By Peter Bagge
Publisher: Fantagraphics
ISBN: 9781606996225
Other Stuff is a collection of Peter Bagge's more obscure strips and collaborations. The collection kicks off with Lovey, a character used in the pages of Hate Annual, and if you're a fan of his Buddy Bradley work then these strips will go down well. These are followed by several Musical Urban Legend strips about fictitious goings on with big music industry names, some of which are quite outrageous, and some, sadly, don't quite hit the mark at all. I did, however, really enjoy Murray Wilson, Rock N Roll Dad, the father of Brian Wilson of the beach boys. These were several strips of a ranting and raving, overbearing control freak attempting to take the helm of the famous band. Quite mad and rather funny too.
The following chapter looks at collaborations with the likes of Alice Cooper, Alan Moore, and Daniel Clowes. I particularly liked Shamrock Squid: Autobiographical Cartoonist, drawn by Adrian Tomine, which has rather a lot of pokes at the likes of Harvey Pekar and the industry in general. Dilbert and Cathy, two stalwarts of the American daily strips, take a beating too, with Bagge's version of Dilbert joining Al-Qaeda while Cathy morphs into a very different creature under the pen of Robert Crumb. The latter of these two strips works incredibly well, possibly because I dislike the original so much.
We then get a section titled True Facts that, rather bravely, spins stories out of moments in scientific history, as well as looks at more contemporary events. Finally we get the Shut-Ins, returning to the more familiar strip style of Bagge's such as with Lovey that opens the book. The Shut-Ins were originally created for Neat Stuff in the 1980s but Bagge revived them for some work commissioned by Adobe. The strips have a heavy internet-based theme and explore how the internet affects a couple's relationship with the husband barely being able to pull himself away from it. I'm sure a very different story could be told today with the exponential growth of Facebook.
As a collection goes, this isn't the work Bagge's best known for, but that doesn't mean it's not worth your time as there are pages and pages of funny, daring and downright cheeky comics to enjoy. Add in a rather staggering amount of industry heavyweights and you've got one terrific read.
And if you enjoyed that: Also available now, Bagge's Reset.
No comments yet.