Synopses & Reviews
Reviving an iconic comic series originally published from 1978 to 1986, this exclusive collection brings together the legendary four issues of Anarchy Comics, the underground comic that melded anarchist politics with a punk sensibility, producing a riveting mix of satire, revolt, and artistic experimentation. The anthology features previously unpublished work by Jay Kinney and Sharon Rudahl, along with a detailed introduction by Kinney that traces the history of the comic he founded and provides entertaining anecdotes about the process of herding an international crowd of anarchistic writers. Reintroducing the long-out-of-print underground comic that inspired its readers and united a subculture, this collection includes all 30 original contributors from across the globe, including Clifford Harper, Donald Rooum, Gary Panter, Melinda Gebbie, and Steve Stiles, among other talented writers and illustrators.
Review
"Somewhere between Creation and the Rapture—from Detroit to Tienanmen Square, from the Breatharyan Liberation Front to a Libyan Terrorist on a Suicide Mission—a subversive gang of unabashed underground artists managed to produce four prophetic issues of Anarchy Comics over an entire decade, thus providing reborn proof that Quality trumps Quantity in this book (still reeking with relevant irreverence) that you now hold in your grungy hands. Only the technology has changed. But do not try to read such a rare treasure from the political wing of the international counterculture in one sitting or you will be captured by the invisible top guns of the Tea Party. You have been issued a fat-free friendly warning." —Paul Krassner, author, Confessions of a Raving, Unconfined Nut
Review
"Anarchy Comics, revisited here, with an ardent introduction by its principal editor, Jay Kinney, was a wonder of the underground comics world. Perhaps it might be better described as a wonder of the fading comics world, because times had grown difficult for the genre and Kinney was pulling out the stops to show off what was really funny and insightful in the genre at large, extending them into another era. Anarchy belongs to the last third of the twentieth century, and yet has lost none of its power for today's troubled world. Go to the original, reader—look and learn!" —Paul Buhle, founder, Radical America and Cultural Correspondence
Review
"In the late '70s and early '80s we briefly had a comic voice that told our history (IWW, Spanish Civil War, Kronstadt), illustrated our culture (Brecht, communes, Yippies), and skewered our nemeses (Lenin, Mao, Trotsky), all with a large but necessary dose of self-deprecating humor. That was Anarchy Comics, and finally we can read it again!" —Josh MacPhee, founder, www.justseeds.org
Review
"Anarchy Comics was an education I never got in school. I learned more deep truths about the way human megatribes operate (while at the same time being greatly amused by the superb art and writing) than from any textbook. Decades later, the insights I gleaned from these brilliant comics still affect the way I view global events." —Mark Frauenfelder, founder, boingboing.net
Review
"Thrill to this recently disinterred archeological fragment from a lost civilization about to be reinvented. Anarchy Comics is a dream come true." —Mark Rudd, author, Underground
Review
"Besides being an important event in the history of comics and underground culture, PM's republication of these comix gives an entirely new generation to read, appreciate and be inspired by the art, humor and intelligence that went into them." —www.counterpunch.org
Review
"Anarchy Comics contains work from some of the best underground-comic artists of the late twentieth century, given free rein to snipe at authority to their heart's content." —www.tcj.com
Review
"Founder Jay Kinney and an international assembly of like-minded cartoonists filled the comics' pages with intelligent urgings for readers to think for themselves and eschew governmental systems that restrain the individual—and thus society at large—all while remaining entertaining, informative, and never preachy." —Publishers Weekly
Review
"Anarchy Comics was caught between the final gasps of the hippie era and the opening blasts of punk. The stories captured the moment by firing satiric vollies in both directions." —www.reason.com
Review
"The various parodies, jams, and educational comics are a wonderful assortment of styles and truly show how diverse an ideology anarchy can be among artists." —Chris Estey, KEXP
About the Author
Jay Kinney was an active participant in the underground comix movement from 1968 through the 1970s—he cofounded the romance comic satire Young Lust, founded and edited Anarchy Comics, and contributed to numerous other comics. He served as editor of CoEvolution Quarterly before founding Gnosis. He is the author of Hidden Wisdom, The Inner West, and The Masonic Myth, and recently contributed a chapter on underground comics to Ten Years that Shook the City: San Francisco 1968-1978. He lives in San Francisco.