Alternative Visions
Alternative Visions |
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Page 23 of 29  More Cerebus Joe Mart's work was similarly unflinching. In his Peepshow (Drawn and Quarterly, 1992), he presented himself in an almost wilfully unflattering light: self-obsessed, hyperactive, paranoic and addicted to masturbation. ('Life isn't a fairy tale', the Matt character says at one point, 'and I'm not some two-dimensional Prince Charming!') He also claimed to be a 'sexaholic' with violent tendencies, and in one story admits to giving his girlfriend a black eye. This dark self-analysis was complemented by the obsessively detailed artwork, which sometimes packed a large number of panels on to one page. Whether Peepshow could be counted as an enjoyable reading experience or not (and often it was - some strips were very funny), Matt should be credited for challenging the conventions of autobiographical comics, and their tendency to self-aggrandise: by forcing readers to come to their own conclusions, he has carved himself a unique niche in the market. Finally, Julie Doucet took the kind of women's autobiography pioneered by undergrounds like Wimmin's Comix into uncharted waters. Her Dirty Plotte (Drawn and Quarterly, 1991) was a hilarious, melancholic and disturbing odyssey through her everyday life, and took in the boredom of living alone, troubles with men, misadventures with tampons, and thoughts on breast cancer. There were also a number of stories about violent sex, and sexual mutilation: indeed, Doucet's fondness for knives, scissors and razors was guaranteed to provoke recessed testicles in male readers. These vignettes were illustrated in a dark, but somehow innocent rendering style, which was much influenced by Chester Brown, while the dialogue was in an appealing form of broken English - a reflection of her French Canadian background. Altogether, it made for a wittily original comic.  Cover, Taboo (Spiderbaby Graphics, 1988). Art: Stephen Bissette.  Pages from From Hell (Tundra, 1991). Art: Eddie Campbell. |