SPECTATORS - Part 123
Plus, BKV's Coen Bros. Comedy Countdown!
Happy Labor Day, you!
Brian here, back in front of the keyboard after a long weekend of spectating. Firstborn K. Vaughan and I went to see the 20th anniversary rerelease of Shaun of the Dead, the rare comedy that still hits just as hard two decades after its release.
Speaking of which, with all the nonstop horror consuming the real world, I thought today’s installment of Exploding Giraffe could instead focus on comedy, starting with this (relatively) lighthearted moment of Spectators from my eternally hard-working collaborators, artist/co-creator Niko Henrichon and letterer Fonografiks.
(Just one new page this holiday installment, and our downloadable CBZ file will return for you paid subscribers with next week’s larger batch!)
Find out the answer next week, as we inch closer to our 300th page.
Exploding Giraffe is also nearing 20,000 subscribers, and Niko and I plan to do something special for our 20,000th reader (whether they sign up as a generous paid member of The Tower or for free), so if you know anyone who might dig our NSFW ghost story and the lovely little community that’s sprung up around it, thanks for spreading the word:
In last week’s chat thread, we were discussing our “hidden talents,” and I was shocked to learn that at least three of you are fairly accomplished rappers?
I’d love to hear more of your stuff, but for now, our intern Genesis the Exploded Giraffe promised to send some signed copies of Saga to a few randomly selected commenters, starting with Jamie_M:
Synchronized swimming AKA artistic swimming. I randomly joined the club at my college and had a great time. It’s the most athletic thing I’ve ever done. Plus you get to put Jello in your hair… or actually Knox unflavored gelatin :)
Thanks for the valuable factoid, Jamie!
Next up, Keith wrote:
My hidden talent is the rare breed that’s actually useful from time to time: I can enter any kitchen and know immediately which drawer is the silverware drawer.
And finally, a very specific entry from Mike H.:
More years of training than hidden talent, or maybe just a natural inclination, or some combination thereof, but I can gauge length within 1/16” (1.58 mm) for anything under 1 ft.
I also promised to send some signed books to a few of you non-commenting but doubtlessly equally talented lurkers in The Tower, and Genesis chose at random: Carlos F., Ellie E. and Liron H.
Congrats, and Genesis will be reaching out for your mailing addresses after they’re back on the clock.
Though it’s not technically a talent, I was grateful to Tower member Jason W. for sharing this in that same thread:
Two weekends ago I was at Phish’s music festival Mondegreen in Delaware. On the Friday I was wearing my Lying Cat t shirt and got to meet a whole bunch of other lovely Saga fans as a result! Through many encounters we have committed 2 girlfriends, 1 boyfriend and around 4 friends to pick up the first trade. People are happy to hear it’s in most public libraries. So to all my Phish fans/comic nerds: wear your comic book shirts to shows, you’ll make lots of friends.
You’re the best, Jason.
Pick up your own friend-generating Lying Cat tee exclusively at the Saga Threadless Shop, where this spectacular Fiona Staples cover is also now available as a shirt and/or high quality print, but only until the end of this month:
Alana nearly taking a pie to the face reminded me to ask: Which feature-length comedy has had the most “staying power” in your life?
In other words, what funny movies have aged best for you?
Tell us in the comments, and Genesis will randomly select a few of you lovable clowns to receive the Saga shirt of your choice.
Finally today, in the “To Be Continued” letter column at the back of Saga #64, we published this postcard about my favorite living filmmakers:
Dear BKV,
What are your seven favorite movies directed by the Coen Brothers?
(In order of current preference, please.)
Thanks,
Brooke P.
Ellwood City, PA
After much consideration, I responded:
Brooke, this is the postcard I’ve been waiting to receive all of my life, thanks. And I greatly appreciate that you noted “current preference,” as such a list is obviously extremely fluid. But at the time of this writing (March of 2023), I’ll go with:
7) The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
6) Blood Simple
5) A Serious Man
4) Miller’s Crossing
3) The Man Who Wasn’t There
2) Barton Fink
And, at least for today…
1) Inside Llewyn Davis
I’m already regretting what I was forced to omit from this list. Shit.
