A MOMENT OF CEREBUS

Sunday, 8 November 2020

Cerebus Around the World and Web #53 by Oliver Simonsen

Hi, Everybody!

Oliver Simonsen:

This column starts year two!

Cerebus on list of best Sword and Sorcery comics from the 70s -from the list: "Cerebus the Aardvark #1 (December 1977) was the best parody of S&S to appear in the 1970s. And I think it was because you could tell Dave Sim loved the sub-genre even as he poked fun."
https://darkworldsquarterly.gwthomas.org/top-ten-sword-sorcery-comic-stories-of-the-1970s/

here's a look at some contenders that aren't Conan

James Smith shares Cerebus Frazetta homage
https://twitter.com/jimeato/status/1323209250106212359

Cerebus sees political machine
https://twitter.com/Haunt_Fox/status/1324125351971155969

Rereading Cerebus on election night
https://twitter.com/FelipeDiazVera/status/1324021334888861697

Election done Cerebus style
https://twitter.com/RKemb/status/1324355062404128772\
https://twitter.com/Al_Nickerson/status/1324878077474693120

State of Cerebus flipped
https://twitter.com/JasonCopland/status/1324101746273120257

Cerebus drawn as President
https://twitter.com/indigo_k/status/1323887598113234944

Cerebus wins poll
https://twitter.com/cherryboyron/status/1323434211068563456

Cerebus victory dance
https://twitter.com/mrdavidboberesq/status/1324725829948104704

Cerebus can vote?
https://twitter.com/peprally/status/1323373814659469312

Can't search for Cerebus instagram posts this week because of the election

Ecstatic to get Volume 2 (in Spanish)
https://twitter.com/BagWaifu/status/1323690890565570561

Wishing one could read High Society for the first time again
https://twitter.com/SylentWulf81/status/1322994149298089984

Cerebus cameo in Poison Ivy Gulch
https://twitter.com/maxwestart/status/1324889816794853376

Cerebus and the TV show Supernatural
https://twitter.com/Nymphomachy/status/1324701920943026179

Because he loves Cerebus (in Spanish)
https://twitter.com/rghernanz/status/1323888963476705288

Cerebus is prized art
https://twitter.com/hippieh0p/status/1323138343648055296

Cerebus a favorite in France
https://twitter.com/MobRainbow/status/1322956435391729669

Cerebus, Heavy Metal, Epic and 2000AD,
https://twitter.com/monkey__marc/status/1323805914068111361

Someone sees Cerebus in Sonic poster
https://twitter.com/CMYK_Avenger/status/1324458765937266688

[Click for bigger, WAY bigger -Matt]

dan: Here's the two scariest/unnerving pages in Cerebus
(Missed this Halloween post because this column usually goes from Saturday morning to following early Saturday morning)
https://twitter.com/Litter_rally/status/1322715652117925888

And this one i somehow missed:
Brian doing "Cerebus in hell?" promotion
https://twitter.com/BigBWest/status/1322259866329747463

Cerebus Facebook Group

Dion Turner: Ashcan arrived! I’m surprised because my remastered Cerebus #1 still isn’t here. This was probably easier to pull together.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3463821330351884/

Philip R. Frey shares Rip Kirby drawing by Carson Grubaugh for his and Dave Sim's collaborative 'Hermitage Awesomes' project
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3459901440743873/

Philip R. Frey provides original in the link (also read Dave expanding on the scene in same link)

Philip R. Frey: The next piece from Carson Grubaugh which, to date, has only been used as a background for the first page of 'You Don't Know Jack'.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3462376453829705/

Philip R. Frey provides the original in the link

and also how it appears in "You Don't Know Jack":)

Philip R. Frey: Another day, another piece from Carson Grubaugh. I have to assume these were made for SDoAR, but I don't see where they were used at all.
This is one of two extra pieces Carson sent as a "make-up" for a delay in my shipment.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3465215723545778/

