IDW Publishing is really tempting me with some tasty Bobby London collections in recent times. The most recent is an upcoming collection of Dirty Duck strips from sundry Underground comix, National Lampoon (where I first encountered the character), and Playboy.
Bobby London first and foremost has a appealing cartooning style which evokes a classic approach inspired by George Herriman and Elzie Segar bonded with a modern and raunchy sensibility.
Dirty Duck along with his companion in corruption Weevil are two of the more lurid and compelling characters of the 70's, totally identifiable and just plain depraved in so many ways.
London traded the notoriety he obtained on strips like Dirty Duck into the utterly supreme mainstream gig of drawing Popeye which he did for several years. Those strips have been collected in two volumes from IDW and I totally want them.
The only glimpse of this work I've seen is in the little trade package above titled Mondo Popeye and as that cover shows, London tried to inject a modern vibe into the strip. I'm not crazy about all of the things he did, but I admire that he tried to do them. London lost the Popeye job when an abortion gag when sour and reaction came on too strong among other things. He goes into it here. It's a shame since Popeye went into reruns and has never come back.
These Bobby London collections though do indeed call my name. How about you?
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