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Jeff Smith's Bone: An Exhausting
Self-Indulgent Retrospective
Part Two: Image, Animation and Awards
Last
week, Jason Schachat explained his fascination
for cartoonist Jeff Smith's recently ended masterpiece,
Bone. In the process he began retelling the history of the
artist and his book in an article that threatens to become
a book. When we left off, Bone's success was threatened
by the great boom and bust of the comics market in the early
nineties...
When
the bottom fell out of the speculator’s market, indie
titles were the first to suffer. Following the comic stores’
attempts to play it safe by sticking with big companies,
Smith signed a deal with Image Comics in 1995 (which included
the re-printing of prior issues in addition to the first
runs of #’s 21-27). Readers were both lost and gained
as some felt this was a betrayal by one of the poster boys
of the self-publishing movement and still others were being
introduced to Bone for the first time.
The
book didn’t really fit with the Image line, though,
and Smith released the first collected volume of Bone through
Cartoon Books in 1996 before returning to complete autonomy
in 1997. (Editor's Note: Now that it's finished, Bone
will be reprinted again as the flagship title in Scholastic
Press' new foray into Graphic Novels -- this time in color.)
Sadly,
the next few years would find a book already notorious for
an irregular schedule hampered by more delays than ever
before. Though Smith took time away from the regular book
to re-edit and re-draw Bone for the collected volumes,
do art for the prequel Stupid, Stupid Rat Tales
and script the second prequel, Rose, there can
be no doubt that the amount of time wasted on the doomed
Bone movie adaptation was largely to blame.
What
began as a dream project re-uniting Smith with Character
Builders rapidly descended into a power struggle with Nickelodeon
and its parent companies. Beginning with an attempted renegotiation
on the network’s part, Smith soon found execs trying
to saddle the film with a Britney Spears song. This was
followed by suggestions that the Bone cousins should be
youthened and voiced by children, and, finally, a board
meeting note to give Fone Bone “magic gloves that
make things grow."
So, no, it didn’t end very well.
From
1998’s nearly bi-monthly schedule, Bone went
down to three issues in 1999, and only two in 2000. However,
Smith made this up to fans by offering alternate covers
by Frank Miller and Alex Ross as well as an indie artist
pinup gallery in the double-sized Bone #38.
Following the movie debacle, Smith vowed
to finish the book in 3-5 years and hit the drawing board
full time.
And, lo and behold, he did it.
Awards
won by Bone:
1993
Eisner Award -Best Humor Publication
Russ Manning Award -Most Promising Newcomer
1994
Harvey Award -Best Cartoonist
Harvey Award -Best Graphic Album
Harvey Award -Special Award for Humor
Eisner Award -Best Cartoonist
Eisner Award -Best Humor Publication
Eisner Award -Best Continuing Series
Eisner Award -Best Serialized Story- The Great Cow Race
Diamond Distributor's Gem Award -Vanguard Product of the
Year
Genie Award -Best Continuing Series
1995
Harvey Award -Best Cartoonist
Eisner Award -Best Writer/Artist, Humor
Eisner Award -Best Humor Publication
Eisner Award -Best Continuing Series
Comic Speedline (Germany) -Best Newcomer
Comic Speedline (Germany) -Best Graphic Novel
Prix Vienne (Germany) -Book of the Year
1996
Harvey Award -Best Cartoonist
Adamson (Sweden) -Best Comic Book
Premio Fumo Di China (Italy) -Best Cartoon Character
National Cartoonist Society -Best Comic Book
Angouleme Alph-Art (France) -Best Foreign Comic Book
1997
Harvey Award -Best Cartoonist
National Cartoonist Society -Best Comic Book
Lucca (Italy) -Best Foreign Cartoonist
Georgia -Inducted into Cartoonist Walk Of Fame
1998
Spain's Premios Expocomic-Best Foreign Comic
Eisner Award-Best Writer/Artist, Humor
Lempi International (Finland)-Best International Cartoonist
1999
Harvey Award-Best Cartoonist
Sproing Award (Norway)-Best Book
Yellow Kid (Italy) -Best Author
2000
Harvey Award-Best Cartoonist
2001
Inkpot Award for Outstanding Achievement in Comic Arts
Sproing Award (Norway)-Best Book
2002
YALSA/ALA Popular Paperbacks for young adults
The
Canon
After
12 years, 55 main series issues, 7 prequel issues, and miscellaneous
short stories, there’s a lot more making up Bone
than a simple collection of sight gags. It would probably
take too long to retroactively review all the issues (and
it doesn’t really make sense to review The Bone
Flip-book), but, since Smith’s plan is to phase
out reprints and use trade paperbacks (which re-edit the
order of issues and include new art and stories) as the
sole format of distribution, let’s take a look at
the major storylines.
