Underground Comics

I knew of Robert Crumb’s work long before I discovered his underground comics. As an avid art book collector, I own several of his sketchbooks, and he’s a fantastic draftsman. However, I can’t say that I particularly am fond of the underground comic scene. While I appreciate the historical context behind underground comics, it’s a shame that by violating the Code’s restrictions they violated stereotypes minorities have fought to desist.

While I can appreciate the movement for what it is, I can’t justify the offensive stereotypes that the underground comics scene has glorified. And honestly, I’ve known people to try and defend this sort of “art” - it’s a little jarring, considering that no matter how you try to portray underground comics, it’s still racist. It’s still misogynistic. How can an argument even be made for this sort of thing?

There is a fascinating documentary that I would recommend watching – Crumb, a documentary on Robert Crumb and his family. The documentary particularly showcases Crumb’s brothers, who amazingly enough, are crazier than Crumb himself. Perhaps Crumb is the most normal because he had an outlet (underground comics) to take his perversion out of. Apparently the only reason why Crumb agreed to make the documentary in the first place is because the director threatened to commit suicide if Crumb didn’t participate…? A little much for me.