Thursday, 28 May 2026

Notebook 21: Cerebus 182 & Viktor Davis

MARGARET LISS:

A few years ago I scanned all of Dave Sim's notebooks. He had filled 36 notebooks during the years he created the monthly Cerebus series, covering issues #20 to 300, plus the other side items -- like the Epic stories, posters and prints, convention speeches etc. A total of 3,281 notebook pages detailing his creative process. I never really got the time to study the notebooks when I had them. Just did a quick look, scanned them in and sent them back to Dave as soon as possible. So this regular column is a chance for me to look through those scans and highlight some of the more interesting pages.

We’re continuing our look at Dave Sim’s 21st notebook used during the creation of Cerebus #164 to 187. We’ll be looking at this notebook, which there were 260 out of 300 pages scanned, until we’ve seen every single page of it. Well, the pages scanned. If you want to see all of the notebook #21 posts to date, just use the Notebook 21 tag

~*~~~*~

This week’s post is labeled #600 in my list of posts. Yes, I’ve done 600 of these notebook posts. One a week – nearly, I probably skipped a week or two or posted something else instead – since 18 June 2014 and the first post, Dave Sim’s Notebooks: Hunters & Gathers.

Nearly 12 years. 600 posts. And we’ve only seen 733 pages out of the possible 3,281 pages. So 22% of Dave’s notebooks. Well, good news is we’ve made it through 72% of Dave’s 21st notebook. Partially because we’re now look at four pages at a time instead of one or two pages. So lets get to it, eh?

First page up is a continuation of the previous page, more of Viktor Davis’ monologue. The stuff crossed out at the end is Viktor sitting in his upstairs office in the quiet watching the snow, the long march across the blank page:

Notebook #21, page 185

The next page of the notebook has the issue number box for Cerebus #182. Right above it is a list of issue numbers, #180 through 186, and a number to the left of it and some text on the Cirin versus Cerebus fight that runs through those issues. I thought the number corresponded to the amount of pages dedicated to the fight, but it doesn’t hold up except for Cerebus #180 does have 17 pages of the “comic book” part of the issue, while the remaining pages are for the Viktor Davis dialogue.

Notebook #21, page 186

The text is more of Viktor and his audience. And yes, it continues to the next page:

Notebook #21, page 187

This is worse than those Melmoth eggs” sounds like another potential t-shirt for the Cerebus fan who has not nearly enough silly t-shirts that perplexes anyone who sees it. 

Yes, this dialogue about what this all has to do with Cerebus and what the audience thinks of these runny eggs continues on the next page of the notebook.

Notebook #21, page 188

Do you know what Cerebus is? Do you? Do you really?

Wednesday, 27 May 2026

 CEREBUS IN HELL? WEEKLY STRIP #43




next: Margaret


Tuesday, 26 May 2026

You Like Me, You Really Like Me!

Just when a girl becomes cynical, you all have to go and be all nice to me!

Michael Grabowski, "Welcome back, Jen! Congratulations on your show. May it lead to better and bigger opportunities." And Tony Dunlop, "Congratulations on the show's success, Jen! We're happy to see you whenever you can stop in, but keep following those dreams!"

I know, I know! It sounds just like Casey Kasem risen from the grave, "And remember, Jen, keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars."

<sniff>

You like me, you really like me!

<sniff>

Anyway ... here is where we stand with the Strange Death of Alex Raymond GoFundMe as of today ...
  • $21,215.00 raised to date from 400 donations
  • 131 pages released so far as mocked up and/or drawn by Dave Sim through 2 March 2022
  • $185.00 away from unlocking page 132
  • If you have not donated, a $5+ donation gets you access to all 131 pages and all future unlocked pages
  • Donate once or automated monthly donations here >> https://www.gofundme.com/f/sdoar-2023

And where exactly does Jen stands on her A Moment of the Strange Death of Alex Raymond hit list?

Well, not much progress outwardly, but two A Moment of The Strange Death of Alex Raymond posts published in a row is a start. AND I found everything I was working from the before times!

  • So this week, Jen will finally reach out to raffle winners, in order. 
  • Put all Silverspoon pages into sturdy mailers.
  • Do a giant mail run.
  • Review all the correspondence I have on the Giant-Size Ashcans and see if I can't get us unblocked there.
  • Update the GoFundMe pages.
  • Follow up with Dave.
Manly Matt chimes in as well, "If you don't care about any of that? Look drawings of pretty girls!"

Talk about knowing your audience!

So, This.

Then:







Jen x

Monday, 25 May 2026

If you're havin' girl problems, I feel bad for you, son I got '82 problems, but a aardvark ain't one...

Hi, Everybody!

Forty-nine bucks. You're gonna pay $49CAD today.

Today, $49CAD is $35.49USD...

Go nuts! (It's not gonna be $25CAD for almost a month...)
________________
As we do:

Mondays! 
_____________________________________

So, Dave's Please PAY For Dave Sim deal, whereupon you, the viewer/listener, have to go to CerebusDownloads and donate to the content you want to hear Dave talk about, either Please Hold For Dave Sim or his "notes" (more like his deconstruction of) the 1982 Tour  Book, is still rolling along. Eddie the Successor sent me the latest update of what's winning.

I pointed out that I was pretty sure Christon wanted his money to go to Please Hold.
I'a told ya.

So Eddie the Successor went back to the drawing board and sent the correct numbers:

One of Dave's ideas (if you haven't been following along) is to do side-by-side comparisons of The New Mutants movie and The New Mutants: The Demon Bear Saga comic to show which panels were translated to which scenes in the movie. He also proposes doing that with the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movie and the original Turtles comic, and Sin City.

