1151 lines
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1151 lines
52 KiB
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Path: uuwest!control.spies.com!spies!sgiblab!spool.mu.edu!think.com!rpi!bu.edu!dartvax!Alexx
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From: Alexx@world.std.com (Alexx S Kay)
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Newsgroups: rec.arts.comics.info
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Subject: The Annotated Cerebus *DRAFT* 1.2
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Message-ID: <Bx27J0.FyM@world.std.com>
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Date: 1 Nov 92 22:52:11 GMT
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Sender: news@dartvax.dartmouth.edu (The News Manager)
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Followup-To: rec.arts.comics.misc
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Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA
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Lines: 1138
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Approved: hades@dartmouth.edu
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Any one who isn't *real* interested in Cerebus, *please* hit "n"
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now, or maybe even "k". This sucker is *huge*.
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Welcome to version 1.2 of the Annotated Cerebus. This document is
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intended to point out things of interest in the Cerebus stories.
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Although it should be of interest in various regards, this is *not* a
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timeline, a checklist of publications, a concordance, or a dangler list.
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Those are my *other* big Cerebus projects :)
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Comments and correction are welcomed, of course. I expect to be
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keeping this up-to-date for my own pleasure, but not posting updates
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very often (there just isn't enough room on my account). If anyone
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wants to take responsibility for distributing the latest posted version,
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go for it. Permission is hereby granted to freely distribute this, as
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long as you don't charge for it. Just about every person, place and
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thing mentioned here is Copyright 1992 Dave Sim.
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Most entries are followed by references to the issue and page
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where I got the dating information from. Unless otherwise noted, all
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issue numbers refer to Cerebus. Lengthier explanations are included
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where I felt them necessary.
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This is a *draft* release. It (hopefully) completely covers
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issues 1-25 and 151-163. In several places I have inserted issue
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references as "xxx", which is shorthand for "I haven't gotten around to
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annotating that issue yet, and I'll fill it in later."
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The Annotated Cerebus 1.2
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Cerebus
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Issue 1, "The Flame Jewel" (originally untitled, this title first
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appears in _Cerebus_.)
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The general structure of this story is very similar to "Tower of
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the Elephant", a Conan story that was adapted in issue 4 of that comic.
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Of course, this sort of story has long been a staple of sword and
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sorcery fiction.
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Cerebus is wearing a helmet just like that Conan wore in the early
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issues of his own comic, and a similar set of medallions. Conan's
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medallions have symbols on them but, except for issue 4, Cerebus' do
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not.
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2: "I admit to an intentional gross-out on page two, that you
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would not be likely to see again in the pages of Cerebus. The severed
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hand bit served to establish that tho this might be a cute and furry
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aardvark, this was also a mean and lethal aardvark." (from Introduction
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to Cerebus No. 1, _Swords_of_Cerebus_, Volume 1) See also notes to issue
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150.
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7: The spell contains the first usage of the word "Terim".
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13: "ignorant of hallucinogens" Other than D.T.s, that is.
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16: The beast on this page is remeniscent of the serpent demon in
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Conan No. 24.
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21: "the ways of sorcery are not unknown to me" See issues 9,
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28, et. al.
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Issue 2, "Captive in Boreala"
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2-3: The layout of these pages is inspired by pages 2 and 3 of
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Conan No. 16.
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4: "Paranian" not referenced elsewhere.
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"Gurann" According to the Aardvarkian Age map, Gurann is not far
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west of Tansubal.
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7: "the dreaded earth-pig snout punch" Variations of this turn
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up later.
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12: "time and the immortality of all beings" A tantalizing
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fragment. Too bad that's all it is.
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13-15: The carved heads on these pages are remeniscent of those
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on/in the Black Tower. They are representations of Khem, carved by its
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captives. Presumably Khem had the ability to appear in many different
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(hideous) forms.
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13: "the sound of deep sardonic laughter" This laughter is
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apparently *not* coming from the succubus; see issue 151, p.8.
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14: "jealous priests of Terim" An intruiging reference. Why were
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they jealous? This may be a typo for Tarim, as Cerebus has spent most
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of his time in Tarimite controlled countries up till now.
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16: "Gurranian marketplace" See note to page 4. 18-19: Somehow,
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Cerebus breaks the succubus' spell of illusion. Whether it was due to
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his sorcerous training, his nature as an aardvark, or some combination
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is unknown.
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issue 151 (p.7) implies that this breakage of the spell is
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permanent.
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19: "A succubus!" I originally took this to mean that this was
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*not* the real Khem, but a random succubus. issue 151 (p.7) however,
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positively identifies this creature as Khem.
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"Where is its soul?" This is the first implication that Cerebus
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does not, in fact, *have* a soul. See also note to 7, p.20.
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20: "tarnished iron sphere" The implication here is that this is
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*not* the true Eye of Terim, but was disguised as it for bait.
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22: "even now, the succubus must be attracting new victims"
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Cerebus is incorrect, Khem is now powerless (151, p.7).
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"nearest port" Temza (3, p.1; Aardvarkian Age map).
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The "Next issue" pinup is of Red Sophia, who is drawn here with a
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chainmail shirt similar to (though skimpier) than the one Barry Smith
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drew her with in Conan Nos. 23 and 24.
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Issue 3, "Song of Red Sophia"
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The title is taken from issue 24 of Conan, "Song of Red Sonja".
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Red Sophia is drawn more as Frank Thorne drew Sonja in her own comic
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book than as she appeared in Conan.
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1: "not so long ago" Two days, according to page 16.
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6: "I have sworn a vow..." Red Sonja had a similar vow, though I
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don't believe anyone actually managed to take advantage of it.
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7: This is the first indication that Cerebus may not be
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interested in sex with human women at this point. As he would probably
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have been considered ugly from early youth, this is not too surprising.
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It is a taste he *will* acquire, though (see issues 57 ff.).
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10: Cerebus left his helmet behind, but it gets tossed out in the
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confusion.
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12: See note to issue 10, p.3.
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17: "watch her bathe" At last we know how Feras "besmirched
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Sophia's honor."
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19: "the ways of men are strange indeed" See note to page 7.
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22: "last many years." Sorry Cerebus, not even very many weeks,
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see notes to issue 10.
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Issue 4, "Death's Dark Tread"
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Elrod is a parody of Elric, a swords and sorcery character created
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by Michael Moorcock. More specifically, he is a parody of Elric's
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appearances in the Conan comic books by Roy Thomas and Barry Smith
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(issues 14 and 15), which in turn were visually based on the covers to
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paperback Elric novels painted by Jack Gaughan.
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2: The designs on CEREBUS' amulets are not seen elsewhere, though
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they are similar to the designs on Conan's amulets in the early issues
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of his comic.
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From the introduction to this issue in _Swords_of _Cerebus_,
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Volume One: "This issue also introduced Cerebus' little vest - in honor
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of his first trip to a big city. It was intended as a joke, see. If
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you go into a city you have to get dressed. I've completely forgotten
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why I put those little designs on his medallions, though."
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3: "some kind of gem" Not really, see 152, page 13. "it shines
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like five suns!" A possible reference to the five spheres of the gods?
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"Diamondback" First reference to this popular card game.
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The "crawler" seems inspired by the "Dweller in the Dark" in issue
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12 of Conan.
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9: "bunny suit" Elrod thinks that Cerebus is a child in a bunny
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suit. This impression will last for a long time, especially after the
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events of issue 7.
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10: "sorcerer"??? This isn't backed up anywhere else. On the
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other hand, neither are *any* of Elrod's claims to greatness.
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11: "at least five thousand years" A mysterious reference. There
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is some evidence that Estarcion is our Earth, about 6000 years ago.
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There is also strong evidence that the Cockroach has some sort of access
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to our Earth, whence he gets his ideas of costumed heroes. Elrod may
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have a similar sort of access.
