Issue 88
From CerebusWiki
| July 1986: Out With The In Crowd | |
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| Issue 88 | |
| President | Dave Sim |
| Administrator | Karen McKiel |
| Backgrounds, cover, colour, and tones | Gerhard |
| Circulation | 33,000 |
| Church & State II | |
| Previous | Next |
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Contents |
Issue Summary
Things come to a head. The Secret Sacred Wars Roach challenges Thrunk (or Epop, as The Roach thinks of him). Astoria averts her eyes as The Roach goes flying into the Lower City, still carrying Elrod with him. Cerebus finally finishes the climb, and heads straight to Weisshaupt's cannons. Cerebus takes back his position as Pope with two violent explosions.
Two special events happen in this issue. Astoria sees a small Cerebus float before her eyes, the first time that type of event occurs. Later Cerebus tells Astoria to go away, and she does - by vanishing.
Characters
- Astoria (last seen in issue 87; next appearance in issue 93)
- Boobah (last seen in issue 76; next appearance in issue 90)
- Cerebus (last seen in issue 87; next appearance in issue 89)
- Secret Sacred Wars Roach (last seen in issue 87; next appearance in issue 93)
- Elrod (last seen in issue 87; next appearance in issue 93)
- Posey (last seen in issue 87; next appearance in issue 98)
- Thrunk (last seen in issue 87; final appearance)
Locations
Artist Notes
A Cerebus Mailing List "talk" with Dave Sim
Q. Why/how was Astoria transported to the Lion of Serrea? What made her kill the Lion?
DAVE: Mm. I would have to reread that part. It was very much of a piece with the hall of mirrors effect of Cerebus and Astoria locked into their dichotomous relationship of Pontiff and Prisoner. The point I was making was that if the situation was immediately reversed she was going to condemn the Pontiff to death even though, in this incarnation she was definitely the prisoner. It was a sophomoric viewpoint that I had at the time. Would Jesus have killed Pilate if he had the chance? Would John the Baptist have killed Harrod if the roles were reversed. The answer is of course not. But at the time all I knew was that Jesus looked like the guy who played JFK in the "Missiles of October" and Pilate looked like David Bowie. Sounded like about an even match. The President of the United States versus Ziggy Stardust.
Annotations
- p. 7: Astoria thinks she should try and reach the gold herself. Why and how she thinks she can get the gold from the hotel Cerebus was staying at as Most Holy is unknown. Unless she is speaking of the gold sphere left by Weisshaupt seen in issue 101.
- p. 11: Cerebus fins a box of matches with the note on it "Good luck. W." The first of two such notes he finds, the second is in issue 101.
- Last page has a reproduction of a note from Dave Sim on Aardvark-Vanaheim, Inc. letter head. This note states that 1,552 of the 6,000 copies have been sold thus far of the High Society phonebook.
Quotes
- p. 18: Cerebus: "Anyone who moves before Most Holy comes back out will spend the rest of eternity sipping lava through an iron straw."
Back up material
- Photo of the Artist as a Young Man: A picture of Dave that was printed in the Hamilton Spectator, March 14, 1959.
- In Aardvark Comment Dave says that "The Animated Cerebus portfolio...45 plates, full colour, twelve dollars. I assumed a reasonable price and nice package would sell. We lost $17,000..."
