Part Two:
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| Hey, Margaret, which notebook? |
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| This one's Guys... |
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| The backcover. |
Rob Walton is doing a Ragmop Kickstarter. One day left.
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Vark Wars T-Shirt. Vark Wars T-shirt. Vark Wars T-shirt. These are probably going away at the end of the year.
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Vark Thing.
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Form & Void is OUT OF PRINT (and apparently going for a hundred bucks on Amazon...) BUT, Diamond has supposedly found some copies in the warehouse, so if you want it, tell your LCS you want it.
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The Cerebus in Hell? issues that are ALMOST Sold Out are:
Sim City: That Issue After
Iron Manticore
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And then the issues that are Low Stock and will soon be Almost Sold Out:
Fornicators Inc.
Canadian Vark
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And High Society is available on Comixology for thirteen bucks.
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Next Time: Random Phonebook post? Sure why not...
12 comments:
The notebook page is from notebook #24, which covers #197 through 211, and that page is page #16. The next page shown is still from notebook #24 and is page 88.
I was JOKING!
Thanks, Mags...
"Manly"
Sorry! Sorry! I just don't want to be fired! I want to make a good impression. Perhaps even get a raise.
Take this to the girl out front, she'll get you something with a helmet and shield. Just lean it against a lamppost when you're done with it.
MMD
This is the reason for the great frustration that the non-fanatic fans of Cerebus experience when trying to reconcile our love of the work from the views of the man who created it. I have long said on these boards that Cerebus is a monumental achievement that deserves it's place in the pantheon of greatest works ever in the comicbook industry. To read about how Dave did this; the incredible discipline and will and talent, is to be amazed all over again.I have thanked Dave for the decades of entertainment he provided me and others, but I have also called him out over the his horrible views towards Women and his tacit support of the appalling treatment(sexual abuse) of Yazidi girls and women by ISIS. Just look at his responses if you don't believe me. Some of you will not want to hear this but; when we look on with incredulity over how Republicans can still support Trump despite what he has said and done, look no further than your own support of Dave, despite in some cases, being against your own self interest. Fanaticism.
In a way, Dave's most important work is the Cerebus Guide to Self-Publishing, with Cerebus as the proof of concept.
-- Damian
I strongly disagree with that Damian, even though you may be half joking. There certainly were long stretches in Cerebus, where the work was wanting. It got so bad at times that I physically would toss the book against the wall. That went on for a few years i am sad to say. But he then righted the ship. I will not say that he stuck the landing, but it was good. Still, when Cerebus and Dave were at their peak,it was majestic. Those periods were his legacy. Unfortunately his subsequent behavior is threatening to obscure that legacy.
Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I think it got better, Cerebus did, as the story progressed. It got much more personal, intimate even. After Minds, it seemed that Dave wanted to focus on Cerebus and him alone. I found that more interesting than what lampoon could be thought of next for the Roach. It was all about the Aardvark, his choices, his actions in the last quarter.
Yes, I think Dave expected a lot out of readers. But I don't see that as a bad thing, personally. He never insulted my intelligence. I can't say the same for other, more mainstream, "safe" comics creators at the time. I think that's what appealed to me most about Cerebus. It could be heavy, maybe even a little obtuse at times, but it was ALWAYS interesting. I never got bored reading an issue.
For the record, my own personal opinion is that "A Prayer" in #300 is Dave's singular achievement. At a time in 2004 when the world seemed on the brink (Iraq War, Islamophobia, the national hysteria over the many state Defense of Marriage Amendments being passed, Moore v. Gibson in the movie theaters) to see someone take all of that complexity, accept it and create a synthesis of compassion and principle just staggers the mind to think on. A Prayer, to my mind, embodies that synthesis.
Again, I am in the minority here. And being a believer, I found Dave finding faith in God and expressing that faith via Rick's Story, as a boon to the story, rather than a negative. Just my two cents.
Brian K. thinks Dave's prayer (repetitive, bereft of poetry, and of course he can't leave the girls alone) is his singular achievement? Hmm ... My Mama said if I can't think of anything nice to say, I should say nothing at all. "Nothing at all."
-- Damian
Damien, it's not THAT serious. You are not going to hurt my feelings if you say something sharp or blunt, though I suspect what you wrote in parentheses was, in fact, your point. So the platitude at the end seems redundant, if I am being honest.
Here's my point: it's a prayer. I don't think it's not meant to "read" well or scan, as a poem might. I cannot speak for Dave here, but I would say that when addressing God, when offering a prayer, God more than likely doesn't care if the words addressed to Him are poetic or might not "leave the girls alone"(I think praying to God to avoid the Temptation to sin -- i.e. to fornicate with women or live with a woman out of marriage -- MIGHT have been part of what Dave was actually getting at towards the end of "A Prayer," but I could be wrong there. It's certainly not about putting women down, as elites would say.) It's an offering before God, not a sonnet or a performance for an audience. So, poetry is besides the point, in my opinion.
God, I can only guess, probably doesn't want "a good show," but I suspect might be more interested in whether or not I am willing to give Him praise and recognize His importance in the totality of all things, in my life, i.e. explicitly showing Him respect in speech; expressing humility and gratitude before Him in speech, asking for forgiveness and submitting to his will before Him in speech.
I think the points of emphasis in "A Prayer" are pretty well delineated BY the repetition itself. "Glory to God in The Highest . . ." are, as far as I can tell, meant to be read as breaks within the prayer itself. Though the prayer is in English, the breaks are akin to the rak'ahs of prayers when Islam is given in Arabic. I didn't realize this myself until I talked with a young Muslim student at my job.
When I asked her about ra'kahs -- which I had only learned the existence of through doing research about salah -- and uttered "Glory to God . ." she immediately told me that such was repeated during the parts of the prayers which accompany prostrations of the body as the reciting of the repetition was performed. Dave's prayer begun to take shape for me from there. So, to my mind the repetition is central to the prayer itself, not a hindrance.
Finally, the above is only my own opinion. I am not really stressing over your reaction, Damien. Simply want to offer my own view of things with regard to why I think personally "A Prayer" is good, and perhaps useful. Of course, fans of Dave and/or of Cerebus are perfectly entitled to their own opinion as to which parts of Dave's work has the most meaning to them.
However, to me "A Prayer, I have found, has been much more useful in my life than any other part of Cerebus has been so far. It really, truly has been a way towards living a more peaceful, less turbulent life for me. I had to find faith in God first. Without Faith in God "A Prayer" does seem meaningless, I think. Still, it can be a way towards Faith, Humility, Enlightenment. But, again, that's the choice that I have made only for myself. I can't really tell anybody to do it. I can only say how it has served me well. I can only speak about my choice alone.
Ok, I think that about does it. Sorry for the lengthy explanation, Damien. Yet, I thought your comment deserved a considerate, rational response. Take Care.
"I don't think it's meant to "read" well or scan, as a poem might." I meant to type. Sorry about that.
Damian, begging your pardon, for also misspelling your name. I am sorry about that. Wasn't intentional on my part.
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