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12: "a source of great power" Or not. See 152, page 13.
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"The Chaos Gem" Dave Sim apparently had some sort of cosmology in
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mind here that he later changed his mind about. See notes to 152, pages
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12-13.
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15: "The mightiest sword in the southlands" How Elrod knows this
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when Cerebus hasn't spoken two words to him yet is a mystery. Of
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course, most of Elrod's actions defy explanation...
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The one punch that Elrod throws on this page is the most effective
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martial move we will *ever* see him do.
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18: "none of it was printable" Dave later got more comfortable
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with the idea of using profanity in Cerebus, though this made for an
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amusing footnote.
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22: In case you hadn't noticed, the background to this page forms
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a large "FIN".
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Issue 5, "The Idol" (originally untitled, this title first appears
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in _Cerebus_.)
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It's probably during this period that Cerebus serves with Tiberius
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and does something unpleasant to his sergeant's brother (23, pgs.17-18)
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1: "west into the Red Marches" Dave gets east and west confused a
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lot. The Red Marches are east of Serrea, not west.
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6-7: This is the first time that it has been established that
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Cerebus smells really bad when wet. This joke will recur later in the
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series.
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8: "penultimate swordsman" A curious reference. Perhaps the
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Pigts' prophecies include an "ultimate swordsman"... Most of the praise
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for Bran should probably be taken as PR.
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"west of the Sofim" Nope, east.
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12: "Conniptin dialect" Are the Pigts offshoots of the Conniptins
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or vice-versa?
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"The Redeemer Dynasty, The Eastern Monoliths, The Black Tower
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Empire..." This is the first mention of the Black Tower Empire; it will
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not be the last. The other two are not mentioned elsewhere, but from
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their titles, they may well have been similar.
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14: "you're twenty-six" First mention of Cerebus' age.
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15: Several of the symbols on the walls are stylized aardvark
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heads.
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17: This is the first indication that Cerebus may actually be
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someone *really* important.
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"Pigts of many lands" If the Conniptins are indeed offshoots of
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the Pigts, this prophecy does come true.
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"Sons of the Pig" Clearly the origin of the name Pigt.
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20: "We could lay waste" An early example of Cerebus
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overestimating his chances in a military endeavour.
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22: First mention of Iest, a location of much of the later story.
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Issue 6, "The Secret"
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"I couldn't picture Cerebus fans reading twenty issues of Cerebus
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sitting across the street from Jaka's house." (Introduction to issue 6,
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_Swords_of_Cerebus_, Volume Two.) This quote has become rather ironic
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in that it's not a bad description of part of _Jaka's_Story_.
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1: When a letter was written complaining about the lack of
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explanation as to the events on this page, Dave replied: "How about
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this: The guy was a renegade Priest of the Black Sun and realized that
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someday the Priest would find the hidden gold and use it for furthering
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their death-worshipping ways. Giving the word to a complete stranger
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was preferable to their running across it one day by accident. Fair
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enough?" Presumably, that second "Priest" is a typo for "Priests".
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2: "the gold" Actually, the treasure is diamonds (7, p.13), but
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E'Lass doesn't know that.
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8: For Jaka's side of this encounter, see issue 36.
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9: "Tchens, Trebu and Lohi" Rather simple anagrams of the names
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"Hitchens" and "Loubert". Loubert is referring to Deni Loubert, Dave's
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fiancee at the time. Hitchens is either Sara Hitchens (later creator of
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the Cerebus stuffed doll) or a relative of hers who was Dave's mistress
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at the time, and was the basis for Jaka. This whole story was, among
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other things, a coded message from Dave to Deni, warning her about
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Dave's romantic instability.
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13: "we meet again" See note to page 15.
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15: "I once got her to make a priest break a ten-year vow of
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silence" This incident is not mentioned els own" Elrod seems to take to thievery quite
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naturally.
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Dave Sim's introduction to this issue in _Swords_of_Cerebus_,
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Volume Two spends a fair amount of time on this page, as being the time
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when he first started to break free of the Barry Smith/Conan influences.
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9: A second indication of Cerebus' (or at least aardvarks')
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historical/mythological/religious importance. After this, Dave kept
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away from the topic until roughly issue 20.
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20: Another indication that Cerebus either has no soul, or one of
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a very unusual nature.
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21: Mit is not seen again. Presumably he found another line of
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work somewhere in the southlands.
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22: "Was he hurled clear by the blast?" A good question. Before
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the "blinding flash of white light" (p.20), Cerebus was already several
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hundred metres deep and falling, in an apparently bottomless pit, with
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tons of rock crashing down from above. Now he is a good distance away
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(as is the box of diamonds). His latent magical abilities may have
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allowed him to teleport to safety (see 88, p.9).
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Issue 8, "day of the earth-pig!"
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1: In delerium from an infected wound, Cerebus is experiencing
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hallucinations based on recent (last issue's) events. The fanged
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entryway is taken from Steve Ditko's run on Dr. Strange, and frequently
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appeared during the more psychedelic, other-worldly sequences.
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3: The Conniptin doctor who appears on this page is never named,
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nor is his commander.
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4: "white 'powder of the gods'" Presumably cocaine or a close
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relative.
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7: "I'm a doctor, not a ..." A parody of Dr. McCoy from Star
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Trek, who often made such utterances when pushed beyond his normal
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limits.
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13: First use of the Conniptin war-cries. They will be used
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again.
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17: The odds of their actually *taking* Iest were probably slim at
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best, according to the letters page of issue 26.
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22: "more to life..." This problem is to become much more
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important to Cerebus in later years.
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Issue 9, "Swords Against Imesh"
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2: "So many years" Cerebus lived in Imesh from roughly 1394-
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1397, making it almost 15 years since he left.
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10: "Venus" Does the existence of Venus imply that Estarcion is
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our Earth?
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14: "slow-healing back wound" Sustained from the spider-beast in
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issue 7.
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15: Cerebus shows a typical lack of regard for dueling rules.
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Odd that Lord Ko, but Cerebus is in no position to argue. only warriors
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in Estarcion who fights right-handders and drug addicts -- Cerebus'
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attitudes when involved with the Republican movement in Iest.
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22: "Ttal, but temporarily incapacitating symptons when Cerebus leaves
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Imesh.
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Issue 10, "Merchant of Unshib!"
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2: "fractures" Sustained during the battle at thelast
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issue.
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3: Sophia has presumably tickled Cerebribs.
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"bunny burgers" Sophia's getarian inclinations (3, p.12) seem
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nished.
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5: "first has passed since
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issue 3, one must assume that she means "one-month anniversary". A
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fairly silly concept, but hardly out of character for her.
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8: "the council head in Palnu" Is the council head the same
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thing as the grandlord? If so what does Lord Julius want with the
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Lotus? If not, who is it that wants it and why?
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10: "handful er ct page.
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1icion round coins.
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22: The merchant shows an unusual amount of sense. His face is
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never shown, so it's unknown if he's appeared since.
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Issue 11, "The Merchant & The Cockroach"
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3: "I am a sorcerer..." This is the first (and for only) time
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we have heard any of the Roach's personae claim mysticalRobin, the kid
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sidekick of Batman, who the Cockroach is a parody of.
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11: "cockroach sense" A parody of Spider-Man's "spider sense", a
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sort of sixth sense that warns him when he is in danger.
