Wednesday, June 17, 2009

VIP Tries To Sell Out

I've mentioned Virgil Partch before as being an all-man's cartoonist. He has a sarcastic and real look at life, which, being a cartoonist, he exaggerates.
Later in his career, it looks like he tried to sell out by doing a daily and Sunday comic strip. His drawing style is more toned down, but I loved this comic when I was a kid. I think not so much because of the jokes themselves, but because the drawings and attitude had an edge that reflected real human nature.
I think the strip is loosely based on the Honeymooners, with a blowhard husband and more reasonable wife. Yeah, that's kind of pandering to the 1960 audience, but it beats having a completely wimpy male lead with a character arc and a sassy liberated female lead like we have in so many cartoons now.

Partch was great at getting the worst aspects out of the average man in a simple expression. To him, even civilized man is still a caveman at heart - and I believe he's right.