In the link Philip R. Frey shares the original

Philip R. Frey: I Have two more related pieces on my CAF. Here's one that came with my order of "Bantha Wrangled" editions of the two 'Vark Wars' comics.
Can we get some love for the artistic stylings of one Manly Matt Dow?
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3460547160679301/

Philip R. Frey: This catches the group up on all of the Carson Grubaugh pieces I've posted on CAF. This one is based on as-yet unidentified art from 'Avengelyne'.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3462825257118158/

Additional info in the link:
I've included the page as printed, which replaces the 90's faces with Jack's

Philip R. Frey:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3460310547369629/
I wanted to pop in and say that I joined this group to try being more up-to-date on the goings-on in Cerebusland.
I became fascinated with Cerebus (and Sim) about five or six years ago (despite collecting comics for the better part of the last thirty years) and have spent far too much on these recent Kickstarters.
To provide some content alongside this otherwise self-indulgent post, here's a Cerebus parody I did some years ago for a proposed Charlton Comics pin-up book that never happened. (I guess posting my own art is still self-indulgent, but there we are.)

Philip R. Frey: Today's art is a two-sided piece with an Alex Raymond recreation on one side (technically the back) and Jack Vandyke's hand holding a cell phone (used throughout the You Don't Know Jack comic) on the other.
This, too, was an extra thrown in to make up for the shipping delay
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3467709496629734/

Philip R. Frey includes original image in the link

Philip is not the only new member - there's also Thomas Bellavance and shares his latest acquisition as he starts on his Cerebus journey:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3469107423156608/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3468581763209174/

Thomas Bellavance asks: Any of you guys collect the single issues and what not?
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3465997553467595/
Manymany answers in the comments and some great pictures too:
Margaret Liss, Dave Sim and Cerebus issue #1

[Mags... so young... -Matt]

Margaret Liss' Cerebus room - one side of the room three years ago.

Jeffrey Tundis' many Cerebus #1 (see more at his incredible website http://cerebustheaardvark.com )

Some of John Christian's Cerebus collection

John Christian: Newest additions now hung with pride!
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3452190294848321/

James Windsor-smith shares Following Cerebus cover
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3456373401096677/

Original art found by Ron Essler
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3451938851540132/

David Rankin shares his piece adding: I've got the page following this one!

in the comments Ron posts additionally
https://comics.ha.com/itm/original-comic-art/dave-sim-and-gerhard-cerebus-112-113-story-page-original-art-group-of-3-aardvark-vanaheim-1988-total-3/a/7236-94157.s?type=wantlistid-865064!creatorid-cewl!linkclicked-image!emailid-10312020-021036.574PM-486697-865064!itemid-7236_227007!Fueks0Y

Lee Bentley: During my evening Cerebus reading last night, I came to the part where the Judge is telling Cerebus about the exploration of the moon, including the part about the "orange beads" found by the astronauts.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3461897743877576/
http://www.psrd.hawaii.edu/.../lunar-orange-glass-beads.html

Claude Flowers in the comments:
I believe this section of the story was inspired by the book "Of a Fire on the Moon." Has anyone read it?
Conrad Felber: Yes, though the edition I have bears the alternate title: "MoonFire: The Epic Journey of Apollo 11."
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Of_a_Fire_on_the_Moon

David Hartman: I usually try to avoid politics, but this opportunity was too good to pass up.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cerebus/permalink/3460771410656876/

In the comments:
Mark Brett

Margaret Liss

Keith Callbeck

______________________________________

Thanks Oliver!

Ad, the RIGAMAROLE:

Spawn #10 Kickstarter, "What the HELL is going on with the Halloween exclusive cover:?" Glad you asked:

HALLOWEEN VARIANT

The October 31 flash sale generally worked as planned and was well received. Thank you to everyone who participated.

First, a software issue on the Kickstarter side seems to make it difficult to get the new add-on feature to work on some Android devices. A lot of you left comments and sent us messages about this issue and all we can say is that kickstarter is aware and working on a fix.

