The Complete Funky Winkerbean 1972-1974 by Tom Batiuk
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I think the author of this book and I are of a similar era, so this retrospective was, for me, a walk through my past as well. The difference in the humor of that era to the current one is minor, but it seems to me that it is a bit gentler. There is a long-running gag about Les getting turned down for dates. The difference is that he largely puts himself down and the girls that he asks don't put him down cruelly, they just say no. One even says yes, but he is so focused on accepting a negative answer that he doesn't even notice.
That said, I think his writing didn't venture too far from the stereotypes of the day. The football hero is stupid; the feminist is abrasive; the cheerleaders are "hot". Funky and Les are better developed than the other characters, but most of the minor characters are rather one-dimensional.
There are a couple of minor characters that are intriguing; Crazy Harry is a favorite of mine. He is an underachiever and satisfied with confronting the norms through passivity. The school counselor, Mr. Fairgood, a couple of the teachers, and the principal, all give the strip a chance to poke at the cluelessness of some of the adults.
I enjoyed the book. I have a relatively large collection of cartoons and comics (though not the standard comic books) and I am happy to add this to my collection.
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