Cerebus the Barbarian Messiah: Essays on the Epic Graphic Satire of Dave Sim and Gerhard

by Eric Hoffman (Editor)

Overview

In December 1977, struggling Canadian comic book artist Dave Sim self-published the first issue of Cerebus the Aardvark, a Conan the Barbarian satire featuring a foul-tempered, sword-wielding creature trapped in a human world. Over the next 26 years, Sim, and later collaborator Gerhard, produced an epic 6,000-page graphic novel, the longest-running English language comic series by a single creative team. They revolutionized the comics medium by showing other artists that they too could forgo major publishers, paving the way for such successes as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Bone. This work, the first collection of critical essays on Cerebus, provides a multifaceted approach to Sim and Gerhard's complex and entertaining oeuvre, including their innovative use of the comic medium, storytelling and satiric techniques, technical and visual sophistication, and Sim's use of the comic as commentary on gender and religion.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786490325
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	01/10/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	238
File size:	21 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Eric Hoffman, a poet and essayist, is the author of sixteen books and lives in Connecticut.
Eric Hoffman, a poet and essayist, is the author of sixteen books and lives in Connecticut.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments v

Preface 1

Introduction: Alone, Unmourned and Unloved Eric Hoffman 5

Part 1 A Map of Estarcion

Growing Complexity; or, the Cerebus Effect Sebastian Domsch 65

Audacious Tenacity, Tenacious Audacity: Cerebus' Grand and Changing Narrative Strategies Eric Hoffman 77

Part 2 Ignore It, It's Just Another Reality

"Does This Seem Right to You?" Stories Within Cerebus David Groenewegen 97

Aardvarkian Intertexts and True Stories Dominick Grace 103

"Why Certainly Dear Boy" Incorporating Oscar Wilde into the Aardvark's World Gregory John Fink 118

Part 3 Becoming Synonymous with Something Indescribable

Seeing Sound C.W.Marshall 127

Negative Space and Guttural Noise: Gerhard's Psychological Reads Sabin Calvert 148

Part 4 Mind Games

Testing the Limits of Genre/Gender Dominick Grace 163

Anti Feminist Aardvark? Gender, Subjectivity and Authorship Isaac J. Mayeux 175

The Aardvark and the Beautiful Women: Male Sexuality and Gender Politics Mario N. Castro 190

Part 5 Ye Booke of Sim

YHWH's Story, or, How to Laugh While Reading "Chasing YHWH" and Still Have Enough Stamina for The Last Day Edward M. Komara 199

Appendix: An Introduction to the Cerebus "Phonebooks" Lenny Cooper 217

Bibliography 221

About the Contributors 225

Index 227