For those of you who couldn’t get the variant option to work on October 31, we are offering a makeup window on the last day of the campaign. The makeup edition will be printed with an alternate colored cover to set it apart from the October 31 edition but will otherwise be the same. Also, the October 31 edition and the makeup edition will both arrive individually numbered and both editions will come with the secret trick-or-treat bundle of collectibles exclusive to Kickstarter. The October 31 edition looks to be the rarest Spawn 10 variant so far. Will the makeup edition dethrone it? We will find out!

Second, as many of you are aware Dave Sim offered his own alternate version of this book offsite at the same time our edition we as offered on October 31st. We were not involved in the planning of that variant and we are not publishing or distributing that version. Had we known of those plans ahead of time we would have let everyone know and coordinated both editions. We are in talks with Dave Sim to see if that version can be offered on Kickstarter and will let you know if that will happen. The Kickstarter version has been described as the “Grandma” or “Censored” edition. In reality it is the same front cover art with primarily different text by Dave on the back cover. Nothing is blocked out or obscured as some people may think. For more information stay tuned here or check for similar updates at: momentofcerebus.blogspot.com.

Hi, again, Everybody!

SKETCH COVER

Some of you have expressed interest in purchasing the sketch cover variant that we currently have listed as a stretch reward. We want to make this campaign as enjoyable as possible for everyone and we consider all of your suggestions and requests. We will offer the sketch cover to every backer in the final 24 hours of the campaign including multiple copy bundles at deep discounts. We will modify the stretch goal so that instead of the sketch cover we will offer a new bonus for every backer regardless of your pledge level so everyone gets something if we hit the target. We will update the campaign page shortly to reflect this update.

We appreciate your suggestions and requests, keep them coming as we approach our final week stretch!

"What the HELL is going on with the Halloween exclusive variant cover from cerebusdownloads.com?" I'm glad you asked that too:

As of Thursday night, the vote on whether to allow a sale of more copies by the first round buyers stood at:

19 Yes
0 No
3 Abstain
6 not voted

After some "Canadian Election Interference", (everybody say "Thanks Dave!"...) it looks like there's gonna be a second shot at getting your crubby little mitts on one. More info tomorrow, (I hope.).

Original Cerebus Pages/ Remastered Spawn #10 Preliminary Art/ Other goodies.

Order the new Cerebus in Hell?s: CEREBUS IN HELL? PREVIEW 2021 and The "Censored-For-Grandma" variant Batvark XXXXX SECOND PRINTING

End of the month, the 25th, pick up Spider-Whore. I'm not going to, because my 15 "contributor" copies showed up in the mail today. (I had nothing to do with this issue, but my name is on the cover.) I got issues #175-189 out of 2414. I'm signing and sending Dave five issues of his pick of numbers, but then I'ma offer the rest to the fine folks willing to give me money, kinda like I am with: copies of Vark Wars: Walt's Empire Strikes Back (Signed by Dave, Signed by Dave and me, Signed by me after I scribble out Dave's name, Pretty much available Signed only...)

Check out the new Cerebus masks and whatnots. PENIS and XXXXX added. And there's a sale:

Your entire store will be on sale:
Nov 4 – 6
Nov 11 – 13
Nov 17 – 20Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales will be running:
Nov 26 – 27
Nov 29 – 30
Tell your fans! Remind them that everything will be up to 35% off! That means $13 tees, $20 phone cases, $30 hoodies, and way more.

Ya done been told fans!

As you all know, Wilf Jenkins was the Aardvark/Vanaheim lawyer for years, and during that time he was on the comp list. Wilf saved all his copies. Dave and Wilf have signed them, and there's a certificate of authenticity. The books will be available from Looking For Heroes, for $10 (CAD) plus $4 dollars shipping to Canada and $5 dollars shipping to the USA. All the money goes to the Food Bank of the Waterloo Region.

