Enjoy pearls of wisdom like this from an all-too-short interview with Bill Griffith, creator of Zippy the Pinhead, from the City Paper: “My philosophy is: Attack them before they can get to you. You want to make fun of them before they can make fun of you.”
And, as for mainstream superheroes, Griffith makes no secret about his special kind of hatred for them: “What came out on top was what I despised–superheroes and horror. There are a couple of things here and there, but it’s an endless barrage of hacked-out garbage. Adolescent boys are alive and well in America, and always have been. Every time I see a movie like 300, the Griffy in me rants and raves. The way I monitor this stuff is I screen-hop. I need to know what I’m hating.”
April 25th, 2007 at 10:28 am
I now like superhero comics even MORE after finding out the creator of Zippy hates them. Let me assure Mr. Griffith that the feeling is mutual.
April 25th, 2007 at 11:59 am
You know, anyone says superhero books are hard to understand should take a spin with Zippy sometime.
April 25th, 2007 at 12:34 pm
Yea! 300 was full of stupid superheroes!!!
April 25th, 2007 at 4:57 pm
Somebody’s mom wouldn’t buy them comic books.
April 25th, 2007 at 8:06 pm
Ultimately, this is why the “divide” between the fans of traditionalist superheroes and those of “alternative” comics reads as false to me, because when you break it down, what both sides are really saying is, “Don’t take them seriously! Take me seriously!”
April 25th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
K-Box has it right on the money. I’m so effing sick of Mr. Zippy’s “they have no redeeming value” argument, when I have yet to see a single Zippy cartoon that meets that definition. It’s not enough to not like something anymore, you have to constantly express your umbrage that it even exists. It is, in fact, that very mindset that others have used to promote agendas of censorship and repression of opposing viewpoints. I don’t get CCGs, I don’t understand them and they make my eyes roll with their silliness, but I’d never constantly bemoan their right to exist or belittle those that enjoy them. I guess everyone needs a group that they can look down on to make themselves feel good.