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21: Cerebus' sword is also lost in this accident. See issue 36,
|
||
|
|
xxx and notes.
|
||
|
|
22: The shadows on the water form an image of Cerebus screaming in
|
||
|
|
frustration.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 13, "Black Magiking"
|
||
|
|
2: "bizarre dream" Actually, this "dream" was the companion story
|
||
|
|
to this one, "Magiking", which first saw print in _Swords_of_Cerebus_,
|
||
|
|
Volume Four.
|
||
|
|
4: "the priest" This priest is never named.
|
||
|
|
6: "Hob's Hollow" Referring,presumably, to hobgoblins, small
|
||
|
|
mythical demons.
|
||
|
|
7: Excerpt from the introduction from _Swords_of_Cerebus_, Volume
|
||
|
|
Four: "By the way -- the castle that looks like a huge Black Tower?
|
||
|
|
Remember the Black Tower Empire that I keep mentioning? Well, it has
|
||
|
|
nothing to do with that." On the other hand, the demon heads and skulls
|
||
|
|
carved into the walls are strongly reminiscent of the Black Tower period
|
||
|
|
of architecture (see issue 25, p.5, and most of _Church_&_State_).
|
||
|
|
13: According to the introduction to this story in
|
||
|
|
_Swords_of_Cerebus_, Volume 4, Necross is based strongly on the
|
||
|
|
character Exidor from the Mork & Mindy TVshow
|
||
|
|
The skulls on his head and the hourglass on his chest may indicate
|
||
|
|
that he is a worshipper of "Death" (see issues 8, 151).
|
||
|
|
22: "trapped in here" Of course, When he was in his own body,
|
||
|
|
Necross could teleport. Given his general level of insanity, it might
|
||
|
|
take him a long time to think of that option. At any rate, he doesn't
|
||
|
|
reappear until issue 80.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 14, "The Walls of Palnu"
|
||
|
|
1: "Syn were
|
||
|
|
depicted atgreater length in the Cerebus strip which ran at about this
|
||
|
|
time in the Buyer's Guideably tu front.
|
||
|
|
3: This is the first appearance of Lord Julius' social secretary.
|
||
|
|
He is never n bears a notableembelance to the logo
|
||
|
|
of Geppi's Comic World, an early distributor of the Cerebus comic ok.
|
||
|
|
16: "wood faerie" First reference to such a creature. The
|
||
|
|
Regency Elf, whothat they this reasrite this introduction. You know
|
||
|
|
why? So I could tell E*V*E*R*Y*O*N*E that yes, I was thinking of tg the
|
||
|
|
snake I was thinm drawing, I'm drawing a Giant Dick with eyes", or "I'm
|
||
|
|
not drawing a sing the leader of the 'Eye in the PyrCerebus, who's goi
|
||
|
|
degree angle? Thae where the giant "snake" smashes into the wall and
|
||
|
|
behind it to the Leader of the 'Eye in the Pyramid'. Sort of changes
|
||
|
|
the meaning of the "AAAAH" word balloon doesn't it? Now, why, you might
|
||
|
|
very well ask yourself, why would someone consciously sit down and draw
|
||
|
|
an allegory that revolves around a huge male member. Someday, folks, I
|
||
|
|
hope to open the Underground Comix Price Guide, flip to the appendix
|
||
|
|
with Cerebus and read:
|
||
|
|
Cerebus Good Fine Mint
|
||
|
|
#15 (Giant penis issue)
|
||
|
|
$20 $30 $40
|
||
|
|
And people say I've lost my ambition."
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 16, "A Night at the Masque"
|
||
|
|
2: The title is based on the Marx Brothers movie "A Night at the
|
||
|
|
Opera", considered by many to be their best. Lord Julius' costume is
|
||
|
|
essentially the same one that Groucho Marx wore to a party in
|
||
|
|
"Coconuts", the first Marx Brothers film.
|
||
|
|
5: These are E'Lass and Turg, the two con men last seen in issue
|
||
|
|
six.
|
||
|
|
11: Throughout the rest of this sequence, whenever E'Lass hears
|
||
|
|
Cerebus, he assumes that Cerebus is talking about *him*, not the leader
|
||
|
|
of the Eye in the Pyramid.
|
||
|
|
20: "Have you got change for a gold piece?" Essentially taken
|
||
|
|
whole cloth from Groucho, just the denominations changed.
|
||
|
|
Jaka is of course the dancer whom Cerebus fell in love with in
|
||
|
|
issue six. This is the first time we've heard of her relationship with
|
||
|
|
Lord Julius. Why the niece of a powerful politician would be dancing in
|
||
|
|
taverns is a question that will not be answered for a long time.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 17, "Champion"
|
||
|
|
1: "It would certainly have been easier for [Cerebus] to travel
|
||
|
|
without the eight bags of gold, and considering he could have lived like
|
||
|
|
a prince for months with only half a bag, one can certainly see karma at
|
||
|
|
work in the opening sequence. This was not the first time this has
|
||
|
|
happened (though I noticed I didn't mention it in the narrative).
|
||
|
|
Cerebus has treasure troves of gold buried all over Estarcion, under
|
||
|
|
floor boards in abandoned tree stumps, etc. etc. left behind when he got
|
||
|
|
tired of transporting them. usually, as in this story, it was the lure
|
||
|
|
of some new adventure that caused him to abandon what he had (though you
|
||
|
|
can count on the fact that it wouldn't keep from complaining about being
|
||
|
|
broke once lured away)." (Introduction to this issue in
|
||
|
|
_Swords_of_cerebus, volume five).
|
||
|
|
3: "four pieces of gold... take it or leave it" This is the
|
||
|
|
first real indication we have of the value of gold in Estarcion.
|
||
|
|
6: "He could find no flaw in Gudre's plan" Which is hardly to
|
||
|
|
say that it *had* no flaw.
|
||
|
|
13: "The Commander Krull character was, on the one hand, my
|
||
|
|
version of Conan the King. He was also patterned on Colonel Flagg from
|
||
|
|
M*A*S*H. [... He is] the first of my characters to be living his own
|
||
|
|
autobiography. [...] I have come to think that most 'heroes' are
|
||
|
|
primarily 'legends in their own minds'. That is to say, while they
|
||
|
|
protest endlessly that they're just doing their jobs and that any grand
|
||
|
|
motivations ascribed to them are strictly the problem of certain
|
||
|
|
individuals who don't know them very well, most of them actually keep
|
||
|
|
careful track of their 'image' on a day-to-day basis, basing their
|
||
|
|
decisions, at least in part, on how it will appear in the 'Legend of Me,
|
||
|
|
Book Seven.' These individuals can usually be picked out in a crowd by
|
||
|
|
the presence of their 'official biographer.' This is a chap who usually
|
||
|
|
doesn't get much attention until the hero is dead, at which time
|
||
|
|
everyone, (somewhat naively) decides that he holds some degree of
|
||
|
|
'truth' about the deceased.
|
||
|
|
In the case of the Moon Roach, the official biographer is a
|
||
|
|
disassociated personality, and consequently rather more difficult to
|
||
|
|
control (rather like William Manchester travelling around inside Robert
|
||
|
|
Kennedy's head, privy to too many un-heroic thoughts and impulses). In
|
||
|
|
the case of Krull, the biographer [GRIMES] is really little more than a
|
||
|
|
stenographer. Anyone who thinks that this is a radical rather than a
|
||
|
|
minor caricaturing of the official biographer's role should read a few
|
||
|
|
the throat ovperhaps slightly more plausible).
|
||
|
|
15: "The sacred g
|
||
|
|
Issue uroc"
|
||
|
|
Coveher in a hurry, as it is merely a colllage of several of
|
||
|
|
tanels form the interior, colored. 3: *!" This is a parody of 's
|
||
|
|
character Black Bolt, who dares not speis is when the story started to
|
||
|
|
geta little weird. I'd likeogize to all of you righCething in your
|
||
|
|
drinking water. [...]