AND:

David Birdsong sent in:

Hey Matt,

I've decided to stop collecting CGC comics for a couple of reasons. They take up space and they drive me nuts wanting to crack them open. I've got a counterfeit #1 that ends tomorrow that has attracted a lot of attention and two bids. I didn't want to ask you to hawk my stuff, but if a loyal AMOC reader wants it they have 24 hours or so (yeah, that again). I've got issues #1 and #2 up right now and 6 others coming soon.

Thanks (if you don't want to then don't worry about it at all),
DB
https://www.ebay.com/itm/233768413148

Next Time: Spawn #10 news?

Saturday, 7 November 2020

Please Hold For Dave Sim November 2020

Hi Everybody!

It's my time of the month...

For you Audiophiles:

And for you "old schoolers" who want a little "V" with your "A" the A/V versions:

Part 1:

We start with Dave and I having technical issues, and then...

Old business, questions I don't have, and:

Brian West asks:
Questions for Dave: How's Cerebus Campaign 2020 going? Have all the results for the "RED STATE," "BLUE STATE," and "I VOTE FOR CEREBUS" editions of HIGH SOCIETY been tabulated yet? If not, which edition is in the lead so far?

Good man Brian. We should give him a raise...

And then the latest Spawn #10 election numbers, and WHAT Dave's gonna do...

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Part 2:

Steve asks:

And my Please Hold questions:

1) Why was the cover to Swords vol #1 changed from the first to second printing? (...I may have already asked this and forgotten Dave's answer...)

(...and as a former pressman, I have to say: knockout text like what's on the back cover is an absolute BITCH to print on a one or two color press!!...)

2) Were any changes made to the art / dialogue / etc when going from the original 'floppies' to the initial phone book printings?

3) What issues during the original 300 run had a second printing, and were all those issues so designated on the front cover?

4) Why the investment in Canadian price variant comics (multiple copies, at that), titles like Ms. Tree, and whatever else?

Is this an investment you think could later be sold to help finance the Archive?

Simply want some clarity on your thinking.

Steve

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Part 3:

Michael R. of Easton, Pennsylvania asked on Saturday (I don't know if he sent it through Birdsong after I went to bed):

Hi Dave!

OK, I'm all caught reading all your posts as of 7:58PM.

Unless I get REAL crazy tonight. I might. It is a full moon tonight. I may go for 2 copies. Having the #5 copy is enticing, but having #26 will be TREMENDOUS. 5 is the month I was born. So having 5 and 26 (the day I was born) is REALLY enticing. I can't get too greedy, who knows what you and Dagon have planned for the end of this Kickstarter? AAAARGH!!! LOL!!!

One ... more ... question. Was Gerhard ever considered inking and backgrounds Spawn 10? Morbid Michael R. from eerie, Pennsylvania :)

And:

Jeff Seiler asks:
Question Of The Month From Jeff For Dave: I never noticed it before, but when Cerebus returns to his Regency Hotel suite, in HS, after battling with the Moon Roach and he's doing his diatribe about the Bug, the Elf (Fake Elf?) is wearing his medallions.

Is this, as I think, another example of how Cerebus ceded his control to a female, and was him allowing Elf to wear his medallions related to Cerebus' inability to rein in the Bug?

Also, when is the Regency Edition of HS going to be offered for sale? I call dibs on copy #301.

I posted the page in question recently. And I don't think he can do that last one...
He also asked (in relation to the hands-through-the-bars Spawn #10 cover):
Way back when SPAWN #10 came out, I and (I think) a coupla other guys did a key to all of the caged superheroes, based on the look of their gloves, drawn by Todd.

I wonder whether Dave changed any of them for this cover?

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Part 4:

We discuss Ralph S. and Dave's steps (I posted the images last week(?).)

And then:

Tony Dunlop asked:
So, regarding Damian's link - I just happen to be in " Exodus" right now in my daily Scripture reading, and got to the "blot out the memory of the Amalekites" bit...and I couldn't help but wonder...

Why, if their memory is to be "blotted out," are they being written about in Israel's sacred history?

Maybe Matt can ask Dave what he has to say about that little paradox in next month's "Please Hold?"
He's referring to this comic that Damian T. Lloyd posted a link to:

I...I...I lost it. Sorry.

