Book Review - OPUS: 25 Years of His Sunday Best by Berkeley Breathed
Category Book Review Berkeley Breathed OPUS: 25 Years of His Sunday Best
Bloom County is in my top five favorite comic strip list (keeping Calvin & Hobbes company). And when you talk about Bloom County, you're talking about the lovable penguin, Opus. Berkeley Breathed has compiled all the full color Sunday strips in the book OPUS: 25 Years of His Sunday Best. Everything from 1980 through 2005, from Bloom County through Outland and finally to just plain Opus. Great walk down memory lane, and it's amazing how well those strips hold up over time.
Breathed goes into some of his rationale behind his break between Bloom County and Outland, how Outland was started as a Sunday-only strip, and how he came back from retirement once again to do the Opus strip. He confesses that trying to stay creative and motivated is hard over time, and it's why he chose to walk away instead of letting the strip deteriorate. I have to respect that, as I've seen more than a few strips that have overstayed their welcome and are merely rehashes of the same old thing.
The only thing I wish Breathed would have done here is have a small date reference on each strip. Some of the humor is topical, and it would have been nice to have a date to remember what else was going on. Still, it's a tribute to Opus that even without dates, the humor and commentary loses none of its power. This was an hour of time well (and enjoyably) spent.
Bloom County is in my top five favorite comic strip list (keeping Calvin & Hobbes company). And when you talk about Bloom County, you're talking about the lovable penguin, Opus. Berkeley Breathed has compiled all the full color Sunday strips in the book OPUS: 25 Years of His Sunday Best. Everything from 1980 through 2005, from Bloom County through Outland and finally to just plain Opus. Great walk down memory lane, and it's amazing how well those strips hold up over time.
Breathed goes into some of his rationale behind his break between Bloom County and Outland, how Outland was started as a Sunday-only strip, and how he came back from retirement once again to do the Opus strip. He confesses that trying to stay creative and motivated is hard over time, and it's why he chose to walk away instead of letting the strip deteriorate. I have to respect that, as I've seen more than a few strips that have overstayed their welcome and are merely rehashes of the same old thing.
The only thing I wish Breathed would have done here is have a small date reference on each strip. Some of the humor is topical, and it would have been nice to have a date to remember what else was going on. Still, it's a tribute to Opus that even without dates, the humor and commentary loses none of its power. This was an hour of time well (and enjoyably) spent.
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Posted by Nathan T. Freeman At 16:02:34 On 28/03/2009 | - Website - |
Posted by Mike Lazar At 18:00:05 On 28/03/2009 | - Website - |