It even inspired the term “Cerebus syndrome,” when a lighthearted story turns serious and dramatic.

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davidmalki.com•11 days ago

• It featured some of the greatest panel compositions, lettering, and other markers of craft of any comic of the time — or possibly ever.

• It went totally off the rails midway through, and the last third is basically unreadable.

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davidmalki.com•11 days ago

So I really enjoyed reading – in many sessions, over the course of weeks – https://freakytrigger.co.uk/wedge/2024/02/there-are-three-aardvarks that both summarizes the story, and provides a lot of interesting flavor and context.

Having read it, I feel, if not fully informed, that I’m “caught up” exactly to the degree that I want to be. 7/

uthor.bsky.social•11 days ago

I've gone through the story once all the way, skipped the last couple of volumes on my 2nd read, and fell off quickly on my 3rd attempt. The artwork keeps getting better throughout. But, I feel like there is a surprising amount of pop culture references (?) that don't age well.

uthor.bsky.social•11 days ago

I met Gerhard once at a con. Got a sketch from him! He seems like a nice person. Now that I think about it, I haven't seen an update on his blog in quiet a while...

smeg.bsky.social•11 days ago

Enjoyed the thread. Would be great if our heroes, if not perfect angels who stand on matches, could at least not turn out to be incorrigible asshats

madscott.bsky.social•11 days ago

Is there a short hand for too long but read it anyway? Fantastic and weird story.

wrincewind.bsky.social•11 days ago

TL;MMLTW (Too long, made me late to work)

wrincewind.bsky.social•11 days ago

(no, really, I missed my bus and had to get a taxi)

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