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Backderf, Derf – True Stories Volume One
If you’re one of those people who get offended when others (rightly) make fun of white trash folks, or of hopeless (though real) stereotypes of human behavior, you might want to move on. If, on the other hand, you have a sense of humor and understand that it’s a miracle that society is still functioning, you are going to love damned near every page of this one. Derf did a series of single page strips for 24 years, and this is the first volume covering that run. The order in which he is releasing them is a bit erratic, but this one covers 2002-2008. Still, almost any one of them could appear in the newspaper today and it wouldn’t look a bit out of place. My only question is what happened to the rest of the strips, as there’s no way this covers every strip he did for those years, but maybe the world isn’t ready for a complete collection of the strip. Anyway, subjects in here include many different happenings at the big box stores, the assorted homeless folks on the streets and their behaviors, a businessman with a counter-intuitive tattoo, Americans of all stripes at their most American, fighting off a burglar with a teddy bear, a cross on a wheel, people making a ridiculous stop on a charity run, an inspiring guy who refused to get off the wrong way walkway at the airport, and the assistant principal who is forced to direct traffic away from students who are too busy on their phones to look either way before crossing the street. The common theme throughout is the proud, willful ignorance of Americans, and I don’t see many signs that that has gotten any better in the years since these strips first appeared. It’s hilarious while also hurting your heart, and those are the best kind of comics. $6
Derf – Al Qaeda Funnies
Al Qaeda Funnies
The world needs more good political cartoons, so it’s always great to see something like this. Osama in 50 years, the cost of the war, leaving for Canada, comparing the Iraqis problems to ours, all kinds of interesting stuff in here. By the way, I hate Bush Jr. very, very, very much, just in case anybody out there was curious. I’d love to have more right-wing cartoons on here, just for balance (and isn’t it funny how Fox News has made that word a joke?). but it’s really hard to find any funny ones. Seriously, if anybody can recommend a funny, smart right-wing comic, e-mail me and I’ll put it up here immediately. Did I get off on a rant there? Gasp! I can’t believe it. Basically, there’s not much to say about a short book of strips without giving a whole lot of it away, so that’s all you need to know. There’s some seriously funny stuff in here. Not always about W., but a lot of it is, and there are a couple that aren’t that great. They’re in the minority though, and this is very much worth picking up, especially for $1 Contact info is up there!
Derf – My Friend Dahmer
My Friend Dahmer
Before I get started, I should point out the interview on this site with Derf. Just in case you hadn’t seen it the first time. As for this book, I have to admit that I’ve avoided getting it for years. I thought that the guy was just trying to make a buck (although in an unlikely medium), or that he was just trying to put out a sensationalistic story, or maybe he just wanted to get some notoriety on his own. After reading this, I’m pretty sure that I was wrong on all counts. He has a lengthy introduction explaining why he had to do this book, and it was basically because he had a story to tell. Simple as that. Even so, it took him about 10 years after the crimes were discovered that he was able to put this together. So what’s this book about? Well, except for the gory sample I picked, there’s not a bit of violence in here. Instead, its a tale of obvious (in hindsight) signs of mental problems, a lack of attention paid by anybody in a position in authority, and a boy who pretends that he has cerebral palsy to get anybody to notice him. The picture in here is of a young man who had literally no friendly contact with the world, and his slow and noticeable descent into madness. The problem is that everybody has their own problems, and most people don’t have time to stop to try and fix something like this. Derf thinks that Dahmer could have been saved. I’m not sure, after reading this, if that was a real possibility, but at least the damage could have been minimized. This is probably $3 or $4, but it’s really worth a look. Not just for some sick fetish with serial killers, but to see what these people are like when they’re just trying to fit in. Here’s a website…
