Cerebus #6: An aardvark in love

It’s really the same ol’ story, isn’t it? Aardvark gets drugged, aardvark meets girl, drug wears off, aardvark forgets girl… Who among us can’t say that’s happened to them?

What I liked most about this issue is that it’s the first one to really highlight any real emotion (other than greed.) I like that the overall story is getting deeper. And even though Cerebus’ feelings for Jaka are propelled by the drug he is given, Jaka’s feelings for the aardvark develop over the course of the issue and are entirely genuine. Her heartbreak on realizing that “something has…happened…to you” is, well, the emotional heart of this issue. As is her vow to wait for him to remember her and return “even if it takes the rest of her life.”

It’s worth noting that other than a little hint at the end that Jaka will appear in Cerebus again, there is no real indication on just how important Jaka will become to Cerebus, both the character and the overall story. Though I think it will be several issues before she reappears, this chance meeting will change the course of Cerebus’ life forever.

I wonder what my reaction to this story would’ve been had I read it not knowing what’s to come. I think it would’ve been much the same — I know I would’ve appreciated the added emtional depth. But I think that knowing what I know has added some…depth, I guess is the word I’m looking for, to my reaction and enjoyment of this issue.

Even though there are serious issues and emotions in this issue, there’s plenty of humor as well. Much of it comes from seeing the ruthless, amoral Cerebus falling so completely for Jaka, mooning after her like a teenager with his first crush. And even though it’s drug-induced, this may well be the first time that he’s felt this deeply for anyone other than himself. Best line in the issue: “If you wished, Cerebus would kill you a yak for your supper.” What girl could resist such an offer?

A good deal of the humor in Cerebus, especially in the early issues, comes from Cerebus’ cavalier attitude toward violence and the ease with which he dispatches those three times his size. Those that are quickest to dismiss Cerebus because of his size are often the first to fall. Turg, one of many to face Cerebus in this issue, refers to him as “The killer-who-looks-like-a-bunny” in much the same way Elrod first saw him as a kid wearing a costume. At least Turg is smart enough to go up against Cerebus only once. A lesson that the supposedly wiser E’lass failed to learn.