|
||
|
|
Anyway, I started building the cornerstones for all this
|
||
|
|
intruige in this issue with Perce (she's not really a prostitute, but I
|
||
|
|
won't go into that now). It was eventually to leadn attempt to frame a
|
||
|
|
larger context for the story and find some way to address alain the
|
||
|
|
problem a while ago by explaining that most of the factors involved are
|
||
|
|
secret societies -- to put it in a more modern contexcret cell of Soviet
|
||
|
|
spies in the U.S. government hiring North Vietnamese and Cuban
|
||
|
|
infiltrators to find out if the Red Chinese embassy in Japan is really
|
||
|
|
spying for the Lithuanians in an attempt to find out if the KGB was
|
||
|
|
behind the plot to kill the Pope and hire more Afghanistan refugees to
|
||
|
|
double-check the rumours about the John Birch Society joining forces
|
||
|
|
with the Mafia to break the stranglehold the Teamsters have on the
|
||
|
|
underground network of solidarity supporters in Moose Jaw.
|
||
|
|
Come to think of it, three hundred issues might not be enough."
|
||
|
|
(_Swords_of_Cerebus_, Volume 5, Introduction to issue 19.)
|
||
|
|
5: "I said I would *offer*... I never said anything about
|
||
|
|
*giving*" A common political ploy, and one that Cerebus himself will
|
||
|
|
later use in _High_Society_.
|
||
|
|
9: "Geet-A" A parody of Frank Thorne's "Ghita" character, who
|
||
|
|
bears a strong resembelance to his version of Red Sonja.
|
||
|
|
12: "I wanted to show that Lord Julius (like Elrod) always lands
|
||
|
|
on his feet and that (unlike Elrod) it is as a result of his own sense
|
||
|
|
of political timing and manipulation of the resources at hand, even if
|
||
|
|
that's just his own imagination (as seen by page twelve). It was my way
|
||
|
|
of indicating that he was to be taken seriously by the reader even
|
||
|
|
though his earlier appearances painted him as an incompetent. After
|
||
|
|
all, a leader who is perceived as incompetent is more likely to be
|
||
|
|
under-estimated by potential rivals. The impact of his endless
|
||
|
|
successes, domestically and in other parts of Estarcion can be seen in
|
||
|
|
"High Society". "Nothing succeeds like success" as the saying goes."
|
||
|
|
(_Swords_of_Cerebus_, volume 5, introduction to issue 19).
|
||
|
|
13: "Hortne" is of course a simple anagram of "Henrot" (which is
|
||
|
|
itself an anagram of "Thorne"). He and Sophia must have moved from
|
||
|
|
Tansubal to Togith.
|
||
|
|
16: "...she's hacked up... and my *ex-wife*..." Presumably Mrs.
|
||
|
|
Henrot-Gutch (first seen in issue xxx), who might be expected to survive
|
||
|
|
such an experience (19, p.16).
|
||
|
|
17: "pet Gerbies" Probably a reference to Steve Gerber, who
|
||
|
|
created the Marvel Comics character "Man-Thing", who was empathic, and
|
||
|
|
reacted strongly to the emotions of those around him.
|
||
|
|
18: "exactly six months" So it would have reverted about the
|
||
|
|
time of the beginning of High Society (not that it's likely to be
|
||
|
|
relevant).
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 20, "Mind Game"
|
||
|
|
"Anyway, Cerebus' mental acrobatics seemed like the best way to
|
||
|
|
kick off the endless complications and intrigues to come. The
|
||
|
|
Illusionists versus the Cirinists in Togith. Pictures within pictures
|
||
|
|
illustrating the stories within the story.
|
||
|
|
The title "Mind Game" was freely swiped from John Lennon's "Mind
|
||
|
|
Games" and is respectfully dedicated to his memory."
|
||
|
|
(_Swords_of_Cerebus_, volume five, Introduction to issue 20).
|
||
|
|
The pages of this issue, when arranged in a 5 X 4 grid, form a
|
||
|
|
giant picture of Cerebus. This was inspired by Neal Adam's occassional
|
||
|
|
use of the "hidden head" trick, which was done on a smaller scale,
|
||
|
|
several independent panels forming a picture over the space of the page.
|
||
|
|
One example of this was in the Deadman story in Strange Adventures No.
|
||
|
|
216, page 15 (reprinted in Deadman No. 7, 1985).
|
||
|
|
Cover: The cover consists of the words "Mind Game" and several
|
||
|
|
head shots of Cerebus. If each of the two words ("Mind" and "Game")
|
||
|
|
were replaced with two Cerebus heads, they would form a 5 X 4 grid, the
|
||
|
|
same as the arrangement of pages necessary to see the "Hidden Cerebus"
|
||
|
|
in this issue. 20 heads, 20 pages, issue 20; Dave Sim likes to play
|
||
|
|
with numerology.
|
||
|
|
1: This is the first direct mention of Cirin and of Cirinism,
|
||
|
|
elements that will loom large in the later storyline.
|
||
|
|
Innec Starym, by implication must have been an influential
|
||
|
|
Illusionist. The frequent occurence of the number 23 in his writings is
|
||
|
|
a nod to the _Illuminatus!_ trilogy, (a major influence on Sim) where
|
||
|
|
that number is given mystic signifigance. It is unclear whether this
|
||
|
|
passage depicts an actual demon summoning, or merely a mass
|
||
|
|
hallucination. The "eye in the middle of the forehead" motif is common
|
||
|
|
to many mystical cultures.
|
||
|
|
"read the cards" This is the first reference to card being used
|
||
|
|
in a divinitory and/or mystic manner. Throughout the rest of the
|
||
|
|
series, this motif will recur. In keeping with the (largely) medieval
|
||
|
|
nature of the setting, the same sorts of cards areused for both
|
||
|
|
recreation and divination.
|
||
|
|
"so unique a creature" Wenda must not be very high in the
|
||
|
|
Cirinist heirarchy (see issue 100).
|
||
|
|
3: "The Priest of Cups and the Priestess of Swords are in
|
||
|
|
opposition" My interpretation is that the Priest of Cups represents
|
||
|
|
Suenteus Po, and the Priestess of Swords, Wenda. Cerebus stands between
|
||
|
|
these two, and will set them against each other.
|
||
|
|
"Inner circle, too!" Probably only the *local* inner circle, as
|
||
|
|
they haven't met Cirin.
|
||
|
|
4: "What do *you* get out of this deal" A highly relevant
|
||
|
|
question. Po's answer is, while possiblyor some basic
|
||
|
|
analysis, see the Concordance.
|
||
|
|
Cerebus has clearly heard of Illusionists before, and knows at
|
||
|
|
least a little about them (or at least, theu carpet?" This is very
|
||
|
|
out of line with Po's later characterization of himself as an ascetic
|
||
|
|
(160, p.10).
|
||
|
|
16: "What an *amazing* coincidence..." Cerebus has gambled
|
||
|
|
(successfully) that he has not been moved frists are potent wa Issue
|
||
|
|
21, "Captain Cockroach"
|
||
|
|
Cover: The cover shows Captain Cockroach (with Bunky t and as a
|
||
|
|
nexus point for a number of disparate belief systems. I mean he was
|
||
|
|
also the self- centered, hot-tempered, loathsome little drunkard he
|
||
|
|
appeared to be on the surface, but he was also something different. A
|
||
|
|
lot of people want to know what he's doing and have invested great sums
|
||
|
|
of money and uncountable manhours tryingd to go... [story of Dave going
|
||
|
|
to a party deleted for spacehadoffered me an aspirin. It was a tiny
|
||
|
|
purple aspirin. It was a very, very good aspirin though. I could tell,
|
||
|
|
because the guy wanted four dollars for it (Canadian funds butstill). I
|
||
|
|
had used up a few of my beer tickets by this point, and I ventured the
|
||
|
|
opinion that in about an hour I would probably know how good the aspirin
|
||
|
|
was. The guy who sold it to me said it wouldn't take that long.
