Book Description

History will never forget the Kahleefornia recall debacle, which jerk-pressed Arnold "the Gropenfuhrer" Schwarzenegger to a position of power, despite the unexplained existence of dozens of women claiming to have been sexually assaulted by him. Among the hundreds of also-rans and also-almost-rans are Zonker Harris and his mom. While some in the Doonesbury universe seek office, others serve. Alex and her Seattle co-hordes devote their young, restless, and body-pierced Deaniac energy to hooking up "flash art" with politics. Half a world away in Iraq, a major bad boy from stateside devotes himself to liberating the city of Al Amok, ruling with a steady hand, a full glass, a devoted Chinese handler, and an economy based on looting. As fate would have it, B.D. finds himself heading upriver on an apocalyptic mission to terminate Al Duke with extreme prejudice, a story line so made-for-TV that B.D. feels compelled to bang out the screenplay on his laptop in real time. Fortunately for the man known to Honey as "sir," the media red-lights the hit, though car bombers quickly pick up the option and put the project back in play. In the homeland, a wartime president has the answer to almost all the questions ("9-11") but tries to shelve the still incomplete story of his own National Guard duty back in the daze. Mark and Zonk join the war against trash politics by offering a $10,000 reward for any witness who can collaborate the flightsuit-in-chief's account, but their efforts, alas, come to naught. Yes, it's a divided nation. On the west coast sexual assault charges accompany a rise to power, while back east they mandate a fall: Walden College's acting coach, Boopstein, lets accusations of way-personal fouls force her football team off the field. Sex parties for recruits? "Who knew we were that competitive?" marvels President King, ending Boopsie's gridiron apprenticeship with two little words: "You're fired." ... Read more

Book Description

As Doonesbury shifts to a wartime footing, the strip"s major players find themselves pre-positioned for the coming cakewalk. Weekend warrior B.D. leaves the Fighting Swooshes of Walden in the care of acting Coach Boopstein, returning to the sands of Kuwait as Camp Blowback"s Public Affairs Officer. Among his charges: Roland Hedley, veteran of a grueling combat training program designed to keep media folk from getting capped. Offshore, the irrepressible Morale Officer Lieutenant. Tripler goes live ("Good MORNING, regime-changers!") to lift the shipbound spirits of his pre-swarthy charges, while offstage, Viceroy-in-Waiting Duke prepares to answer empire"s call.Stateside, Mike takes up a flanking position on the sofa to log some serious CNN time, while the Reverend Sloan girds his loins for peace: "Look for us on TV"we"ll be a million strong." Marching to the beat of a different cause, Zonker's old surfing mentor tries to enlist Z in a desperate fight to liberate Left Coastal access. Protests Zonk, "What can I do' I am but one dude!" Meanwhile, Jeff Redfern is but one CIA intern, yet he manages to launch a Predator drone and, using basic Nintendo training, knock out an Al-Q ammo dump. Also taking a hit, Trent Lott, busted for giving props to segregation. "I was trying to say I was down with the hood!" he backpedals, realizing too late that Mr. James Crow has finally left the house.With Alex declaring eco-jihad on SUVs, and Elmont launching a daily assault on coherence as on-line blogger "Jenny McTagart, Girl Pirate," it"s hard to see a peaceful world ahead. But Jimmy Thudpucker can. Waging war on the recording industry, he and other filesharers have a vision of ultimate change de regime: "The suits die off, and Pepperland will be free again."

... Read more

Reviews (1)

Typical Tudeau
Love it or leave it. As usual Trudeau as at its best when he makes you think before you laugh. ... Read more

Book Description

Even challenging Dubya to a "pronunciation bee" can't save Uncle Duke's weird horse race for the White House.In the end, the former Ambassador passes out in a snowbank while the Cheney Administration kicks into high gear.Predictablistically, the new presidental syntax isn't the only thing that's tortured and strange.Take myvulture.com, an Internet company born and born-again, worth $1 million or $500, depending on whether you ask the CEO or his mother; or look at Joanie Caucus as the turnover in Washington casts her career into play, if not into midlife crisis; or consider J.J. and Zeke, whose pay-per-view, online wedding yields mucho buzz but zero bucks - just like the rest of the Net.Yes, it's a Dubya Dubya Dubya world.Doonesbury just downloads it. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

From A Long Time Reader
While looking at our society and lifestyles, politics and foibles, Trudeau once again tweaks us, as a whole. Either you love his work or hate it and the anthologies are for his most die-hard fans. These characters are the people you have watched evolve and this is a visit with old friends.

