The 1980's has brought me my three all time favorite comic strips: Calvin and Hobbes, the Far Side, and Bloom County. Of course, Bloom County was far better than its sequel, Outland. Bloom County also is the strip where Berkeley Breathed actually explained away one of its biggest nits!
Steve Dallas's mother was supposed to be married to his father, still, and then later on, mentions are made of her numerous husbands. Later, it's explained away that all this time she married other men, Steve's father was still reading in the den! Only in Bloom County could you ridiculously explain a nit like that. In its universe a lot can happen (though no explanation ever was made how Donald Trump got himself back out of Bill the Cat's body, but technically, Bill has been dead since 1982, considering Oliver's questionable methods of "reviving" him).
Nits:
So when Binkley returns as a regular to Outland, is he doing double duty since he's also Bart Simpson (or was he just a "stunt Bart"?)
I remember back in about 1995 I had a couple of undergraduate college-age students living in the apartment below mine. One night during a conversation I mentioned Bloom County, they had no idea what I was talking about. It made me feel old.
One of my favorites, and from an Albuquerque native to boot! Okay, I don't know if he was born there, but he lived there during the early days of the strip- see the back cover of Bloom County Babylon.
And those of you who subscribe to mycomics.com are in luck! The strip is being republished digitally. Check the details here.
That's interesting. I read an interview with Breathed sometime last year where he was asked about the early strips and he didn't want them republished. Sorry I don't have a link to the interview. I think it done by the guys who do the PvP comic, which I also don't have a link to.
I think that a smattering of the early ones were reprinted as the intro to the other big Bloom County anthology, the name of which escapes me for a moment. The sample included several strips that were later recycled in Bloom County.
Berkeley Breathed has brought back Opus in a Sunday comic strip titled simply, "Opus"
It's really not that interesting. Then again, this comic was never meant to be Fox Trot.
Unfortunately he's added an especially annoying character to Opus called Pickles. He should just stop creating little girl characters. I couldn't stand Ronald-Ann (?), she appeared near the end of Bloom County & was in Outland, either.
Opus is coming to his end. As I write this, we last saw Opus in an animal shelter with a dog. Some tropical girls come looking for a critter to take with them. Who will go? Probably the dog. If so, what about Opus? Perhaps Binkley should come reclaim him. If Opus does meet his maker, then maybe Oliver Jones can clone one of his feathers.
I also wonder:
Will the dog truly be able to enjoy life with tropical women considering that he is probably 'fixed'?