When I first started writing a review of this comic book, I thought that despite being a huge fan of Groening, this work wasn’t up there with his most notable achievements. The Simpsons and Futurama are two of my favourite programmes ever, to the extent that when I was 13/14, it was my ‘thing’ to be obsessed with The Simpsons. Life in Hell in itself is actually a very successful strip on its own merits, being carried by over 250 weekly newspapers, and predating both of the above TV shows, as well as being popular amongst fans and critics alike. This was the first time I had actually read at any great length the strip, and as I said, to begin with I was distinctly underwhelmed. But the more I thought about it when writing this review, the more I realised that my initial conclusions were wrong, and this was a far more successful strip than I gave it credit for.
The comic definitely has the look and feel of a Groening project. The sense of humour here differs from much of Life in Hell (or so I am led to believe) and this is as light hearted as you might expect an episode of The Simpsons to be. It seems as though this is down to the subject matter- the book revolves around Groening’s sons, Will and Abe. He checks the bleak world view and cynicism that forms the comedy of his other strips in favour of a more content, if a little melancholy wisdom. If at times he seems a little bit despondent or cynical it simply plays off this innocent naivety, a tempered sense of rationality perfectly highlighting the often absurd logic and way of seeing the world which causes his sons so much confusion, and often anger. Whilst the jokes don’t quite smack you in the face quite as hard as something like The Simpsons, there’s plenty of humour to be found throughout the book. At first glance it appears that these are simply crudely drawn accounts of funny things his kids have said. But with deeper analysis, the simplicity of the drawings is actually one of the strengths this book has. Groening can display an emotion or mood simply by changing the placing of an eyebrow or and eye, or a myriad of other slight, subtle changes that can transform the feeling of a scene. Whilst this may seem to be a minor thing, it actually is essential in developing the very mood of each strip, and a quite remarkable skill.
Initially I thought the subject matter was the main weakness of the comic. Whilst to every doting parent, their child truly is the funniest person in the world; to anyone else the wit is not quite as obvious. But looking beyond the surface value humour, you can see that actually, the overall message which the book produces is one of an almost life affirming wide eyed naivety. In many cases the opinions and views of Will and Abe are ridiculous, but almost equally as frequently, their simple approach to life is actually more sensible than that of many adults.
This is why the title ‘Guide to the Universe’ is actually more apt than you might first think. Whilst it lacks a certain spark which interaction with your own relatives will often provide, this book is not without charm. I particularly enjoyed the strip where Abe justifies why he wears a cape all the time… ‘He just likes the way it looks’. A definite strength of the book is the progression in the personalities of the boys as they get older. They effectively switch to narrate the book itself, rather than as in the beginning, just responding to Groening’s questions, although he still pops up now and again.
The love present between Groening and sons is almost infectious, rubbing off on the reader, and creating a sense of familiarity, whether that be with the characters, or with the situations in which they find themselves. There is a real sense of empathy with the characters, whether it is Abe’s smirk or Will’s enraged buck toothed response, you actually like them. This is a particular strength of Groening’s TV work, but here it is limited by the length of the book, at 80 pages with one strip to each; there is not a great deal of room for real development. It therefore doesn’t quite reach the level of my relationship with my own brother, something that has taken 18 years to forge, but much of the content and the way they interact is very relatable.
You would be hard pressed to find an author of a book, comic or otherwise that would have a similar set of credentials to live up to, something that means often Groening’s work has a shadow hanging over it. However, reflecting on what I said above, this actually holds it own- analysing the actual effect the strips have that made me realise this. When reading it for the first time, I almost glossed over some strips without reading too much into them, but recalling these has made me realise that they actually left a far more noticeable impression than I first thought.
There’s an interesting view/review expressed at ‘Walrus Magazine’, a Canadian publication, describing itself as ‘Canada’s best magazine’. The article effectively gets to the heart of what I’m talking about. It’s actually very good, so rather than just recalling aspects of it in an inferior manner, I might as well link to it for you all to read.
http://www.walrusmagazine.com/blogs/2009/02/13/life-in-hell-for-matt-groenings-kids/
0 Responses to “Matt Groening- Will and Abe’s Guide to the Universe”