|
||
|
|
The next thing I saw was the ceiling of my bedroom. I felt pretty
|
||
|
|
good, considering. My next insight was that I didn't remember coming
|
||
|
|
home. Deni told me that the police brought me home. Sh also looked at
|
||
|
|
me as if she didn't quite believe I could have forgotten something so .
|
||
|
|
. . out-of-the-ordinary. To this day, I have pieced together very
|
||
|
|
little of what happened that night. Just as well, I suppose.
|
||
|
|
But it gave me a wonderful idea for the massive structural change
|
||
|
|
in the storyline. I dropped Cerebus several hundred miles northeast of
|
||
|
|
where he had been drugged. Just like real life, I had decided to leave
|
||
|
|
him in the dark about what had happened while he was unconcious. It was
|
||
|
|
one of those decisions that unleashes the hounds of fannish retribution
|
||
|
|
(a not altogether infrequent occcurence when you plot a three hundred
|
||
|
|
issue storyline, I've found). I was accused of abandoning a storyline
|
||
|
|
because I was bored, because I was burnt out, because I had hit a
|
||
|
|
writer's block.
|
||
|
|
Tut, tly, but that's
|
||
|
|
just the kind of guy I am, I guess).
|
||
|
|
[...]
|
||
|
|
"The whole presidential aspect of this story-line, as well as the
|
||
|
|
"Death of Elrod" finish developed when I noticed that the cover of #22
|
||
|
|
would have a very familiar looking date on it; 22 NOV [President John F.
|
||
|
|
Kennedy was assassinated on November 22nd]." (_Swords_of_Cerebus_,
|
||
|
|
volume six, Introduction to isssues 21 and 22).
|
||
|
|
Volume three of _Swords_of_Cerebus_ did include a short story
|
||
|
|
"What Happened Between Issues 20 and 21", which I will evenal Office,
|
||
|
|
the office of the President is ankle!!" Suenteus Po is Weisshaupt's
|
||
|
|
*uen tucked away somewhere behind the huge piles of newspapers seen on
|
||
|
|
page 8.
|
||
|
|
8: Weisshaupt is partially based on the historical figuase"
|
||
|
|
based on the "Super-Soldier Serum" which gave Captain America his
|
||
|
|
powers. Captain America was specifically *not* super-human, the serum
|
||
|
|
merely enabled him to reach the natural limits of human ability.
|
||
|
|
11: "Cerebus doesn't understand why you would need Elrod." Nor
|
||
|
|
do I. Weisshaupt's answer does not seem sufficient.
|
||
|
|
12: First mention of Kevillism.
|
||
|
|
"The point I wanted to get across was that the Captain America-
|
||
|
|
style character steeped in (_Swords_of_Cer_,
|
||
|
|
volume six, Introduction to ssues 21-22).
|
||
|
|
1e3: "forgot the glasses" Chateua Donte '21 is clearly a *very*
|
||
|
|
potent wine, meant to be taken in small re are 15: "The wine probably
|
||
|
|
mixed with the residue in his system" This behaviour of mixing the drug
|
||
|
|
with alchohol is confirmed in "What Happened Between Issues 20 and 21".
|
||
|
|
20: "I had a wonderful time between issues 21 and 22. So many
|
||
|
|
people were worried that I was really, honest-and-truly and no-two-ways-
|
||
|
|
about-it, going to kill Elrod. I mean I *could* have. No one knew re
|
||
|
|
if I would. Reading the end of 21, I can see why they thought that.
|
||
|
|
Nice cliffhanger, if I do say so myself." (_Swords_of_Cerebus_, volume
|
||
|
|
six, Introduction to issues 21-22).
|
||
|
|
One possible reason for this is that Bucky Barnes, the character
|
||
|
|
Elrod's "Bunky" is a parody of, of
|
||
|
|
the very few comic book characters to have *sta Iss 22, "The Dis).
|
||
|
|
"Start-All-Over-Again-" Although it predates it, this
|
||
|
|
bitdialogue serves ay of the way ththird "Ron", the second one having
|
||
|
|
been killed in the line of duty.
|
||
|
|
4: "Deadalbino" This is a parody of a late sixties DC comic book
|
||
|
|
character, "Deadman", who was similarly able to possess living people.
|
||
|
|
"You might be wondering *why* this would happen to Elrod when he
|
||
|
|
got killed, but thaeveryone is watching Cerebus all
|
||
|
|
the time and wondering what he's up to. So that's for me to know and
|
||
|
|
for you to read about.
|
||
|
|
I should be getting to it around issSwords_of_Cerebus_, volume
|
||
|
|
six, Introduction to issues 21-22).
|
||
|
|
7: "There was a great deal of suspicion about President
|
||
|
|
Weisshaupt's assertion that the T'Gitans had been massacred. I suppose
|
||
|
|
it's a natural reaction to have when I pull the rug out from under you
|
||
|
|
with a radical transition, but, you can believe the President on this
|
||
|
|
one, kids. T'Gitans go bye-bye. Have I ever lied to you before?
|
||
|
|
I mean about anything *important*.
|
||
|
|
[...]
|
||
|
|
Notice on page seven of "The Death of Elrod" that he [Cerebus] is
|
||
|
|
filling the air around him with words, while complaining about
|
||
|
|
southlanders who do the same thing? Having Weisshaupt tell him that his
|
||
|
|
T'gitan allies were cut to pieces with ease by Gorce and his troops put
|
||
|
|
a permanent dent in his conviction that a bunch of battle-hardened
|
||
|
|
barbarians would be more than a match for a bunch of pampered city-
|
||
|
|
dwellers and their mercenaries." (_Swords_of_Cerebus_, volume six,
|
||
|
|
Introduction to issues 21-22).
|
||
|
|
14: "I do humbly swear that I will, to the best of my ability,
|
||
|
|
remain falling-down drunk at least ninety percent of the time." This is
|
||
|
|
a fairly accurate appraisal of Cerebus' second term as Prime Minister of
|
||
|
|
Iest, while he was Weisshaupt's puppet.
|
||
|
|
15: "Lafort" and "Deshen" are, respectively, parodies of U.S.
|
||
|
|
Presidents Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon.
|
||
|
|
20: "in Darnier Prison" Well, no. See issue xxx, page xxx and
|
||
|
|
note, for details.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 23, "The Beguiling"
|
||
|
|
The beginning of this storyline is inspired by the Clint Eastwood
|
||
|
|
movie "The Beguiled" about a Civil War soldier trapped in enemy
|
||
|
|
territory finding sanctuary at a private girl's school
|
||
|
|
(_Swords_of_Cerebus_, volume six, Introduction to issues 23-25).
|
||
|
|
4: "... Janet, Katrina and Theresa (Deni's middle names are Janet
|
||
|
|
Katherine and her sister Karen's is Theresa, by the way)."
|
||
|
|
(_Swords_of_Cerebus_, volume six, Introduction to issues 23-25).
|
||
|
|
17: "I'm a serva wit ahim anna red amarches" Probably during the
|
||
|
|
time between issues four and five.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 24, "Swamp Sounds"
|
||
|
|
3: "during the rebellion" Probably happened around 1410.
|
||
|
|
7: "The last soldier who stayed here" As revealed on page 10,
|
||
|
|
this was Elrod.
|
||
|
|
8: "Katrina's uncle -- her sister" Since Katrina's uncle turns
|
||
|
|
out to be Lord Julius, it seems very likely that the "sid to do d any
|
||
|
|
fear. Sort of a double-bind considering that Marvel was also on a kick
|
||
|
|
at this time about protecting their trademark on major characters by
|
||
|
|
doing female versions of them. They ended up doing two around the sa--
|
||
|
|
Spider-Woman and She-Hulk. The implication of this move, at least in my
|
||
|
|
mind, was that any publisher docomic book was "All w fear shall burn at
|
||
|
|
the touch of the Man-Thing."
