Notebook One: Cerebus #21 Material Part Two

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.

Continuing onward with our sequential look at the pages from Dave Sim’s first notebook (out of 36), last week we got past the material for Cerebus #20 and to material for Cerebus #21. If you want to find the rest of the posts on Notebook One, just click here to see them all as they use the tag ‘Notebook One’.

Last week there was a small sketch of Captain Cockroach on page 26 of the notebook, and now on page 27 there is a sketch of Elrod as Bunky, Captain Cockroach’s sidekick.  The text on the page shows how Dave used the Hsifan’s as a stand in for the “yellow menace” rhetoric during World War II. We see how the manipulations of Elrod and Cockroach by President Weishaupt on the uncaring populace keep him in power.

Notebook One, page 27

We already saw page 28 of the notebook in Beat the Hsiffies, Buy Bonds! which has material on Cerebus #21 as well, most notable a sketch of the first page of the issue.

Then on page 29 there is a list of potential dialogue between Cerebus and President Weisshaupt. The first line item that is crossed out read:

I’m going to give them a shitload of the gold the Cockroach is getting me in exchange for being given the title of President of the United Feldwar States.

Notebook One, page 29

The next couple of crossed out lines are:

- Why don't the Illusionists take power, then?

- Have you seen the Illusionists in this city? Ever since the [two illegible words] they've been getting shipments of drugs from the across the Eastern desert, they've been useless.

- Surely if you explained it to the tribunal?

- Explain what? That three years from now their only source of income is going to be

- Why not form an alliance with the [illegible word]

In the finished book there is no discussion about the Illusionists, just the backstory of Captain Cockroach and how Weisshaupt is using the populace’s hatred of the Hsifan Khanate to gain control of the army and then more power for himself.

Page 30 of the notebook continues with the material on page 29, Cerebus wanting out of Beduin, and Weisshaupt's tactics.

Notebook One, page 30

Then we get Dave’s first take a the dialogue between Elrod and Cerebus and then Elrod and the “pigeon” from whom Elrod is attempting to sell for gold some bonds. We also see down the bottom of the page the excited dialogue from Captain Cockroach. That isn’t the way it played out on the finished page though – as Captain Cockroach was standing with Elrod and the “pigeon” got excited to see the Captain.

Next week: probably more of Notebook One. Did anyone send Dave money for one for themselves? Yes, yes I did. . .