Fine political satire and commentary
Revolt Of The English Majors is a collection of G.B. Trudeau's black and white Doonesbury cartoon strips and offers fine political satire and commentary. The classic characters of Doonesbury are entering middle age and re-thinking commitments and lack thereof - enjoy a set of strips which includes a center selection of full-color panels. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Where's the Mac? Why the rehash?
I too was annoyed to find that the first 2/3 of this book rehashed the Virtual Doonesbury and Planet Doonesbury books I already owned. Even more irked to find the CD doesn't support Mac users! It's still Doonesbury and these are great strips but I wish Trudeau would think of his FANS when putting these books together. I feel betrayed!

CD can't be installed
I can not install the CDRom under Windows 2000. Its asking for windows 95 and ends installation with the message that SHADOW causes a failure in module TMP340E.EXE on 0003:1092 and will close.
That very disappounting
If someone has a solution then please let me know.

Your typical comic strip book, with a great extra
The CR-Rom that comes with this book (which is the mean reason I bought it, aside from the book having the complete "J.J. leaves Mike, he then marries Kim" storyline) is just great. You can search for any strip in the Doonesbury library (Trudeau's own website only allows for pre-1995 keyword searching) and there are other fun extras, too.

the CD-ROM is disappointing
I really enjoy this cartoon and so I immediately purchased this item, but the CD-ROM baffled and infuriated me. There was no way to navigate around the CD, so one just has to enter in a subject at random and be satisfied with the strip that pops up. Also images appear curiously low on the screen and there are no scroll bars on the side of the screen so a user can move up. Perhaps I got a defective CD.

25 Years
The CD rom is the selling point here so if you don't have access to a CD rom this is a pass. If you have access to a CD rom this is a must have. 25 years of Doonesbury. A window on the 1970's, 80's and early 90's. From Watergate, to Iran Contra to the Gulf War it's all here. The CD rom even includes the Doonesbury TV special from the 70's. Oh yeah, you get a book too with recent strips but that is definitely secondary here. If you have any interest in Doonesbury this is the purchase for you. ... Read more

Amazon.com

A must for any fan, this annotated collection of more than 800 strips, from the late '60s to 1995, includes comments from Trudeau and many of his satirical targets.From its beginnings in the Yale University student paper, Doonesbury quickly spread through newspapers in the U.S. and across the world, and the strip is currently featured in more than 1400 publications. Its strength has always been its nimble response to the ever-changing landscape of American culture, and even though many of the events in this volume have passed into history, or even obscurity, the humor is as fresh as ever.

For almost three decades, Trudeau has offered a refreshingly satirical take on everything from Watergate to Zippergate while following the ups and downs of a cast of characters that have become as well-loved as any in literature. The comments from newspapers, politicians and other that surround the strips reproduced in Flashbacks serve a dual purpose.They provide a context for readers who may not have been born when Nixon was president, and they amply demonstrate the enormous impact of Doonesbury on the American political landscape. It's funny too! --Simon Leake ... Read more

Reviews (5)

man oh man
It is hard to believe that people used to think this guy was a laugh riot.

Hail,hail,the gang's all here!
Here we find the first CharlieBrownish debut of Mike, and also the first appearances of B.D. the Jock, zonked Zonker and Marvelous Mark, and also Bloopsie, Joanie Caucus, and the immortal Duke, whose Chinese saga makes one of the best pages of the book. Here you can follow the graphic evolution of the strip,and the psychological evolution of the charachters in the course of American and world history. A must for the Doonesbury fans!

Look back in irony!
Has it really been 25 years that Doonesbury is making his contributons to our survival in a world gone mad? This book makes it possible to look back, not in anger but irony. The problems from back then are gone, replaced by even worse ones, the cast has grown older but Mike and his friends are still with us. Great!