|
||
|
|
5: "A 24r origins.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
High Society
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 26,
|
||
|
|
Day 1
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 27,
|
||
|
|
Days 2-8
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 28,
|
||
|
|
Day 8?
|
||
|
|
Suenteus Po the Illusionist is in Iest.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 29,
|
||
|
|
Days 9-10
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 30,
|
||
|
|
Days 10-12
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 31,
|
||
|
|
Day 12
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 32,
|
||
|
|
Days 12-~21
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 33,
|
||
|
|
Days 21-22
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 34,
|
||
|
|
Day 22
|
||
|
|
Cerebus is 28. (34, p.3)
|
||
|
|
Issue 35,
|
||
|
|
Days 2 IssueThis is probably when Cerebus remembered Jaka (36, p.6) (ish 11)
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 37, "Petuniacon, day one"
|
||
|
|
Day 25
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 38, "Petuniacon, day two"
|
||
|
|
Day 26
|
||
|
|
"The government will collapse within days" is consistent with issue 30's
|
||
|
|
forecast, with the PM having bought some time with the tarriff increase
|
||
|
|
(32, pgs.4-5) and then the Grand Inquisitor's death and the subsequent
|
||
|
|
Exodus Inward (see notes to issue 39).
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 39, "Petuniacon, day three" Day 27 The Exodus Inward is
|
||
|
|
already underway. It must have started afte). Sometime in that period,
|
||
|
|
the Roach "mooned" the Grand Inquisitor. (39, p.12; 42, p.1) According
|
||
|
|
to the lette 29 in between ). In fact, the Cirinist invasion waits
|
||
|
|
until mid- summer (see 150, et al.)
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 41
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 42
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 43, "Election Night"
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 44,
|
||
|
|
The day after, back in Northbell.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 45 From Sim's notes in the notebook pages to this issue:
|
||
|
|
"I ... decided I'd rather leave the amount of time that passed in the
|
||
|
|
book up in the air." This has actually been holding for a feware based
|
||
|
|
on other characters in Cerebus tend to be the to write. Once you catch
|
||
|
|
the rhythm of their speech, you're halfway home to the kind of
|
||
|
|
interaction that sells comic books. Someday I'm going to do a story
|
||
|
|
with Cerebus, Elrod and Lord Julius locked in a closet. It'll write
|
||
|
|
iing" & "The Insecure Sinecure" (Elfmy guess is during issue 11.)
|
||
|
|
Cerebus tries to write and drink in peace, but gets interrupted by
|
||
|
|
various people, including Silverspoon.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 53,
|
||
|
|
Back in Iest. A few weeks later? According to the letters
|
||
|
|
page, it is now early summer. Pope Harmony III was executed "a month or
|
||
|
|
so ago" (58, p.9), so at least that much time must have happened in the
|
||
|
|
gaps between 51-52, 56-57, 57- 58.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 59
|
||
|
|
"Carrol E. King Reads"
|
||
|
|
"At the Club One Afternoon"
|
||
|
|
"Memoirs"
|
||
|
|
"note"
|
||
|
|
"First Impression"
|
||
|
|
"Tree Planting"
|
||
|
|
"Approved By"
|
||
|
|
"Rough Pope"
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 60
|
||
|
|
"Sophia"
|
||
|
|
Cerebus and Sophia have been together for at least "a few weeks" (60,
|
||
|
|
p.5)
|
||
|
|
"Henrot-Gutch"
|
||
|
|
"Astoria"
|
||
|
|
"Elf"
|
||
|
|
"Theresa"
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 61
|
||
|
|
"Stormy Weather"
|
||
|
|
"Cerebus Was"
|
||
|
|
"Something Cerebus Was"
|
||
|
|
"Mrs. Tynsdale-Clyde's Tea"
|
||
|
|
"Powers"
|
||
|
|
"Boom"
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 62
|
||
|
|
Four weeks have passed since 62, p.15)
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 63, "Mind Game IV"
|
||
|
|
Just after 62.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 64,
|
||
|
|
Next day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 65,
|
||
|
|
Later that day or early the next.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 66,
|
||
|
|
Next day or maybe two days later?
|
||
|
|
15 days till the end of the world (p.1), then 13 (p.10).
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 67,
|
||
|
|
Next morning through T-10 (67 p.18).
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 68,
|
||
|
|
Morning of T-7 (68, p.1), thru the morning of T-5 (71, p.8).
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 69,
|
||
|
|
Still that morning.
|
||
|
|
Weisshaupt sees the Countess not long after this, certainly before issue
|
||
|
|
76 (84, p.12) How he knew, *before* issue 80, that Cerebus would need
|
||
|
|
cannon (84, pgs.15,20) remains a mystery. Presumably he also arranged
|
||
|
|
the matchbook (88, p.11) and the gold sphere (101, p.14) at this time,
|
||
|
|
though arguments against that have certainly been raised.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 70,
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 71,
|
||
|
|
Still the same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 72,
|
||
|
|
Still the same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 73,
|
||
|
|
Still the same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 74,
|
||
|
|
Still the same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 75,
|
||
|
|
Still the same day (afternoon by now).
|
||
|
|
Jaka's comment that she will have a baby in "a few months" (75, p.7) is
|
||
|
|
probably using a broad definition of "few". It's been less than three
|
||
|
|
months since she last saw Cerebus, presumably unmarried at the time.
|
||
|
|
She
|
||
|
|
certainly isn't showing her pregnancy at this time.
|
||
|
|
BSy.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 83,
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 84,
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
It starts snowing "in the middle of summer" (84, p.20). It would be
|
||
|
|
interesting if the predicted doomsday was on Midsummer's Day...
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 85,
|
||
|
|
Same day, Cerebus been walkigrowing (86, p.2
|
||
|
|
Issue 88,
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 89, "Odd Transformations No 3 Dead Friends"
|
||
|
|
That night.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 90,
|
||
|
|
That night.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 91, "Talking to Tarim"
|
||
|
|
Largely overlaps issue 90.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 92,
|
||
|
|
Morning, T-3.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 93,
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 94,
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 95, "Odd Transformation 4"
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 96,
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 97,
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 98,
|
||
|
|
That night.
|
||
|
|
The Trial st Issue 99,
|
||
|
|
Still that night.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 100,
|
||
|
|
Still that night.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 101,
|
||
|
|
Still t2, "The Sudden Melodlace over seconds, or minutes at most.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 103
|
||
|
|
Passage of time inandbjective through the end operiod, but this may not
|
||
|
|
signify. Theon
|
||
|
|
earth, possibly a year or more.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 104
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 105
|
||
|
|
Spring?
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 112/113
|
||
|
|
The subjective time for Cerebus is immediately after issue 111.
|
||
|
|
The Cirinists have invaded without serious opposition.
|
||
|
|
Seunteu Po the An Iestan prison for "eight months nine
|
||
|
|
JSame dayThht.
|
||
|
|
IssDays 3-5
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 120
|
||
|
|
Day 6? More days may have passed, but at least one has.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 121
|
||
|
|
Night of day 6.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 122
|
||
|
|
Same night, then day 7
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 123
|
||
|
|
Day 8?
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 124
|
||
|
|
Night of day 8.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 125
|
||
|
|
Day 9.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 126
|
||
|
|
Same day.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 127
|
||
|
|
Later that night.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 128
|
||
|
|
Day 10.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue ight, theD Issu Iswo y38ainlyn westimates wo
|
||
|
|
issue about 18 months after that.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Melmoth
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 139
|
||
|
|
Fall? A tree is visible in issue 139, pg.2, bare of leaves.
|
||
|
|
Around this time, Charles X. Claremont (now a subsidiary personali week later.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 144
|
||
|
|
Next day?
