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Wayne Markley
by Wayne Markley
In the world of comics books, there are a hand full of creators whose styles and storytelling is so distinct that it is a treat when they put out a new book. You do not see these talents doing superhero comics, but instead tend to tell stories that they are interested in. I think this is to their advantage. These creators include Dan Clowes, Los brothers Hernandez (who do dabble with superheroes but are best known for their own creation, love and Rockets), and the subject of this blog, Charles Burns.
El Borbah
Charles Burns output is not really all that much, but when he does release a new story it is always worth the wait. His earliest work was for Art Speigelman’s Raw Books. There he did two stories, big baby and hard Boiled Detective Stories. Both of these, as well as the rest of the Burns’ early work, was collected into three hardcover cover volumes published by Fantagraphics called the Charles Burns Library. These collections are called El Borbah, big Baby, and Skin Deep. All three hardcovers have been reprinted in softcover which are still in print after the hardcovers went out of print. El Borbah is about a 400 pound private eye who wears a mask and wresting singlet and is as hardboiled as they come. There is tons of action and conventional crime here as well as much more than a nod to Luche Libre. big baby collects the earlier Raw stories about a young young boy who leaves the safety of his room and discovers all sorts of nastiness in the world outside of his home. big baby has a large dose of surrealism as well as tons of pop culture references. The third volume, Skin Deep, is a collection of short stories and material from Burns’ sketchbook. Unlike the first two collections, this is a bit much more jumbled. It doesn’t feature a single character or storyline so much a collection of everything else not in the first two volumes.
Black Hole
Black hole was Charles Burns epic and one of his few forays into conventional comics books. It was a twelve part story told in single comics, and was collected into one massive volume. The story took a while to come out and over the time it was running it went from kitchen Sink press to Fantagraphics. (RIP kitchen Sink Press, you are missed). Black hole had all of Burns’ conventional themes of crime, sexuality, and a surreal world where very little is what it seems. It tells the tale of suburbia in the 1970s where there is a unusual afflict running through the teenage community and it is transmitted through sexual contact. As if this was not a unusual enough concept, there is also a series of murders going on in the small town along with the plague. All told, this is an remarkable story that is both complex but feels so easy when reading it. This is part of Burns charms as a storyteller; his art is clean and graceful, yet the storytelling is very complex and creative. Burns is able to create stories that are fully fleshed out to the point of being real, no matter how farfetched the premise might be. As much as I like Burns’ storytelling, it is not for young readers as much as his work has nudity and stories are for mature audiences.
X’ed Out
His newest work just wrapped up. It is a hardcover trilogy consisting of X’ed Out (2010), The Hive (2012), and Sugar Skull (2014). All three of these hardcovers are beautiful and the artwork is smooth and slick like all of Burns’ work. These three hardcovers all full color, unlike Black Hole, which was black and white. The color add a whole new dimension to Burns’ artwork, as with numerous European albums, the colors become practically a third layer along with the pencil and ink and add a depth and fullness to the art. Burns’ work has been compared to Herge, the developer of Tin Tin, and in a way I can see that, but with a looser storytelling style.
The actual story that takes place across the three albums is very challenging to summaries without giving anything away. Basically, it opens with Doug waking up hearing a unusual buzz in his room and discovering a hole in his wall. In the hole he sees his long deceased cat, Inky. Doug climbs through the hole to try and retrieve Inky. From there he enters a very unusual alternate world run by lizard men and all types of distinct people doing all sorts of odd jobs were he becomes part of the ongoing world. Oh yeah, Doug meets a woman and things go down hill from there.
The Hive
At the same time as we are follow Doug and his adventures in an alternate dimension (maybe. It is not explained where this other world is), there is a parallel story set in the our world about a slacker whose life is not what he hoped it would be and he seems unable to make the best choices. With each of the three albums the stories jump ahead in time. Also, the slacker story bounces back and forth in time telling his back story while showing his present circumstances. The two stories run parallel throughout the three volumes, with each story reaching a natural conclusion, although not necessarily a pleased one. once again, due to sexual content, these books are for mature readers only.
Sugar Skull
While it has taken six years to tell this story, I should say I think it was well worth it. The storytelling reminds me a lot of Jim (Frank) Woodring’s surreal style with a much more coherent story. Burns gracefully slips between our world and Doug’s odd alternative world. The art is slick and beautiful to look at. I think this trilogy would benefit from a second or third reading as there is so much depth and nuance to art and story that I am sure I have over looked some of the nuances. Overall, I think this trilogy rivals, if not surpasses, his prior classic, Black Hole. X’ed Out, The Hive, and Sugar Skull are all worth tracking down and experiencing.
Walt Disney’s Donald Duck: Ghost of the Grotto
Something not by Burns I’d like to recommend is Walt Disney’s Donald Duck: Ghost of the Grotto, a 96 page small new paperback (in the size of the original Garfield newspaper strip collections). It collects a number of stories both short and long. In addition to Ghost in the Grotto, the longest story in the book, it also includes Donald the Fireman, and a number of two and three page stories. Of course you also get Huey, Dewey and Louie in practically every story. The paper stock is bright and white and ideal for the stories which are all written and drawn by Carl Barks. The colors are fantastic and warm and each story has all the various panels that have been cut in previous collections restored. It is fun and interesting to look closely at Bark’s art as there are subtle gags going on all the time in the background. It may be a bird or a squirrel doing something cute, but it adds a whole another dimension to the stories. This is a ideal book for kids young and old and it belongs in every library. My one criticism is it a bit pricy at $12.99, but worth every penny.
Everything here is the opinion of me, and in no way reflects the thoughts or opinions of Westfield Comics or their employees. I welcome and look forward to your comments, both good and bad. Do you like Charles Burns work? Is there someone else you feel is unnoticed or underrated? Please let me know. I can be found at MFBWAY@AOL.COM.
Thank you.