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

by Eric Hoffman (Editor), Sebastian Domsch (Contributor), Lenny Cooper (Contributor)

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 in-depth work, the first collection of critical essays on Cerebus, provides a multifaceted approach to Sim and Gerhard's complex and entertaining oevre, 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.

Genres: Comics, Essays, Nonfiction, Anthologies, Criticism, Graphic Novels

238 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2012

Reviews

[Les Gehman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cerebus the Barbarian Messiah: Essays on the Epic Graphic Satire of Dave Sim and Gerhard edited by Eric Hoffman is a must-have for Cerebus readers who want to get a better understanding of the graphic novel and its creators. For those unfamiliar with the graphic novel, Cerebus is a 300 issue 'comic' with a very philosophical bent. It is an epic achievement in the world of comics that has yet to be surpassed. This collection of essays dives into different deeper aspects of the graphic novel in great detail, and all do a great job of relating scenes in the graphic novel with attitudes and opinions of its creator Dave Sim. Well illustrated with many pages from Cerebus, this is a book rich in imagery that will keep the reader interested and entertained. Now, I just need to go back and re-read the entire 6000 page opus with this new understanding of the characters and scenes to be found within Cerebus.

[M. Fenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received Cerebus the Barbarian Messiah: Essays on the Epic Graphic Satire of Dave Sim and Gerhard as an Early Reviewer book. I knew when I clicked on the Request tag to receive it that I was taking a risk. As far as I could remember, I hadn't heard of Cerebus or Dave Sim before this. But the cover was appealing, I love comics, and I love learning new things.

And so I have. By reading this collections of essays, I've learned about Dave Sim's goal to break the mold of the comic industry by self-publishing a 300-issue, 6000-page epic about a thought-provoking aardvark. I've learned about Sim's life, his artistic talent, his nervous breakdown, and his finding religion. I've learned about his unfortunate "anti-feminism" and a lot of other topics he approached in 24 years of writing and drawing Cerebus.

This collection is a fascinating read. The essays are well-written and academic in their approach. They cover Sim's and, to a lesser extent, Gerhard's artwork; the challenges Sim faced with such a large project; as well as the challenges he faced due to his political and religious views. My only disappointment was that the section on gender didn't include any essays by women academics. I know the world of comics is still very much a boy's club, but girl comic folk do exist. Would have been nice to hear a woman's point of view on Sim's most controversial opinions.

[Larry · Rating 5 out of 5]

From 1977 to 2004, Dave Sim self-published CEREBUS, a six thousand page comic book about a barbarian aardvark who later becomes a prime minister, Pope, houseguest, bartender and leader of a new religion. Alternatively fascinating and infuriating, Sim (and background artist Gerhard's) achievement is unmatched in comics history. Finally, the comic receives scholarly attention, in this collection of a half-dozen insightful essays on various aspects of CEREBUS: its structure, its themes, various aesthetic and technical achievements, its use of literary figures (most notably Oscar Wilde), and its meditations on power, politics, love, death, feminism and religion. The contributors do a fine job of tackling a hefty subject and are to be commended. Also included is a helpful guide to the phonebooks and an introduction giving helpful historical context and a discussion of Sim's involvement in self-publishing and creator's rights. Essential to any serious comic book fan's bookshelf.

[Dominick]

I have a couple of articles in here myself so can't really rate or review it (conflict of interest), but I will say that several of the essays not by me were fascinating. If you want to know more about this graphic novel series, this is a good place to start.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've recently read all #300 issues of Cerebus within a 24-hour period. This is a helpful albiet a bit apologetic of a collection of essays about the controversial series.

There are times where the comic is just dreadfull dull--and no one made a single masochist joke. That's inexcusable.

[Chad Brock · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Tavia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting essays. Doesn't grapple with enough IMO, but definitely worth reading.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

This diverse collection of essays is a first step towards scholarly criticism of the long standing work of the Cerebus story line(s). The selections are thought provoking to say the least.