Notebook 21: End of Cerebus#164 & Spawn 10

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. 

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Last week we continued with material for Cerebus #164 that was on pages 18 and 20 of Dave’s 21st notebook. We had looked at pages 19 and 21 a few years ago, so we’re skipping ahead to page 22. We’ve been looking at notebook 21 for so long that I’ve put a header at the top about it and it seems that most of it has been covering Cerebus #164. And guess what? Yup, more for Cerebus #164.

Notebook #21, page 22

And that is a spot-on accurate list of what is on every page of Cerebus #164 with the exception of page 18. Page 18 isn’t blank; it is the Original Cirin sending Cerebus to the tavern with some money in order to evade the Cirinists. As we saw on previous pages, Dave already had this material, and more, in mind for Cerebus #164 and this is a final. . .grocery list so to speak of items for the issue. 

Though as we saw last week with page 20 of the notebook: it covered material on pages 17 and 18 of Cerebus #164. Just mixed together as if it belonged on one page. While Dave had most of the issue sorted out, that page 18. . .was next up in the notebook.

Notebook #21, page 23

Yup, rough page thumbnails for pages 17 and 18 of Cerebus #164. Those thumbnails are a lot closer to the finished pages then the thumbnail on page 20 of the notebook. Take a look for yourself:

Cerebus #164, pages 17 & 18

And one last page for today. And it doesn’t deal with Cerebus #164. 

Notebook #21, page 24

What? Spawn #10 stuff? Looks like Dave jotting down some ideas for the issue. Why didn’t I include it with the other Spawn #10 material in the notebook? I don’t know. Go back to 2014 and then 2018 and ask me then. But here are pages #25, 26, and 64 of the notebook: Crossing Over. And then pages #27 and 28: Crossing Over Part Two.

With up to page 28 already posted, are we going to see more Cerebus #164 material on page 29? No, we will not. We already saw pages 29 and 30 in Ends & Odd Bits. We already saw page 31 in Alcohol Is Free and There Is No Last Call. Page 31 has a page by page list of items for Cerebus #165 so my guess is we’re finally done with Cerebus #164. Next up, page 32.