Charles Shultz and My Appreciation of Comics.

My appreciation for comics goes back a long way. When I was a pre-adolescent I discovered Marvel superhero comics. My brother and I both enjoyed reading them, which made their purchase complicated. My father believed that it was economically irrational for us to buy duplicate copies of the same titles. He said that there was no reason why we couldn't share them with each other. Unfortunately my brother and I didn't have that kind of sibling relationship. As my brother was older than me, he usually staked out his ground first, and I chose from what was left over. This extended past comics, of course- but it's of comics that I now speak. He grabbed some of the coolest heroes, and I was left to pick amongst the dregs. So the X-men, Daredevil, and the Woleverine mini-series resided in his bedroom, while I was stuck with the soap-operish Avengers, the boorish Hulk, and the facile New Mutants. That division led to the demise of my interest in superhero comics quicker than what might have been expected otherwise. I guess I'm happy about that, because otherwise I might have lost my virginity a lot later in life.

When I was in my college years, independent media came into favor. Everyone soaked up Tarantino and Nirvana, and the options expanded ever outward from there. Despite the seeming immaturity of the comics form, my friends and I furtively read Clowes' Eightball, Peter Bagge's Hate, and Bob Burden's Flaming Carrots. We didn't let any girls know what we were up to, but we enjoyed these comics just the same. How were we to know that (in certain hipster circles) these were actually kinda cool, even back then? A few years ago I re-engaged the medium without being self-conscious about it. I have no interest in those men-in-tights comics of my youth- but alternative comics is in the midst of a renaissance, and they have attained some element of cultural and critical respect. I would suggest that if you turn your nose away from them, then you are missing out on something enriching. So be it. You can talk to me in person about it if you are interested, but a little bit embarrased. I mean, c'mon... you probably saw at least one of the Spider Man movies and/or The Lord of the Rings Trilogy- and people still take you seriously... right?

Anyway it occurs to me that my interest in the form precedes my days with Marvel books. When I was a little kid I received a gift of a Peanuts treasury of baseball comic strips. Truly I read this book again and again. If it had not been hardbound, I probably would have worn it out before my interest waned. I think I still have it somewhere around here. Had I not rekindled my relationship with comics, I may have not ever realized the importance of Charles Shultz in the entire pantheon. All creators of comics are referred to as cartoonists. It doesn't matter if their work is found in galleries, museums, graphic novels, collections of "sequential art", monthly-issued mainstream pamphlets, or the Sunday funnies. And "Sparky" Shultz is considered among all cartoonists to be one of the absolute best ever.

It may be because Shultz drew his self-contained little world for over five decades. It could be his iconic characters that people are so drawn to. Perhaps it's his simplicity of style that makes his work almost universally loved. Then again maybe it's the strange mix of sweetness, cruelty, sarcasm and irony- that so defined Twentieth Century America, and was to be found in Peanuts. While not everyone recognizes his genius, no one I know ever has anything bad to say about Charles Shultz. We all watched the holiday cartoons, and periodically read his newspaper strip- even if his was the only one we ever read. His mark has been indelibly stamped on our nation's culture. The French are even said to love him.

I only now revisit Shultz' s work because of the heaps of praise he has been receiving on the Comics Journal message board in the years since his death. It's so easy to unthinkingly relate to (and appreciate) Peanuts without ever really being clear about why that is. It's only been after reading analysis and commentary of his work that I understand his genius. The Fantagraphics Company (known for their excellence in publishing serious comics art) has started releasing the Complete Peanuts collection. They are offering two books a year for 12 and 1/2 years. The current edition covers the years 1963-64. Many of the strips included so far in the series have not been seen since they originally appeared in the papers. This is a lovingly-crafted and authoritive edition. It's also liable to appeal mostly to the obsessive collector.

Perhaps, like me, you feel no real need to read every one of the thousands of strips Shultz produced over a half-century span. There have been numerous smaller collections put out over the years. But an even cheaper option was offered only yesterday, during this year's National Free Comic Book Day. It's called Unseen Peanuts and it is true to its title- it includes over 150 strips never previously archived. This traditional sized comic book is especially edifying, as Fantagraphics publisher Kim Thompson provides commentary on each strip. He speculates on why each has been "lost", and outlines many of the reasons why Peanuts was so special. It has rekindled an interest long dormant in me, and it may do the same for you. I bet if you make a special trip to your nearest independently-owned comics shop (like this one), they'll find you a copy of your own. Or if you're in town, maybe I'll let your borrow mine. I won't even tell anyone you asked me for it.