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 145
|
||
|
|
Later that day?
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 146
|
||
|
|
Next day?
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 147
|
||
|
|
Next day?
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 148
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 149
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 150
|
||
|
|
Cerebus has been at Dino's for approximately two weeks.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
mothers & daughters
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 151
|
||
|
|
Immediately after issue 150.
|
||
|
|
The source and signifigance of the opening poem are not
|
||
|
|
immediately apparent, e old riddle-
|
||
|
|
poems.
|
||
|
|
4: "One True Asceene (last seen in issue2) is, in fact, Khem.
|
||
|
|
At the timsetating Khem. It is strange that it is deCerebuslwaom the
|
||
|
|
succubus, but that now to have been thelepathic contact. inated in
|
||
|
|
comic books h was an important early inf (briefl 11: "Death" was
|
||
|
|
last seen in issue Interview #107, Dave Sim refers to "the judge-like"
|
||
|
|
charactr this, us in in Iest at this time or not.
|
||
|
|
19-20: This is the clay idol of the Pigt god, which Cerebus
|
||
|
|
brok Issue151.
|
||
|
|
4: "illusion-tower" This must be the official line on what the
|
||
|
|
"Final" Ascension was: an illusion.
|
||
|
|
"he's come back to redeem Iest... just like the prophecies
|
||
|
|
sumably the same peats in issue 91, or similathe immediatel pages.
|
||
|
|
Presumably Cerebus is cutting up 7 and 8 as this is being said.
|
||
|
|
10: "Normina Swartskopf" Obviously a reference to Norman
|
||
|
|
Schwarzkopf(sp?), hero of the Gulf War. Apparently hed in issue 36.
|
||
|
|
For so of character who would cheer Cerebus over the Cirinisters
|
||
|
|
already" We onlyn the sequence on
|
||
|
|
Issue 153tely after issue 152.
|
||
|
|
4: Cerebus' speech seems to have surprised the Cirinists enough
|
||
|
|
t: This is the first time DaDuke Leonardi, last sexSeth, was last seen
|
||
|
|
in issue xxx.
|
||
|
|
11:y a typr "sliver".
|
||
|
|
15: The tower arowing again, in now the people are hass and
|
||
|
|
Cerebus is nowhere to be seen.
|
||
|
|
8: The Roach is relating various political a
|
||
|
|
"king's king" mentioned in reference to Diamondback.
|
||
|
|
"(Priestess beats queen)bablyCirin-Astoria
|
||
|
|
conft that Theresa related the start of in issue xxx.
|
||
|
|
"Cerebus captures Astoria..." iymbolism. ance (in the)one
|
||
|
|
card "over" another is unknown.
|
||
|
|
9: "Daughters of Sappho" Thi" Prey that they won't cause trouble.
|
||
|
|
16: "second cousin of all battles" Another reference to the Gulf
|
||
|
|
War, called by Saddam Hussein "the mother of all battles".
|
||
|
|
18: Punisheroach is a parody of the Marvel Comic's character "The
|
||
|
|
Punisher", a vigilante who goes after drug dealers with large caliber
|
||
|
|
weapons and extreme predjudice. The "Multi-roach" aspects to his
|
||
|
|
personality are wholly original.
|
||
|
|
19: Whatever "Great Change" (151, p.7) was building up, it's
|
||
|
|
stopped. For the moment.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 155
|
||
|
|
Immediately after issue 154.
|
||
|
|
1: This may be conected with Cerebus' dream of an injured ear in
|
||
|
|
issue xxx.
|
||
|
|
2: The fellow with the beard is king K'Cor, who hasn't bon,
|
||
|
|
although she seems to be an earlier would-be redeemer made (see xxx).
|
||
|
|
46 meters across gives the sphere a radius of 23 meters. The
|
||
|
|
number 23 has frequent mystic associations, both in Cerebus and
|
||
|
|
elsewhere.
|
||
|
|
6: Note the soles of his shoes.
|
||
|
|
9: Yes, that's the general in the lower left hand corner.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 156
|
||
|
|
Immediately after is Covernteus Po appeared.
|
||
|
|
3: heard from in issue 67and of Cerebus.
|
||
|
|
5: 8: "This isn't the Seventh Sphere." Unclear why Cerebus is so
|
||
|
|
certain of this. See notes to issue 157 for more discussion.
|
||
|
|
10: "rooting for Weisshaupt" (xxx, p.xxx).
|
||
|
|
13: "infertiles" In a society where citizenship is based upon
|
||
|
|
live birth, infertiles are clearly second-class citizens.
|
||
|
|
15: "Goddess of life eternal" K'Cor was not previously known to
|
||
|
|
worship a goddess. Whether this godess is to be identified with Terim
|
||
|
|
is unclear. His Sacred Venusian Death-Symbol apppicts Cerebus rising over a
|
||
|
|
distorted view of the cover from last issue,in keeping with the theme of
|
||
|
|
"up".
|
||
|
|
2: "the time of your 'kidnap'ally, all the areas
|
||
|
|
describparts
|
||
|
|
of theSeventh, including this one, if Po's earlier commentceved.
|
||
|
|
3: "there is he beheaded his first Borealan."
|
||
|
|
7: This page is the firsatdid*, indeed, sleep6. This scene
|
||
|
|
would have taken place bhe "twin" Judge.
|
||
|
|
11: The top of Cerebus' spding.
|
||
|
|
12ly means this in an allegorical as
|
||
|
|
well as a literal sense; there is no upper limit to what Cerebus can
|
||
|
|
achieve.
|
||
|
|
14-17: The events here seem (torepresent Cerebus' " 20:
|
||
|
|
Issue 158
|
||
|
|
Immediately after issue Cover: The cover depictstly) transparent
|
||
|
|
aardvark hand setting the King's pawn down at King Four.
|
||
|
|
1: The Roach is displaying stronger mental powers than ever
|
||
|
|
before. Of course, his "telepathy" could equally well be an
|
||
|
|
hallucination...
|
||
|
|
4: "capricious aspects of my conciousness" This goes some way to
|
||
|
|
explaining the various personality shifts that Po has exhibited in his
|
||
|
|
various appearances.
|
||
|
|
5: "Each entity maneouvers its pieces on many boards
|
||
|
|
simultaneously and each entity is itself a chess piece." That this
|
||
|
|
philosophy is shared by Dave Sim can be seeen by his numerous references
|
||
|
|
in the letters pages over the ensuing months to "the upper chessboards".
|
||
|
|
"My first life" Suenteus Po is here claiming to be the
|
||
|
|
reincarnation of the "first" Suenteus Po. If he has indeed lived
|
||
|
|
several different lives, that might explain his giving Cerebus two
|
||
|
|
differnt dates for his birth (20, p.7; 156, p.20); he might well have
|
||
|
|
been born on each of them!
|
||
|
|
12: Note that Cirin and the Roach are to some extent echoing each
|
||
|
|
other's actions, by purging their followers.
|
||
|
|
13: The number and identiar subsequent scenes) is probably
|
||
|
|
irrelevant. They are simply representative examples of "the people",
|
||
|
|
discussing matters of obvious concern.
|
||
|
|
16: Cirin's diary is a clear paralell to Cerebus' "On Governing",
|
||
|
|
and shows about as much grasp of reality.
|
||
|
|
18: It is not clear yet what the signifigance is of the Black
|
||
|
|
Queen looming so large in this image.
|
||
|
|
19: KP-K4.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 159
|
||
|
|
Immediately after Issue 158.
|
||
|
|
3: "celestial aspect of the goddess herself" Given that K'Cor
|
||
|
|
hclearly has some knowledge of astrological signifigances, I am puzzled
|
||
|
|
by how to reconcile his current goddess-worship with his past opposition
|
||
|
|
to "Venusians" (whom one would expect to symbolize servants of the
|
||
|
|
goddess). Of course, he may have effected a religious conversion when
|
||
|
|
Sedra left him; he *did* cease constrPa, in
|
||
|
|
Cerebus' case, Astoria.
