But This War Had Such Promise

Doonesbury Annuals #3

by G.B. Trudeau

doonesbury

Genres: Humor, Comics, Politics, Cartoon, Comic Strips, Fiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Garretson Beekman "Garry" Trudeau is an American cartoonist, best known for the Doonesbury comic strip. In 1970, Trudeau's creation of Doonesbury was syndicated by the newly formed Universal Press Syndicate. Today Doonesbury is syndicated to almost 1,400 newspapers worldwide and is accessible online in association with Slate Magazine at doonesbury.com. In 1975, he became the first comic strip artist to win a Pulitzer, traditionally awarded to editorial-page cartoonists. He was also a Pulitzer finalist in 1990. He was nominated for an Oscar in 1977 in the category of Animated Short Film, for A Doonesbury Special, in collaboration with John Hubley and Faith Hubley. A Doonesbury Special eventually won the Cannes Film Festival Jury Special Prize in 1978. Other awards include the National Cartoonists Society (NCS) Newspaper Comic Strip Award in 1994, and the Reuben Award in 1995. He was made a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1993. Wiley Miller, fellow comic-strip artist responsible for Non Sequitur, called Trudeau "far and away the most influential editorial cartoonist in the last 25 years." In addition to his work on Doonesbury, Trudeau has teamed with Elizabeth Swados and written plays, such as Rap Master Ronnie and Doonesbury: A Musical Comedy. In 1988, Trudeau joined forces with director Robert Altman for the HBO miniseries Tanner '88 and the Sundance Channel miniseries sequel Tanner on Tanner in 2004. In 1996, Newsweek and The Washington Post speculated that Trudeau wrote the novel Primary Colors, which was later revealed to have been written by Joe Klein. Trudeau wrote the political sitcom Alpha House, starring John Goodman and Bill Murray. The pilot was produced by Amazon Studios and aired in early 2013. Due to positive response Amazon has picked up Alpha House to develop into a full series.

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very different look at Vietnam...humor mixed with 'punch in the gut' truth. If you have never talked to a Vietnam vet I would strongly encourage you to do so; some of the things that they had to go through are (even to this day) not appreciated. Never ceases to amaze me how young men in their 20's were judged so harshly - while generals went on to teaching positions - to teach the next generation.

[Craig Werner · Rating 3 out of 5]

B.D. goes to Vietnam and meets friendly VC Phred; the gang back home opens the commune at Walden; Mike tutors youthful black militant Rufus, who at one point changes his name to Thor. My favorite scenes are the ones with Zonker as the hippie Jacques Cousteau in the late lamented Walden puddle.

[寿理 宮本 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I mentioned finding *eight* of these collections for $1/each* and being less than excited about the deal I got. I mean, on one hand, this is earlier than the other Doonesbury collections I read, so it's somewhat less politically-heavy than those, with actual "standalone" jokes that are more approachable to a wider audience who maybe doesn't *necessarily* know all that went on in Vietnam.

I'm specifically less excited about this volume because a lot of even those standalone jokes fall flat. Maybe Trudeau developed his sense of humour more with being able to better integrate current politics into his work? It just feels like the "werewolf potion" thread is... weird, and also I just feel vaguely uncomfortable with how the black people are drawn—I don't remember them looking so "caricature" before in his comic.

(Do I remember him drawing black people before in his comic? ...I feel like it was mostly the Asian characters showing up in other books.)

I don't know. Has some good strips, nothing leg-slapping hilarious, best as a historical artefact or item for a fan specifically of Trudeau's work.

*really, $1.59 or $5/5, but there were eight of these books combined with two not-Doonesbury books to get the additional discount

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coming out in 1973 with strips from, I think, 71 and 72. With BD’s stint in Viet Nam and most of the regular characters moving to their commune to live together the scene of the strip broadens, the artwork continues to improve and all in all there’s some good laughs here.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

An entertaining read.

[David]

5th read ... never gets old

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trudeau was still working out his style at this point, but the satire was revolutionary for the time, and it's amazing (and sad) how much of this is still relevant.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very Good.

[Gregory Knapp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peerless Pandemic Distraction Reading

[Matthew McElroy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Garry Trudeau is one of our great cartoonists and probably the greatest political cartoonist since Nash (I forget his name, but he created the elephant and donkey for the Republicans and Democrats).

I bought this on a whim from a local bookstore and it didn't disappoint. As a 39 year old history teacher, I have a solid grasp of history. But sometimes, it helps to read what is happening in the moment.

I suppose the most significant moment of the comic is BD signing up to go to Vietnam. I dont think it's a spoiler because it is on the cover.
Dont pull pay full freight for this, but it is definitely worth buying from a used bookstore.