Aline Kominsky-Crumb, The Bunch's Power Pak Comics #1 (1979)

 

The Bunch's Power Pak Comics #1, by Aline Kominsky-Crumb (1979).

Revelatory, ground-breaking autobiographical collection of comics stories. Aline Kominksy's confessional, scrawly cartooning is made up of a great variety of agonized linework, full of contrasting hatching and stippling give a sense of real texture to her drawings. All her figures are awkwardly posed, stuffed into ill-fitting clothing, with huge noses, blubbery lips. And what these figures do and say! Oh my! The stories here chronicle Aline's early life and upbringing and depict taboo subjects like her parents having sex, Aline sitting on the toilet, her love-hate relationship with her mother ("Blabette") and Aline confessing all her most non-flattering, innermost desires and vanities, all in abject, brain-searing detail that influenced a generation of comics makers.

The critics: "Aline depicts this all with a critical eye, sometimes commenting directly even when she doesn’t need to (e.g. , a panel showing the Bunch receiving money for her report card is accompanied by a narrative tag labeling the moment her “first training in capitalist greed and opportunism”) . The approach creates a tension between Kominsky’s need to grow out of those elements of her upbringing that are offensive to her and the self-obsession implicit in her continuing autobiographical drive."

--Bill Sherman, “Underground Comix: Memories and Studebakers” (The Comics Journal #55, 1980).

Chester Brown, Yummy Fur (1986)

 

Yummy Fur by Chester Brown (1986).

One of the greatest comic book series of all time, Chester Brown's surrealistic, scatalogical, sacred-and-profane Yummy Fur debuted as a self-published mini-comic before being picked up by Toronto's Vortex Comics (the seven issues of the mini-comic were reprinted in the first 3 issues of the Vortex series).  It was in the pages of Yummy Fur that Brown first serialized his Ed the Happy Clown graphic novel and where he debuted his groundbreaking, revelatory autobiographical pieces, some of which were collected in The Playboy and I Never Liked You. Yummy Fur was also the home for Brown's quirky, personal, unvarnished Gospel adaptations.

The critics: "It’s hard to remember this now, but when Chester first started cartooning he did seem to be a late-born underground cartoonist, someone whose roots were clearly in the comics of Crumb and Justin Green. In chronological terms, Chester’s earliest work is much closer to the heyday of the undergrounds (say 1968-1974) than we are to Chester’s first published work. The sexual radicalism of Chester’s art, his enjoyment at shocking his audience, and his direct political engagement all place him still in the underground comics tradition." --Jeet Heer, "A Chester Brown Notebook" (The Comics Journal, May 19, 2011).

Nancy Burton, Gentles Tripout (1966)

"Gentles Tripout" by Nancy Burton aka Hurricane Nancy aka Panzika, 1966.

 

Hergé, The Shooting Star (1942)

The Shooting Star by Hergé (1942).

 

William Steig, The Lonely Ones (1942)

 

The Lonely Ones by William Steig, 1942.

Crockett Johnson, Barnaby (1942)

 

Barnaby by Crockett Johnson, 1942.

Tom Veitch and Greg Irons, The Legion of Charlies (1971)

The Legion of Charlies by Tom Veitch and Greg Irons (1971)

The classic Underground depicting twin horrors of the 1960s.

The Critics: "Contains long story written by Tom Veitch, older brother of Rick Veitch, drawn by the near legendary Greg Irons, comparing Charlie Company doing My Lai massacre in Viet Nam to the Charlie Manson family LA area murder rampage. Quite heavy duty graphic in the true depiction of the carnage. Both stories run unique in that one story runs along the top panels while the other story runs along all the bottom panels. Also contains Dave Sheridan art. Very EC horror & war comix inspired. Highly recommended!" --Robert Beerbohm, Facebook post, 2021