Here’s a great snapshot of Howie’s very fun drawings, paintings and strips you can depend on for a good laugh. A lot of this has already been published as minis, but it’s nice to have them all in one place (especially as they’re all out of print.) This stuff is really well-drawn and professionally executed (no surprise, as Howie’s been at this for awhile. Got published in such noted underground staples as Real Stuff, too.) The beautiful full-color “Florida for Joe the Butcher” whisks you off to a sun-bathin’, picture-takin’, sandwich-eatin, butcher-stuff talkin’, afternoon-nappin’ and, finally, plane-flight-home-takin vacation. One of the feature characters, Howie (no resemblance to the author) is ridiculously obese, enjoying life to its fullest by constantly eating and masturbating. (Hey, it’s a living.) Some of the stories betray a real heart, such as “The Squirrel Lover;” an amazing silent strip that’s a masterpiece of efficient characterization. We get to know the lead character so well in just two pages, as well as feel so happy for him by the end, that you’d think you just read a book. Maybe it’s because he gets his bread-clothes eaten off him by a bunch of squirrels, I dunno. (LR)
Over 15,000 Zine Reviews & Growing!