And:

Steve asked (after I posted pictures of you signing some CiH? books):
So, I try to be an astute reader, to pay attention, not interrupt when the adults are talking, watch and listen for subtle verbal clues and mannerisms.

But for the life of me I have absolutely no recollection of ever hearing what's the deal with all the signed by Dave CIH? issues as pictured here and elsewhere: where do they go, who gets them, how..

So please, help a wandering, wondering poor soul out and fill in the gaps in my thinking caps.

Steve
Damian T. Lloyd asked:
How much goo would a guru spew if a guru could spew goo? (Sorry; I think the edibles are kicking in.)
John Christian asked:
Did he ever give a name to the guy that had "Filbert" (Sump-Thing) back in issue #25?? The artist guy that was unafraid of the Woman-Thing??

And

There is a great page from that issue coming up for auction soon.

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Part 5:

Margaret asked:

From tomorrow's notebook entry, a question arose.

I looked up Superman #165, the title of which is ‘Beauty and the Super-Beast’, and for volume one, that was published in November of 1963, so I’m not sure why Dave wrote down 1979 beside it. I had to look up what the Heatwave Festival 1980 was a reference to. And amazingly enough it has its own entry on Wikipedia. A music festival held in Bowmanville, Ontario – a town on the other side of Toronto from Kitchener, about a 1.5 hour trip (according to Google Maps). Sounds like a question for Matt’s next call to Dave, as I don’t remember Dave ever mentioning it before.

And OH BOY, does Dave answer. I didn't even cut it up, so enjoy an hour of Dave Sim's autobiography:

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Here's scans Dave sent me of his Superman #165: (click for bigger)

And then Judith in Dave's coat:

Pretty sure my brother had the same coat in 1988...

Okay, RIGAMAROLE:

Spawn #10 Kickstarter, "What the HELL is going on with the Halloween exclusive cover:?" Glad you asked:

HALLOWEEN VARIANT

The October 31 flash sale generally worked as planned and was well received. Thank you to everyone who participated.

First, a software issue on the Kickstarter side seems to make it difficult to get the new add-on feature to work on some Android devices. A lot of you left comments and sent us messages about this issue and all we can say is that kickstarter is aware and working on a fix.

For those of you who couldn’t get the variant option to work on October 31, we are offering a makeup window on the last day of the campaign. The makeup edition will be printed with an alternate colored cover to set it apart from the October 31 edition but will otherwise be the same. Also, the October 31 edition and the makeup edition will both arrive individually numbered and both editions will come with the secret trick-or-treat bundle of collectibles exclusive to Kickstarter. The October 31 edition looks to be the rarest Spawn 10 variant so far. Will the makeup edition dethrone it? We will find out!

Second, as many of you are aware Dave Sim offered his own alternate version of this book offsite at the same time our edition we as offered on October 31st. We were not involved in the planning of that variant and we are not publishing or distributing that version. Had we known of those plans ahead of time we would have let everyone know and coordinated both editions. We are in talks with Dave Sim to see if that version can be offered on Kickstarter and will let you know if that will happen. The Kickstarter version has been described as the “Grandma” or “Censored” edition. In reality it is the same front cover art with primarily different text by Dave on the back cover. Nothing is blocked out or obscured as some people may think. For more information stay tuned here or check for similar updates at: momentofcerebus.blogspot.com.

Hi, again, Everybody!

SKETCH COVER

Some of you have expressed interest in purchasing the sketch cover variant that we currently have listed as a stretch reward. We want to make this campaign as enjoyable as possible for everyone and we consider all of your suggestions and requests. We will offer the sketch cover to every backer in the final 24 hours of the campaign including multiple copy bundles at deep discounts. We will modify the stretch goal so that instead of the sketch cover we will offer a new bonus for every backer regardless of your pledge level so everyone gets something if we hit the target. We will update the campaign page shortly to reflect this update.

We appreciate your suggestions and requests, keep them coming as we approach our final week stretch!