On a scale of 1-10, 11!
This is one of the greatest garry trudeau collections of all tyme

25 years of a great comic
A wonderful collection of Trudeau's best of the first 25 years of Doonesbury. Includes critiques and comments by everyone from Gerald Ford to Trudeau's dad ("in my day, you would have been a loser") to Bob Dole and Pat Schroeder. It was fun also to watch the development of the major chars, as B.D. goes from college quarterback to soldier to talent agent and back to the military with the Gulf War or as Duke takes his trips from governor of American Samoa to ambasador (sp?) to China and NRA lobbyist. Professor Kissinger, the Carter human rights awards and Reagan policy all come under fire in this beautiful satire. Much more worthwile than Trudeau's short books. ... Read more

Amazon.com

J.J. finally leaves Mike when she runs into old flame Zeke Brenner. Tempted by a life of "diners and jukeboxes and desert sunsets and drinking champagne from a paper cup," she hits the road--only to find out that sharing a pickup with an unreconstructed cowboy is no bed of roses. Meanwhile, Mike falls into his summer fantasy, moving to Seattle to work for college roommate Bernie's new software company. When he tries to install Windows 95, however, he realizes that his new life is no fantasy, and he begins to settle in among the digerati.

Elsewhere, Boopsie is still living the life of an O.J. juror, with occasional breaks for shopping, while Newt Gingrich is on the rampage, and on a short fuse. Duke jumps on the Republican bandwagon and opens "Nothin' but Orphans," only to discover that he has a son who is very much a chip off the old block. In Washington, D.C., Mark Slackmeyer explores his shiny new sexual orientation by coming out of the closet with an imaginary friend. --Simon Leake ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Classic Doonesbury cartoons from the Nixon era
One of the best Doonesbury books- full of cartoons from around the time Trudeau won the Pulitzer Prize. Although the book has some less-than-topical references, it is actually a good history of Watergate. Shows the talent Trudeau had prior to his ill-fated sabbatical. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

G.B. Trudeau sends B.D. to Vietnam, circa 1971-73
In "the more things change the more they remain the same department" the back cover of this collection of Doonesbury strips from 1971-73 has an editorial from the "Dallas Morning Star-Telegram" explaining how for the second time in a month "Doonesbury" was not appearing in the comic section.Last month "Doonesbury" was moved from the comic section to the editorial page of my local newspaper.The excerpt from the editorial explains G.B. Trudeau had not provided a "comic" but rather "an unrestrained violent editorial comment on the war in Vietnam" of "an intemperate nature we don't use on the editorial page."

The rationale provided by my own newspaper for moving Trudeau's strip had to do with the plotline in which B.D. loses a leg in Iraq (not to mention his helmet) and returns home to rebuild his life.It should also be pointed out that this year is an election year and as things heat up between President Bush and Senator Kerry, we expect Trudeau to do the same."But This War Had Such Promise" is a line spoken by B.D., who volunteers to go to Vietnam to fight the Commies (and to get out of having to write a term paper), and finds out the war is not all he had hoped it would be.Given what is happening with B.D. today, going back to read again Trudeau's assault on the war in Vietnam is, to say the least, ironic.

This is the third of the classic "Doonesbury" collections, following "Still a Few Bugs in the System" and "The President Is a Lot Smarter Than You Think."Trudeau's drawing style is quite rudimentary compared to today; if you have seen any reprints of the strips Trudeau did on John Kerry October 21-23, 1971 these are done in the same style. No, those three strips, including one where B.D. attacks Kerry as a "flaming hypocrite" for throwing away his medals because of how much they cost the government, are not in this particular collection and do you not think that it is ironic that Trudeau has "flip-flopped" on Kerry in the last thirty-plus years?

The strips with B.D. in Vietnam. where he first meets Phred the terrorist, are the highpoint of "But This War Had Such Promise" and makes everything else pale in comparison, such Bernie playing Jekyll & Hyde with magic formulas and young Rufus Jackson trying to work the system.But you also have the establishment of the commune at Walden Pond, so there are strips of historic value as well in addition to the intemperate politics of sending cartoon characters off to a war in Southeast Asia.It would be interesting for Trudeau to put together a collection of all of the Vietnam related "Doonesbury" strips, as well as a "Nixon" collection, but that would make sense so I doubt it would be done anytime soon. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The 1992 presidential election was a rich source of inspiration for Doonesbury's particular brand of satire. Dan Quayle did not like many of the strips collected here, especially Rick Redfern's evidence about Quayle's attempts to silence a potentially damaging witness. George Bush was also pretty peeved when Trudeau printed--verbatim--transcripts of presidential waffling. Sometimes a satirist can just sit back and watch a politician shoot him- or herself in the foot. Over and over again.

