Pussey!

Writer(s): Daniel Clowes
Artist(s): Daniel Clowes
Publisher: Fantagraphics Books
ISBN: 978-1560971832
Price: $9.95
Page count: 64
Year Released: 1995
Status: in print
Original Source: Eightball 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12, 14
Other Collected Edition(s): n/a
Genres: humor; satire; superheroes; history of comics
Recommended for Fans Of:
Possible Objectionable Material: nudity; coarse language
If You Like This Book, Try: The Dreamer
Also in This Series: n/a

Plot Summary
Pussey! is a satirical send-up of comic book culture, written by Clowes during his "angry young man" phase (circa 1989-1994). Though the book loosely follows artist Dan Pussey (pronounced "Poo-SAY") from his childhood to his death, the book as a whole is more of a comment on the worst aspects of the superhero-dominated comics industry: its population of introverted and socially regressive geeks, its reliance on art over story, its perpetual exploitation of hardworking artists by moneygrubbing corporate goons, etcetera. Beyond superheroes, Clowes also attacks the more pretentious "art house" publishers (with excellent parodies of Art Spiegelman and Clowes's own publisher, Gary Groth), and the modern art world as well. Pussey himself, though not an entirely unsympathetic character, must take the lion's share of the blame for his ignominious fate (he reminds me of Peter Keating in Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead). Ultimately, there are no true protagonists in this work, but it is pretty funny.

My Own 2 Cents
The primary trouble with Pussey! is that most of the humor derives from Clowes's immersive knowledge of the comic book industry and its ills, but as a result the humor will fly right over the heads of people who are not also immersed in the knowledge of the comic book industry and its ills. In other words, you have to be one of the people Clowes is parodying in order to understand the parody. This limits the book's appeal, but perhaps this is Clowes's intention. In any case, I recommend it highly for people with a little understanding of the culture of comics, and a sinister desire to see it skewered.