The Thousands

In the current epoch of comics it seems that almost every aspiring writer/artist is making the foray into what has, over the last decade or so, become a major genre within the form:  autobiography. Some of the most arresting autobiographical comics are situational, such as the neo-journalistic work of Joe Sacco or Guy Delisle.

The defining attribute of Eddie Campbell’s Alec is that it is about nothing and everything.  Where peers can often come off as self-important and narcissistic, Campbell delivers with humble poignancy and self-awareness, especially evident in the harrowing introspection of ‘Graffiti Kitchen‘. Alec experiences the realisation of his own animalism as he slyly moves from a relationship with a girl in her late teens to her mother, his sketchbook style at its finest, illustrating the disorder.

Campbell’s style aside, the sheer length of the period of time that this book covers will provide the reader with joy. One bears witness to his progression as both an artist and as a man; as he moves from early twenties existential anguish to career ambition and the accompanying anxiety, finally landing in Brisbane to raise a family (his son is in Cobwebbs). It is his insistently honest yet poetic portrayal of life and everything in it that is sure to ink Eddie Campbell in as one of the greatest autobiographical comic book artists.