Meanwhile, Uncle Duke quits Club Scud and heads back to the U.S. to manage the presidential campaign of his rabid right-wing cousin David. Mike is unemployed and running out of self-esteem, B.D. suffers the aftereffects of Desert Storm, and Zonker returns to the bosom of his family. --Simon Leake ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Let's hear it for the Quayle/DEA strips!
Individually, the strips in this book are great - relationship issues with BD and Boopsie, George Bush (Sr)-isms, the charisma Clinton exuded during his first campaign, and the highly dubious concept of good ol' Zonker moving back in with his parents in California. However, the mix seems rather mish-mash, mostly thrown in due to era relation. While that's all fine and dandy, we as readers have come to expect a better arrangement from Mr Trudeau. On the whole, however, that would more or less be the only negative feature of the book. It should be noted that hardcore Doonesbury fans like myself and/or people who want to see what the controversy is all about *need* this book, as it contains the Dan Quayle DEA investigation that got the strip banned from all but a few papers in the US ... including the one run by Mr Quayle's family. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The early '90s were busy! B.D. fails to marry Boopsie, but he does his duty another way--by getting back into uniform and heading for the Persian Gulf. Trudeau captures the monotony, boredom, and overwhelming dullness of a Desert Storm soldier's life perfectly, and it's a little disturbing to realize that we probably got more information about events in the Gulf through Doonesbury than we did through the rest of the media. Always ready to turn a quick profit, both Uncle Duke and Mr. Butts head to Kuwait. Duke opens Club Scud, while Butts hands out cigarettes to the brave boys on the front. If Iraqi chemicals don't kill them, American ones will!

Back in the U.S., it's election time, and after a brief romance with a crazed Texas billionaire, the American people elect Bill Clinton. How will the Doonesbury gang react to a president from their own generation? One mark of great satire is that it continues to be both funny and insightful long after the events portrayed have passed into history. This collection fits the bill perfectly. --Simon Leake ... Read more

Reviews (1)

One of the best doonesburys
This was definetly one of the best doonesburys i've read (7 of them counting this one) It had a subject that I think trudea wrote about very well the gulf war and presidential elections which he always writes about well. My favorite part was the character list even though it was older It was still very useful. As the title says Portable it is very portable Its not to big and it has a heck of a lot of comics. I Think if your a trudeau fan this is definetly a book you need! ... Read more

Book Description

Actual events may provide plenty of grist for the cartoon mill, but it takes a mind like Garry Trudeau's to sift through it for the hilarious kernel of truth. From the Bill Clinton-Ken Starr face-off to high-flying Internet start-ups to new ways to plagiarize term papers, Trudeau hones in on the things we take so seriously and livens them up with craftyjolts of jocularity.In this new Doonesbury collection, Buck Wild Doonesbury, Trudeau is at his best. We watch as Uncle Bernie pulls the plug on Mike and Kim's entrepreneurial venture, the virtual company that follows that rich tradition of losing money and lots of it. We sit in on a press conference with America's most famous special prosecutor who admits he spent four years "Leaking. Trolling. It's been hectic." And we behold Zonker as he passes along his long-held slacker philosophy to his young nephew Zipper. Through it all, Doonesbury retains its fresh and innovative style. Cutting-edge-even though Trudeau first started penning the strip nearly three decades ago-Doonesbury has, over the years, tweaked everything and nearly everyone, from Donald Trump's aggressive real estate style to Dan Quayle's unblinking stance on family values to Newt Gingrich's ticking-time-bomb technique, while keeping us entertained with characters including Boopsie, Duke, J.J., B.D., and Earl. Buck Wild Doonesbury, like the strip, is guaranteed to be provocative, controversial, and hilarious. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

I may be in the minority, but I truly dislike "Doonesbury"
I don't like Doonesbury. I admit that. I find I can't abide that fresh mouthed Alex with all of her get rich quick schemes. The way she talks to adults makes one want to backhand her! I also dislike the smarmy balding bulldozer and his equally offensive look alike son. That creepy Alex and that bratty boy are birds of a feather! I also dislike Kim, the sneaky stereotypical Generation X female with the fresh mouth. I'm also no fan of good old Doonesbury himself. I am a Democrat who doesn't like Doonesbury, which is often hailed as the Sacred Cow of Comic Strips.

There was a time when I thought a big drawback to being famous was being lampooned in Doonesbury. I felt sorry for Trudeau's roommate, the Pillsbury heir who inspired this strip. I hate the way this strip puts people down and has an array of unappealing characters, like that talking cigarette, Mr. Butts. Stubb out Mr. Butts!

