Doonsebury - putting the bleak into bleak humour since 1970

[icon_uk]

Garry Trudeau's daily comic strip Doonesbury is many things, political, insightful, daring in it's subject matter, amusing and frequently scarily on the ball, but it's rarely ever tried to be "laugh out loud" funny. That allows it to deal with matters in a way perhaps more associated with editorial cartoons than regular "Funny pages" cartoon.

Take this recent series of posts (Trigger warning for discussion of rape and sexual assault)


Sergeant Mel Wheeler is a semi-regular character in the strip. She is a serving aviation mechanic who has been through tours of duty in Afghanistan. And now she's been invited back to her school, something she never expected to happen.




Heh! :)






Why do I get the feeling that's more probably based in fact than I like to think.




It should be noted that Mel was the victim of command rape whilst serving.




I suspect that Mel never told her father about her own rape, so Roz's comment there comes across as very wince worthy.








It makes you smile a little and weep a little at the same time, that's good storytelling IMHO.

Comments

[cleome45]

Too bad Trudeau's not Canadian. His students would be rioting in the streets over this. :D

[michael_ellis_day]

One thing that's always impressed me about Doonesbury, but especially so in the past few years, is how deftly Trudeau manages to shift the mood and juggle multiple storylines, so that the strip never become overwhelmingly morose or overly glib. It doesn't lecture the audience -- even here, where a character is delivering an actual lecture! -- but just treats important topics with the respect they deserve.

One remarkable thing is the intense following the strip has among military personnel and veterans. When vets talk about Doonesbury, they don't say "That bit was realistic" or "Trudeau must have talked to some mechanic this happened to." They say things like "Mel's dad has got to shut up and start listening to what his daughter isn't saying" or "Toggle's a great guy, his presence will help Alex grow up" or "Alex will do fine, she learned how to say no to her mother." An audience that knows the military experience inside out is totally in the world of the strip and relates to the characters on a human level. Can't think of higher tribute to the writer Trudeau has become.

[crabby_lioness]

The military has gone to great lengths to make sure Trudeau gets the research he needs to keep it realistic. Years ago it passed the point where they called him up to open their doors to him. He's donated the proceeds of some of his books to the VA.

Also, Trudeau's website features The Sandbox, one of the few all-soldier blogsites http://gocomics.typepad.com/the_sandbox/

[icon_uk]

Wow, that's one hell of a site... and I mean that in the most respectfully awed way possible.

[crabby_lioness]

It gets to me too.