Krazy & Ignatz 1937-1938: Shifting Sands Dusts Its Cheeks in Powdered Beauty (Krazy Kat)

Over the recent years, I have become a fan of "old-time" comic strips, those that were published in the first half of the 1900s. In that era, the newspaper comics were a far different medium than nowadays. While I am sure there are plenty of forgotten, forgettable strips from that era, on the whole, the comics were treated as a respectable part of the newspaper and in an age when cities often had several competing periodicals, a good comic strip could be a major selling point. Nowadays, the comics are almost an afterthought, scrunched up on some back page.Among the material I have been reading has been Popeye, Flash Gordon, Dick Tracy, Gasoline Alley and Peanuts (this last, admittedly, a product of the 1950s and not the first half of the century). The one that kicked off my renewed interest in these oldie, however, was Krazy Kat. Krazy & Ignatz: Shifting Sands Dusts Its Cheeks in Powdered Beauty is the poetic title for the seventh volume of republished Sunday strips (all in kaptivating kolor!), this one covering 1937-1938.If you have not read Krazy Kat, this book is as a good a place to start as any, as continuity is no issue. The three principals are the classic dog-cat-mouse triad, but don't expect Tom-and-Jerry-like antics. Ignatz Mouse loves to bean Krazy Kat in the head with a thrown brick. For Krazy, this brick-beaning is actually a sign of affection. Yes, Krazy loves Ignatz (his "l'il anjil"), and Officer Bull Pupp loves Krazy and hates Ignatz. The typical strip has Ignatz beaning Krazy and then getting run off to jail by Pupp.Is Krazy male or female? Creator George Herriman tends to keep things ambiguous, but I've always viewed Krazy as the former, a feeling that is justified in the February 14, 1937 strip which Officer Pupp clearly refers to Krazy as male.For those used to today's gag strips with a punch line in the final panel, Krazy Kat is a change-of-pace that may not appeal to everyone. While humorous, this comic strip relies more on the absurd, the surreal and the poetic. Even the constantly changing landscape of the Southwestern county of Coconino is almost as much of a character as Krazy, Ignatz and Pupp are.If you think that comic strips like Marmaduke, Heathcliff and Family Circus are the pinnacle of the comics medium, then Krazy Kat is probably not going to be your cup of tea. On the other hand, if you look at today's comics page with a certain lamentation of its fading overall quality, you may enjoy Krazy Kat which shows how wonderful the comics could truly be.

We are now, depending on method, between 1/3 & 1/2 way through the republication of Herriman's full-page comic spreads. There is plenty of good discussion of the artistic & literary value of this eccentric comic elsewhere, though perhaps not enough on the underlying philosophical issues it seems to raise, both in the push-&-pull of Kokonino Kounty's animal society, & in the recurrent surreal transformation of landscapes, an endless perceptual pun. But there is also immense & gentle, grace-filled hilarity of a sort we need no less now, than when Herriman was alive. Blessings on Fantagraphics for committing itself to this republication. Advice? Read it. Read them all - good food for the mind & the funnybone, not too common a combination...

Very nice! Just like it ws in description, very happy with purchase.

Some of the best comics ever. The violence is not serious. Everyone is fine in the next panel. If you like comics and you don't know Krazy and Ignatz you shouldn't hold out on yourself any longer.

Kraaaaázy Kat kwiecense!!! There is none finer and the whole dang collection!! I read. I reread. I marvel!! I remember there also a "Little Nemo" collection of the same ilk I can no longer find. So these are precious.

This project of gathering, binding and offering the Sunday Krazy Kat comic strips is such a boon. It is a treat to be able to enjoy a strip that was gone before I was born. The art work, the humor, the perspective on life all go together so perfectly in Herriman's work that it would be a great loss to this generation not to have these books available. I look forward to the next volume when it arrives!

Is it just a "Krazy Komik" or is existential poetry? It's both. An incredible achievement! I want the entire set!

Can't beat Krazy and Ignatz! The best comic strip ever.

Los clásicos han llegado a ser clásicos por algo. Es lo que esperaba y más. Sobran las palabras, incluso éstas.

The stuff of legends and perfectly satisfied. Nuff said.