Boo, hiss, Doonesbury!

Wasn't the best but was still pretty good
I think this had many good strips but was missing to much. It didn't seem like it came after planet doonesbury. I really like the character zipper and if you do i suggest you read this book definetly. I think alex mikes daughter was also very funny as she sets up alex cam. I dont think this is even close to trudeau s other doonesbury books but if you reallly like doonesbury I suggest you get it.

good, but considering Doonesbury's rep for excellence...
Buck Wild Doonesbury has some excellent strips in it but the book as a whole is lacking. WAY to much time is spent on Zonker's nephew Zipper. Zipper would be funny in short bursts but a huge amount is dedicated to him. Mike's internet company is losing millions and positions itself to go public...but...you'll just have to wait untill next fall to read about them doing so. At least Duke is in good shape through this book, trying to sell his house (still an orphanage) to a John Denver fan for millions and later becoming appointees for Jesse Ventura. Of course, Duke is always funny. It's also nice to see Roland Hedley make some hilarious appearances but overall this collection does not live up to the extreme standards GTB has set for himself and just makes me more eager for next fall's collection.

Good stuff, but there seems to be a gap.
Like most of Trudeau's Doonesbury books, this one is well worth the money that you pay for it. Lots of strips, and all the Sunday strips are in their original colors. My only quibble is that the book does not pick up where PLANET DOONESBURY left off; that is, a huge chunk of the strips seem to be missing. As I understand it, the only place to get these strips is in THE BUNDLED DOONESBURY, and they constitute only 1/4 of the contents (the rest of the compilation is strips from VIRTUAL DOONESBURY and PLANET DOONESBURY). While this is a clever marketing scheme to sell to people who are compleatists, I find it reprehensible that Trudeau would gouge his fans like this. Therefore, I can't say that BUCK WILD DOONESBURY totally met my expectations. ... Read more

Book Description

Hot on the heels of his surprising in-your-face presidential campaign, the roots of candidate Duke are revisited in this reissue of Action Figure!, the definitive history of his adventures from 1970 to 1991.The perennial bad boy of American comics has always been a man of action:libelous action, irrational action, covert action, back-street action - even when comatose, he has a certain flair.Duke is the man of a thousand vices, with almost as many pages to his resume.For 17 years, from Samoa to China to Panama to Kuwait, wherever serious mischief was being dealt, Duke has been a major figure.Action Figure! gives the Toasted One his due - one vast, staggering flashback that tracks his careening career from Gonzo Journalist to Governor, Ambassador, Coach, Laetrile Farmer, Fugitive, and Zombie.No risk has been too great, no prospect too strange, to sway the man with nerves of steel from his random course. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Never been reviewed?
I am in absolute disbelief that no review has ever been given for this masterpiece. I read this book once a week in college. My friends and I could quote it as well as any cult movie of the nineties. "Fetch my dart gun, boy" and other phrases in this book became second nature to us. I cannot possibly recommend any book more strongly than Action Figure and I am in absolute disbelief that is has never been reviewed before. Buy this book...now...and that's my final offer. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Joanie after Clint...
Joanie Caucus(later Redfern), divorced from her husband Clint, decides to go to law school(she got a 760 on the law boards), but is just moved to the waiting lists. According to her because she's divorced and a woman; etc., and no one will therefore beleive in her. Zonker Harris gets to watch the mail for rejections. Her daycare kids try to encourage her, hence the title. It's from the 70's or early 80's and okay for Doonesbury satire. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Recycled Doonesbury, subtitled Second Thoughts on a Gilded Age chronicles the end of the '80s, and as the decade winds down, there's a feeling that times are a changing from Malibu to Walden.Reagan gives way to Bush (though he attempts a comeback as the utterly unhinged Ron Headrest), Duke goes to work on Donald Trump's yacht, and Mike and J.J.'s marriage hits a rough spot.The strip itself rings the changes for a while, in a survey-filled parody of USA Today. More than 69 percent of Americans enjoyed it!

This volume also captures the moment when Mr. Butts springs from the tortured mind of Mike Doonesbury. Surely one of the most inspired characters ever to appear in a comic strip, Mr. Butts is a perfect example of the satirical energy that drives Doonesbury. This wisecracking tube of tobacco has burned his way into the collective unconscious of readers as successfully as any advertising mascot. Eat your heart out, Joe Camel. All this, and the return of Elvis! --Simon Leake ... Read more