|
||
|
|
"Queen to King's Bishop Three" I think Astoria is the White
|
||
|
|
Queen.
|
||
|
|
8-9: It is interesting that the current Po paints a fairly
|
||
|
|
unappealing picture of the founding of Illusionism, as he himself seems
|
||
|
|
to have been an active Illusionist in his current incarnation.
|
||
|
|
15: QP-Q3.
|
||
|
|
16: "Must retell my origin!" It is a common trait of comic
|
||
|
|
books about costumed superheroes that they retell their "or the end of
|
||
|
|
_Church_&_State_.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 160
|
||
|
|
Immediat159.
|
||
|
|
2: The two prisoners are Archbishop Posey, and the Oscar from
|
||
|
|
_Jaka's_Story_.
|
||
|
|
7: "first meeting" (164, p.16ff).
|
||
|
|
"some weeks ago" (146, p.12ff).
|
||
|
|
"two years of hard labour" The same sentence that Oscar received,
|
||
|
|
thus unsurprising that they ended up in the same labor camp. Strangely
|
||
|
|
enough, (146, p.18) gives his sentence as *five* years hard labor.
|
||
|
|
8-9: This sequence is deliberately evocative of Jesus Christ.
|
||
|
|
"I wash my hands of you" See (100, p.7) for an echo of this image.
|
||
|
|
"You experienced it yourself" Issues 99-100.
|
||
|
|
10: QB-KB4
|
||
|
|
11: These spheres of light appear to represent the planets of the
|
||
|
|
solar system.
|
||
|
|
13: "Filthy Lower Feldan Post Cards!" Lower Feldans have already
|
||
|
|
been established as speaking French, so it comes as little surprise that
|
||
|
|
they appreciate sexuality.
|
||
|
|
"What the maid saw" was a typical caption for a pornographic
|
||
|
|
Victorian-era postcard.
|
||
|
|
"Splurt" One presumes that the Roach has just spontaneously
|
||
|
|
ejaculated at the sight of this picture. His libido seems undiminished
|
||
|
|
in the next issue, however.
|
||
|
|
14: When last seen, the Eye in the Pyramid had only male members.
|
||
|
|
This might well be a different anti-Lord-Julius conspiracy that has just
|
||
|
|
adopted the name of an earlier one. The rhetoric is notably feminist.
|
||
|
|
16-17: Cirin is dreaming of Ascending on her giant Gold Sphere to
|
||
|
|
meet Terim, but it becomes a nightmare when the god(ess?) is revealed to
|
||
|
|
be male.
|
||
|
|
19: If an 89-day probationary period seems odd, just remember the
|
||
|
|
mathematical skills we're dealing with here. In all likelihood, it's a
|
||
|
|
90-day period, and Dirty Drew just got his subtraction wrong.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 161
|
||
|
|
Immediately after Issue 160.
|
||
|
|
2-3: Cerebus has moved KB-K2. Pushing the bishop further would
|
||
|
|
have prevented the upcoming Scholar's Mate, but Cerebus was presumably
|
||
|
|
distracted by the appearance of Bran.
|
||
|
|
4: This is an insightful, if biased, synopsis of Bran's life (and
|
||
|
|
death).
|
||
|
|
7: It is unclear whether these demons were real, or just imagined
|
||
|
|
shapes in the clouds; if indeed there is any practical difference.
|
||
|
|
9: "You're going to *marry* me?!" Lord Julius, having been
|
||
|
|
divorced (at least) three times, naturally sees it as a dire fate :-)
|
||
|
|
10, 15: The speeches of the Elf and the Judge would seem to
|
||
|
|
indicate that almost no time has passed since they were last seen in
|
||
|
|
issue 157.
|
||
|
|
11: Astoria also dreams of Ascending with a Gold Sphere.
|
||
|
|
12: The Cirinist at the door is making what can only be a
|
||
|
|
recognition sign for the Eye in the Pyramid. This is the first time
|
||
|
|
that Astoria has been overtly connected with that group, but it now
|
||
|
|
seems as if she may be its leader. It is unclear whether the assassin
|
||
|
|
attquickly. Clay pipes were given up in favor of cigars in between
|
||
|
|
issues 22 and 23,sic way to beat inexperienced chess players. It is
|
||
|
|
called the Scholar's Mate because it is one step up from the Fool's
|
||
|
|
Mate, which is an even quicker game.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
Issue 162
|
||
|
|
Immediately after Issue 161.
|
||
|
|
3: The small Cerebus "splashes" into the head of the larger one.
|
||
|
|
5: "You've been smoking" Cirin must have a very good sense of
|
||
|
|
smell.
|
||
|
|
"Adamantium skeleton" Left-over from his "Wolveroach" days.
|
||
|
|
Amusing, since one of the primary properties of Wolverine's skeleton was
|
||
|
|
its inability to be changed.
|
||
|
|
6: The emerging figure is now clearly identifiable as Cerebus.
|
||
|
|
7-8: The Roach starts going through personalities fast again;
|
||
|
|
they are parodies of currently-"hot" comic book characters, namely:
|
||
|
|
Lobo, a psychotic alien "hero" who uses the word "frag" a lot
|
||
|
|
(where most humans would use "fuck").
|
||
|
|
Cable, a mutant "hero" with big guns, who was created by an artist
|
||
|
|
known for drawing people with huge muscles but tiny heads (and squinting
|
||
|
|
eyes, see Punisherroach's chest logo).
|
||
|
|
Venom, another psychotic alien "hero", who used to be Spider-Man's
|
||
|
|
costume (It's a long story and you *don't* want to know...).
|
||
|
|
Ghost Rider, "The Spirit of Vengeance", wome sort of demon with a
|
||
|
|
flaming skull for a head.
|
||
|
|
10: "The 'giant of stone' of Pigtish prophecies" This (hitherto-
|
||
|
|
unknown) prophecy sheds sudden light on the question of why Bran McMufin
|
||
|
|
committed suicide. He did so when Thrunk, a *stone giant*, assumed the
|
||
|
|
Papacy.
|
||
|
|
12: Much of this dirp_N_M_ certainly seem to be in re" ikely one
|
||
|
|
of thbouquet of roses behind his back, with which to surprise Blossom.
|
||
|
|
5: The Cirinist in the background is presumably taking notes on
|
||
|
|
everything Astoria says and does, for Cirin's files. She may also
|
||
|
|
function as a guard.
|
||
|
|
8: The Cirinist stenographer is a different one.
|
||
|
|
12-15: The use of the Ahnk is puzzling. Two obvious
|
||
|
|
interpretations spring to mind, but it's unclear which one is correct.
|
||
|
|
It may be that the psychic powers of the Cirinists allow it to function
|
||
|
|
as a "microphone", sending signals out to some unknown audience; or it
|
||
|
|
may simply be an administrative tool, indicating who currently has the
|
||
|
|
right to speak.
|
||
|
|
The general format is one of a talk show. If the talk-show
|
||
|
|
hostess is a parody of anyone in particular, I don't recognize her. Dr.
|
||
|
|
Ironcat is a parody of cat yronwode, Editor-in-Chief of Eclipse Comics.
|
||
|
|
17: Astoria has clearly "gotten to" her files, and replaced them
|
||
|
|
with a dry sense of humor.
|
||
|
|
20: The fat women is strangely unsurprised by Cerebus' "dropping
|
||
|
|
in", and the skinny one seems to be terrified of her.
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
||
|
|
--
|
||
|
|
-Hades (Brian V. Hughes)
|
||
|
|
"No sir, I didn't like it."
|