i'm sure this interview w/ los bros hernandez has been blogged extensively elsewhere already, but i figured i'd throw the link up for anyone who missed it. also, this gives me the chance to further bitch about the treatment their work has received in these big collected volumes (which everyone but me loves, but whatever).
granted, i don't have the palomar book yet, but i don't think i'm going to rush out anytime soon--according to this interview, the whole poison river story isn't in there! i'm sorry, but luba's backstory is critical to the development of the series, and there are so many references new readers won't understand without it. the character gorgo makes little to no sense without those stories, just as one example.
i thought the locas book was bad enough, with the first few mechanics issues missing, and without any of the izzy stuff, but it's seriously a crime to exclude poison river. not only is it some of beto's best work, but it's crucial to understanding the structure of the series and of the characters' lives.
/comic-book-geekery
so are you saying for the uninitiated it's a bad purchase? or just the completist like yourself?
ReplyDeletejordon
both books were meant for the uninitiated, i think, but i honestly don't know if i'd recommend them. they're perfectly serviceable stories, but they're missing a lot of context and nuance which i think makes the tales a lot more powerful.
ReplyDeletei'd recommend checking out the 14 trade paperbacks of love and rockets. there's a lot of unrelated material, especially in the earlier issues, but once they hit their stride, it's really great. and i sort of like that most of the books have stories by both brothers, so one can compare styles, characters, etc.
obviously i have them all, if you want to borrow them (contigent on the return of hicksville!).