I'm not doing any of that.
  1. Because I don't own the Demon Bear Saga. (Dave does, Jeff Seiler bought it for Dave and sent it to him.) (Dave also has a digital copy of the movie...)
  2. That, and I CAN NOT stress this enough, "sounds like woik"...
  3. Given the recent headaches on the Cerebito Spanish translation of Cerebus #1 and Spawn #10 Kickstarter (where Todd McFarlane Productions sent a Takedown notice for copyright violations) (Which have been resolved.) (I know you were losing sleep over it...) (As they said: 
  4. Hi there,

    This is a message from Kickstarter’s Trust and Safety team. We’re writing to let you know that a project you were interested in — CEREBUS #1 & Dave Sim's Version of SPAWN DIEZ en EspaƱol — has been reinstated. The process for this project’s intellectual property dispute is complete. No further action is required on your part.

    Please note that the project’s deadline (the day your pledge will be collected) has changed.

    New project deadline
    Mon, May 18 2026 11:00 am EDT

    Time remaining
    successful

    You can visit the project here.

    Best wishes,
    Kickstarter Trust and Safety)
    I don't think messing around with anybody else's I.P. is a "Good idea worth pursuing..."
     4. It's been done(?)
I used to own a copy...

See? Panel from the comic, how the shot looked at filming, how the shot looked after they did the  digital "magic"... I think there's a whole bunch of that in there if I remember right... That's what I think Dave's thinking.

I bought another copy, and am gonna send it to Dave. Maybe he can pull a couple of examples of what he's thinking out of it and I won't have to do "woik" I don't wanna do...

Anyway, if you wanna hear Dave answer the questions that have been sitting there waiting since...March I think, go and donate to Please Hold. But if you wanna make me eventually have to pay to download Juice Newton songs, go ahead and donate to 1982 Tour.
_____________________
As I said, I don't wanna watch a movie and try to determine which scenes are based off which panels (of a comic I don't own), I wanna do "fun stuff" like ink:

Such as the pencils to a Stan Sakai commission Josh Even bought that Josh posted on Facebook:
Click for bigger, if that's your thing...

Or Jack Kirby's pencils to a Demon drawing:
Ditto.

Josh is getting the Usagi/Cerebus/Turtle piece, but if you want me desecrating The King in your hot little hands, shoot me an email at momentofcerebus@gmail.com, and I'll happily entertain any offers...

And here's Mr. Sakai's finished version:

And here's something that crossed my "desk":
By Alex "Box Office Poison" Robinson
___________
I'm BEGGING ya, please help a brudda out...

The CAN13/Ninja High School Cerebus #2&3/Cerebus in Hell? numbers 87 (Cerebus in Jail?) and 88 (The Pun Issuer Groan Zone)/CAN29(sorta) Kickstarter.

Next Time: Jen had a three day weekend. That means I'll be posting...

Sunday, 24 May 2026

"The cards say we are like unto one negotiating the sale of farm animals without the benefit of daylight...

Hi, Everybody!

The laughably named "2019 ReRead":
Issue #1: First, then, then, then. Issue #2: Then, then, then, then. Issue #3: Then, then, then. Passage: Then (in part. I REALLY need to get a decent version of Passage up here one of these days...). Issue #4: Then. Issue #5: Then, then, then. Demonhorn: Then. Issue #6: Then, then, then. Issue #7: Then, then, then. Issue #8: Then, then, then. Issue #9: Then, then, then. Issue 10: Then, then, then. Issue #11: Then, then, then, then. Issue 12: Then, then, then. Magiking: Then. Issue 13: Then, then, then. Silverspoon: Then. Issue 14: Then, then. Issue 15: Then, then.  Issue 16: Then, then. Issue 17: Then, then. Issue 18: Then, then. Issue 19: Then, then

And then:










If you want to read the rest, and haven't already bought the complete* Cerebus off of CerebusDownloads.com, Dave's running the Bonus Day sale where the complete* Cerebus is available for just $49CAD tomorrow. So jump at your chance, or wait until the next $25CAD sale next month...

*it's not the "complete" Cerebus since issues 51, 112/113, 137 and 3/10ths of 138 aren't in there. I'm WORKING on it!
______________________
I'm BEGGING ya, please help a brudda out...

The CAN13/Ninja High School Cerebus #2&3/Cerebus in Hell? numbers 87 (Cerebus in Jail?) and 88 (The Pun Issuer Groan Zone)/CAN29(sorta) Kickstarter.

Next Time: Monday!

Saturday, 23 May 2026

Cleaning out ALLLLL the cra...um...stuff Dave has sent...

Hi, Everybody!

As we all celebrate the holiday weekend (okay, not ALL of us. I'm sure the Aussies have to work since it's next week Tuesday down there. I think. Time zones confuse me...), and await The End of the Kickstarter, and what treasures get added, let's look at the Bounty of Cerebus and Cerebus related stuff Dave has had sent to me that I've been too lazy or busy to post:



From the "And now you Know, and Knowing is half the battle" Dept:

$20? Ha! My autograph from Dave was free to me and cost him was almost $200:
He paid me for the pen nibs...

And then, this:





And then the Birthday celebration continues...




My Google-Fu only turned up:
and

And from the Wayback Machine Dept.:


Selected excerpt from the 1982 Comics Fandom Forum interview, edited to what Dave wanted


Next Time: Old Cerebus unless Canadian Audio drops tonight...