'Bloom County' (later 'Outland') is to my far from
humble opinion the funniest newspaper comic ever. It is set in a suburban environment, and
centers around the inhabitants of a boarding house; their neighbours, friends, colleagues and
local flora and fauna.
The cast of caracters is certainly among the most motley crews in comic
history. Leading stars
include Bill the Cat
(occasionally dead communist presidential
candidate and lead toungeplayer in the heavy metal band 'Billy & the Boingers', formerly
'Deäthtoünge), Milo
(sevenyear old reporter for the 'Bloom County
Picayune'), his friend Binkley
(who has a whole closet full of
anxieties), Binkley's father (who tries his best to a good dad, but is to busy worrying about
being divorced, a bad father, balding and just past forty), Oliver
(child genius and friend to Milo and Binkley), Cutter John (a disabled Vietnam veteran and
trekkie), Milquetoast (a house cockroach), Portnoy (a hedgehog presumably living in a nearby
hedge), Hodgepodge (a rabbit; neighbour and drinking buddy to Portnoy), Steve Dallas (a very
politically incorrect lawyer, womanizer and manager of Billy & the Boingers), Rosebud (a
basselope; half bassethound, half antilope), The Giant Purple Snorklewacker (custodian of
Binkley's closet of anxieties)... The list goes on. The leading caracter though, if you had to
name but one, is Opus
(Binkley's pet penguin, tubaplayer for Billy
& the Boingers and owner of the worlds largest mother complex).
Bloom County first appeared in a university
newspaper in the early 80's, but soon spread to
papers all across America. In the beginning the jokes were mainly political, but over the it
grew more and more psychedellic, until the author, Berkely Breathed, closed it down, claiming it
had been bought up by Donald Trump. Some of characters though found new employment in 'Outland',
Breathed's new comic, running Sundays only. In Outland psychedelia rules supreme, and Bill 'n'
Opus thankfully lives on.
Outland also introduced some new caracters.
Among the most noteworthy is Truffles (a pig), Frank (an otter) and Mortimer Mouse
(Mickey's unknown brother). Ronald Ann (an innocent little girl from the wrong side of the
tracks) who had done a few small appearances in Bloom County, also became a leading caracter in
Outland.
And then Outland too ended... A disastrous day
for comic lovers everywhere. Berkely Breathed, you've better have a new project underway, or
I'll... No, I'm thankfull for what we've got. From the bottom of my heart: Thank you!
This Bloom
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