Bloom County Complete Library Volume 2
How I love to watch the morn,
With golden sun that shines,
Up above to nicely warm
These frosty toes of mine.
The wind doth taste of bitterseet,
Like jasper wine and sugar,
I bet it’s blown through others’ feet,
Like those of…
…Casper Weinberger
If you don’t remember that newspaper comic strip (or who Caper Weinberger is or what a newspaper is), then this collection might not be for you. But if Milo, Binkley, Opus, Bill, Steve Dallas and friends were part of your daily must read comics in the newspaper then here’s a second collection that you must have. The first volume showed Breathed coming into his own, from a second-rate Doonesbury to keen observer of pop culture. This second volume shows Breathed hitting his stride. The jokes are funnier, the characters are more distinctive and interesting. We start with our core group and you can see Breathed trying to bring in new characters. Yaz Pistachio was the next in a long line of female characters that just never fit in. There were several proto-Olivers before Breathed found what he was looking for.
Some gags which had started previously (such as Milo at the newspaper or Binkley’s anxiety closet or the Cutter John Enterprise wheelchair starship) continue on and you can see Breathed getting more comfortable with his characters and their setting. The insanity is ratcheted up a notch as Breathed starts dealing with the changes in society such as more Reaganomics, the exercise craze and personal computers. The 1984 presidential election gave Breathed plenty to do with the Meadow Party running around San Francisco with a penguin VP candidate and a dead cat as the presidential candidate.
If any, or all, of this makes sense, then get volume 2 and make sure to pre-order volume 3 (coming in November). Highly, highly recommended.