"What the HELL is going on with the Halloween exclusive variant cover from cerebusdownloads.com?" I'm glad you asked that too:

As of Thursday night, the vote on whether to allow a sale of more copies by the first round buyers stood at:

19 Yes
0 No
3 Abstain
6 not voted

After some "Canadian Election Interference", (everybody say "Thanks Dave!"...) it looks like there's gonna be a second shot at getting your crubby little mitts on one. More info in part 1 above.

Original Cerebus Pages/ Remastered Spawn #10 Preliminary Art/ Other goodies. we talked about that above too.

Order the new Cerebus in Hell?s: CEREBUS IN HELL? PREVIEW 2021 and The "Censored-For-Grandma" variant Batvark XXXXX SECOND PRINTING

Check out the new Cerebus masks and whatnots. PENIS and XXXXX added. And there's a sale:

Your entire store will be on sale:
Nov 4 – 6
Nov 11 – 13
Nov 17 – 20Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales will be running:
Nov 26 – 27
Nov 29 – 30
Tell your fans! Remind them that everything will be up to 35% off! That means $13 tees, $20 phone cases, $30 hoodies, and way more.

Ya done been told fans!

AND:

David Birdsong sent in:

Hey Matt,

I've decided to stop collecting CGC comics for a couple of reasons. They take up space and they drive me nuts wanting to crack them open. I've got a counterfeit #1 that ends tomorrow that has attracted a lot of attention and two bids. I didn't want to ask you to hawk my stuff, but if a loyal AMOC reader wants it they have 24 hours or so (yeah, that again). I've got issues #1 and #2 up right now and 6 others coming soon.

Thanks (if you don't want to then don't worry about it at all),
DB
https://www.ebay.com/itm/233768413148

Next Time: Oliver!

Friday, 6 November 2020

An inspirational Cerebus sketchbook (Dave's Weekly Update #364)

Hi, Everybody!

Previously-recorded-at-an-earlier-date from

the Off-White House in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, It's:

Aardvark-Vanaheim Founder and President:

Dave Sim, with his Weekly Update:

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Spawn #10 Kickstarter, "What the HELL is going on with the Halloween exclusive cover:?" Glad you asked:

HALLOWEEN VARIANT

The October 31 flash sale generally worked as planned and was well received. Thank you to everyone who participated.

First, a software issue on the Kickstarter side seems to make it difficult to get the new add-on feature to work on some Android devices. A lot of you left comments and sent us messages about this issue and all we can say is that kickstarter is aware and working on a fix.

For those of you who couldn’t get the variant option to work on October 31, we are offering a makeup window on the last day of the campaign. The makeup edition will be printed with an alternate colored cover to set it apart from the October 31 edition but will otherwise be the same. Also, the October 31 edition and the makeup edition will both arrive individually numbered and both editions will come with the secret trick-or-treat bundle of collectibles exclusive to Kickstarter. The October 31 edition looks to be the rarest Spawn 10 variant so far. Will the makeup edition dethrone it? We will find out!

Second, as many of you are aware Dave Sim offered his own alternate version of this book offsite at the same time our edition we as offered on October 31st. We were not involved in the planning of that variant and we are not publishing or distributing that version. Had we known of those plans ahead of time we would have let everyone know and coordinated both editions. We are in talks with Dave Sim to see if that version can be offered on Kickstarter and will let you know if that will happen. The Kickstarter version has been described as the “Grandma” or “Censored” edition. In reality it is the same front cover art with primarily different text by Dave on the back cover. Nothing is blocked out or obscured as some people may think. For more information stay tuned here or check for similar updates at: momentofcerebus.blogspot.com.

Hi, Everybody!

SKETCH COVER

Some of you have expressed interest in purchasing the sketch cover variant that we currently have listed as a stretch reward. We want to make this campaign as enjoyable as possible for everyone and we consider all of your suggestions and requests. We will offer the sketch cover to every backer in the final 24 hours of the campaign including multiple copy bundles at deep discounts. We will modify the stretch goal so that instead of the sketch cover we will offer a new bonus for every backer regardless of your pledge level so everyone gets something if we hit the target. We will update the campaign page shortly to reflect this update.

