August 24th, 2017

Feature Spotlight: Bizarro

by Tea

This week, we’re reading Bizarro, by Dan Piraro.

 

Bizarro is…well, literally, what it says on the tin. This weird and wonderful collection of gags from one of the world’s cleverest and zaniest minds can in equal turn delight and weird out even the most seasoned of comic readers.

 

Bizarro has no regular cast– instead, the jokes are front and center, featuring Dan’s reflections on life and the world– the good, the bad, the ugly, and the weird. But what *does* reoccur are a series of secret symbols– a slice of pie, an eyeball, an upside-down bird, and more, all of which hide– sometimes in plain sight– between the borders of every Bizarro cartoon. (The number above Dan’s signature will tell you how many symbols you can find in any given panel.)

 

We love Bizarro not just for its off-kilter sense of humor, but also for its superlative artwork– the attention to detail found in any Bizarro panel is astounding, and the expressiveness of the anonymous subjects makes them as relatable as any regular character. And Dan’s perspective on the world around us is always something to behold– he deals with a huge array of subjects, from politics to technology to the weirdness of our social morés, and every take is as refreshing as the last.