Oh,
and for anyone new to Bone, please don’t
read this if you want everything to be a complete surprise.
These won’t totally summarize the volumes or reveal
too many details, but it’s kind of hard to analyze
a series without discussing major plot points, so…
Out
From Boneville
Yessir, here is where it all starts.
This
opening volume is probably the cartooniest chapter of the
story, as nearly all of it focuses on the Bone cousins and
their wacky early escapades in the valley. More importantly,
though, there are no deaths, no lasting injuries, no immediate
concerns over property damage, and few consequences for
mistakes made. To put it quite simply, this book is just
brimming over with innocence.
Thorn
is a naïve, round-faced little girl, for the most part,
and the Bones are blissfully ignorant of the peril they
are in. Gran’ma Ben seems to be a kooky old hermit
obsessed with cows, and Lucius, tavern master of The Barrel
Haven, is little more than a Bluto-type, there to threaten
Phoney Bone. The Great Red Dragon mostly comes off like
Mr. Snufflupagus on Sesame Street (before everyone
found out he wasn’t imaginary) rather than a heroic
deity setting up pieces on the chess board.
But even the bad guys are harmless. The
villainous Rat Creatures are represented by the two most
incompetent, cowardly characters in the entire series who
deliver most of the book’s physical comedy as they
chase Fone Bone around like Tom and Jerry. It isn’t
even two issues in before they give rise to the classic
“STUPID, STUPID RAT CREATURES!” catch phrase.
The power of The Hooded One is mysterious and remote and
the Lord of the Locusts isn’t even whispered about
at this point.
What makes this chapter so brilliant (aside
from the introduction to Smith’s gorgeous artwork)
is the way characters are meticulously placed into threads
that, in some cases, won’t end for another 12 years.
Much
has been made of how Smith was basing his story off the
style of Lord of the Rings (before it was cool
again, no less) and it’s easy to recognize the device
of beginning a story with lovable little creatures who find
themselves in an adventure greater than their wildest dreams.
The Great Red Dragon acts as a Gandalf of sorts, occasionally
peeking in on those who ignorantly keep his greatest secret
hidden for him. Even Gran’ma Ben, as the character
once burned by the dragon’s meddling, could compare
to Bilbo Baggins without much trouble.
However,
the story even more easily reflects elements of Star
Wars. We begin with the weakest characters, lost and
bickering in the desert. They get separated and wander alone,
encountering strange creatures, in one case, before they’re
reunited at the homestead of a rural farmer who just happens
to watch over a dead relative’s orphaned child who
has nearly grown to maturity.
It’s not long after the wanderers
have been welcomed into the neighborhood that one of them
starts talking about a powerful old being, one of the last
practicing a forgotten art of manipulating reality, who
lives nearby. The farmer, of course, claims no such person
exists, but the child’s curiosity is piqued…
The
story is that universal human myth proposed by Joseph Campbell
and repeated by more writers around the world than any other
(until Hollywood got up and running, that is). Though Smith
tells his own tale, these solid foundations give Bone
the starting point it needed to become a multi-national,
multi-lingual favorite.
Next week:
Barring Jason's mental breakdown, further delving into the
Canon of Bone...
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