I knew some of you might take issue with a few of those selections/placements, but my list created more controversy than Saga’s self-fellating dragon.
In last month’s letter column, we shared this polite complaint from The Tower’s own Al Wurst:
BKV,
About your last “To Be Continued,” not judging, just deeply saddened that the levity of the Coens was underrepresented on a list of SEVEN! Even (b/d)umping Buster Scruggs at the end!
Was it having a humorous vignette that sealed its fate? Not judging. Not judging. It’s just not seeing Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? show up broke my censorious fucking heart.
“Insert pleasantries here,”
Al Wurst
Warren, MI
P.S.
Here is a dope vintage puzzle for the swag drawer. I recommend letting any kids in your life try it. I have an extra at work for when a kid gets dragged in by their parent for a long boring glimpse at one version of adulthood. It brings a small moment of this thing called joy to them.
P.S.S.
Ok. To be honest, it infuriates the shit out of most of them… which amuses me, at least.
That puzzle is truly maddening, Al.
After hurling it across the room, I replied:
Many thanks for another sterling contribution to the Almighty Prize Drawer, Al, and for giving me an excuse to revisit my favorite filmmakers’ oeuvre.
I started compiling a complete list of just my top Coen comedies--including some obscure ones that they only wrote--but rather than taking up valuable real estate in these pages, I’ll instead crassly redirect you to my digital side hustle, which cherished readers like Al visit every Monday evening: Exploding Giraffe.
Along with releasing Spectators through this online outlet, I also ramble about whatever I’ve been reading/watching/ingesting, so I’ll share my Complete Coen Comedy Countdown in an upcoming dispatch.
So here we are, the moment at least one of you has sort of been waiting for!
My full (and fully meaningless) list is after the jump for you curious members of The Tower. Everyone else, enjoy your hopefully truncated work week, and Niko and I will see you back here next Monday evening for more free Spectators.
BKV’s COMPLETE* COEN BROS. COMEDY COUNTDOWN
*Complete gets an asterisk because I didn’t manage to see rarities The Naked Man (which IMDB says Ethan co-wrote) and Gambit (featuring a script by the brothers and others), which I didn’t know existed until right now. I also somehow missed George Clooney’s Suburbicon, which apparently contains elements of an old script by the Coens?
Oh, and I didn’t include Buster Scruggs since it was already on my “primarily dramatic” list, but the vignette Meal Ticket is as darkly hilarious as anything the Coens have ever done.
Anyway, it’s fair to say that I generally prefer the Coens’ dramas (which contain plenty of hysterical moments), but I also love their straight-up comedies, my least favorite of which I still probably like more than most other movies.
I recently saw and actually really enjoyed Drive-Away Dolls, directed by just Ethan and co-written with Tricia Cooke, a quirky lesbian noir with very surprising real world inspirations. Still, for this list, I decided to focus on ten comedies written and/or produced-slash-directed by both Joel and Ethan (who I pray still have a few more collaborations in them… though those geniuses don’t owe me shit).
Right, my dumb list, at least where it stands as of September 2, 2024:
#10 - Ladykillers
For me, a rare misfire from the siblings, though I’ve only seen this remake once, so maybe it deserves a second watch?
#9 - Tuileries
This silly short from the 2006 anthology Paris, je t’aime (starring Steve Buscemi) has one translation joke that always makes me laugh out loud.
#8 - Intolerable Cruelty
Underrated! And Roger Deakins shoots the shit out of this mean-spirited charmer.
#7 - Crimewave
I watched this profoundly weird cult movie (directed by a young Sam Raimi, who co-wrote it with his pals the Coens) a trillion times on early HBO, and it had an inappropriately seismic impact on my young brain.
#6 - O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Sorry not to put this one higher, Al Wurst! I like it a great deal, though not as much as…
#5 - The Big Lebowski
…which I also think is wonderful. Just not quite as wonderful as the Coen comedies in my Undisputed Top Four.