Comic’s most acerbic and judgmental critic revealed in an interview originally published in 1972.
The money quote is in the third column in which he declares his “definite dislike for many ‘underground’ comics and their ‘tasteless sex and gore,’ and owns only about six of them. But his Vikings and their unclad women are another story. ‘Successful sword and sorcery has to have sex and gore and violence and bloody fights. If it didn’t have these elements it would be adolescent stuff. It has to have it just like science fiction needs rocket ships and other planets.’ ”
I bet this would make Harlan Ellison squee.
Harlan wrote an awesome story entitled “Delusion for A Dragon Slayer”. I highly recommend it. You can find it in this collection.
But it is THEIR “sex and gore” that is bad, not “MINE”.
That is the real challenge of being a honest critic — whether you are willing to apply the same standards to your own work that you use against others. And really, not many people are. And when someone calls such a critic on the inconsistency, the answer is “But *I* told a GOOD story!” (Well, if that is the real distinction, why didn’t you make it in the critique instead of focusing on the gore and sex?)
Heh. I say that as a critic myself. I really hope I’m willing to have my own work measured by the standards I apply to others.
It is a very amusing article.
I am deeply and profoundly relieved that none of my relatives ever ratted on me for crying because they took my comics away. Of course, I didn’t. But dang, this stuff does come back to haunt.