WEEK 6: Underground Comics: Fat Freddy's Cat

Underground comics bring us lots of new ways of thinking. Through underground comics, we see that anyone can make a comic and anyone can draw to tell the stories. Most often underground comic artists were free spirited drug users. These comics tell it like it is and are not glamorized in any way.  This is a trend that artists used for comics such as these in the 80s. Like all mediums, through comics the possibilities of telling a story are endless and can be told through various sorts of characters.

This week I read a selection of Fat Freddy's Cat comics by Gilbert Shelton. He shows us that comics are made to be silly. While I was expecting a salacious and distasteful genre to be found in this comic, I was happy to find the content quite lighthearted and hilarious. I'm sure the more I divested myself into reading Fat Freddy, I would certainly find very crass topics. When reading these comics, there is definitely a sense that political correctness is out the window and the dialogue is very free spirited. We can recognize the relationship between the characters as the cat is a talking sassy, crude cat while it's owner is a dumb deadbeat stoner who is always criticized by the cat. This relationship is certainly comical and is most likely made for adult readers pure enjoyment.

-Abigail