We appreciate your suggestions and requests, keep them coming as we approach our final week stretch!

"What the HELL is going on with the Halloween exclusive variant cover from cerebusdownloads.com?" I'm glad you asked that too:

As of LAST NIGHT, the vote on whether to allow a sale of more copies by the first round buyers stood at:

19 Yes
0 No
3 Abstain
6 not voted

After some "Canadian Election Interference", (everybody say "Thanks Dave!"...) it looks like there's gonna be a second shot at getting your crubby little mitts on one. More info in TOMORROW'S post: Please Hold For Dave Sim November 2020.

Original Cerebus Pages/ Remastered Spawn #10 Preliminary Art/ Other goodies.

Order the new Cerebus in Hell?s: CEREBUS IN HELL? PREVIEW 2021 and The "Censored-For-Grandma" variant Batvark XXXXX SECOND PRINTING

Check out the new Cerebus masks and whatnots. PENIS and XXXXX added. And there's a sale:

Your entire store will be on sale:
Nov 4 – 6
Nov 11 – 13
Nov 17 – 20Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales will be running:
Nov 26 – 27
Nov 29 – 30
Tell your fans! Remind them that everything will be up to 35% off! That means $13 tees, $20 phone cases, $30 hoodies, and way more.

Ya done been told fans!

Next Time: Please Hold For Dave Sim November 2020

THE SUDDEN RETURN OF THE AMOC DAILY STRIP (one day only)!

Later today: Dave Sim

Thursday, 5 November 2020

Viktor Davis Notes on Reads

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.

For the last couple of weeks we’ve been looking at Dave Sim’s 21st notebook, which contains his notes for Cerebus #164 though 187. We’re doing this because of Jeff and big walls of text or something. I can’t even remember now. Last week in Dialogue From Reads Part Two we saw several pages of dialogue between Po, Cerebus, Cirin, and Astoria. This week we’re skipping ahead over small pages that are walls of text to some different walls of text. This time, from Viktor Davis talking about writing the Victor Reid part of Reads.

The page opens up with some familiar dialogue. Dave has repeated this line many a time, but I don’t think it ever made its way into the actual Cerebus storyline. Reading this page it appears to me that Dave was practicing getting the voice he wanted to use for the Viktor Davis character as I don't remember any of this showing up in Reads the way it is on the notebook page.

Notebook 21, page 170

As you can see, the page opens up with that familiar line of dialogue first spoken by Deni to Dave in Now & Then Books, Dave even calls himself the “twenty-year-old beard and bespectacled . . . unenthusiastic clerk.” One line started off as ‘He (Viktor Davis) had been attempting to compose then his pure auto-biographical segment’ but cross off that last bit and changed it to ‘compose the complete non-fiction which would mirror it.’

The next page talks about his life prior to the 1992 US Tour, past loves and being manic depressive:

Notebook 21, page 171

He also says “It would not, of course, be the complete story of Viktor Davis. Thirty-eight years of life could not be distilled nor compressed into a couple of dozen pages. He would attempt merely, to touch on those episodes which had the greatest effect upon him, which had served to make him the person that he was today.” Yes, he originally wrote thirty-seven and crossed out the seven and put eight.

The next page includes that list of episodes.

Notebook 21, page 172

I looked up Superman #165, the title of which is ‘Beauty and the Super-Beast’, and for volume one, that was published in November of 1963, so I’m not sure why Dave wrote down 1979 beside it. I had to look up what the Heatwave Festival 1980 was a reference to. And amazingly enough it has its own entry on Wikipedia. A music festival held in Bowmanville, Ontario – a town on the other side of Toronto from Kitchener, about a 1.5 hour trip (according to Google Maps). Sounds like a question for Matt’s next call to Dave, as I don’t remember Dave ever mentioning it before.