Eightball: Number One [1]

Eightball #1

by Daniel Clowes

First issue, October 1989. Intended for "mature readers". Not a children's comic book. Illustrated and written by Daniel Clowes.

Genres: Comics, Fiction, Humor

Paperback

About the author

Daniel Clowes is an American cartoonist, graphic novelist, illustrator, and screenwriter whose work helped define the landscape of alternative comics and bring the medium into mainstream literary conversation. Rising to prominence through his long-running anthology Eightball, he used its pages to blend acidic humor, social observation, surrealism, and character-driven storytelling, producing serials that later became acclaimed graphic novels including Like a Velvet Glove Cast in Iron, Ghost World, David Boring, Ice Haven, and Patience. His illustrations have appeared in major publications such as The New Yorker, Vogue, and The Village Voice, while his collaborations with filmmaker Terry Zwigoff resulted in the films Ghost World and Art School Confidential, the former earning widespread praise and an Academy Award nomination for its screenplay. Clowes began honing his voice in the 1980s with contributions to Cracked and with his Lloyd Llewellyn stories for Fantagraphics, but it was Eightball, launched in 1989, that showcased the full range of his interests, from deadpan satire to psychological drama. Known for blending kitsch, grotesquerie, and a deep love of mid-century American pop culture, he helped shape the sensibilities of a generation of cartoonists and became a central figure in the shift toward graphic novels being treated as serious literature. His post-Eightball books continued this evolution, with works like Wilson, Mister Wonderful, The Death-Ray, and the recent Monica exploring aging, identity, longing, and the complexities of relationships, often through inventive visual structures that echo the history of newspaper comics. Clowes has also been active in music and design, creating artwork for Sub Pop bands, the Ramones, and other artists, and contributing to film posters, New Yorker covers, and Criterion Collection releases. His work has earned dozens of honors, including multiple Harvey and Eisner Awards, a Pen Award for Outstanding Body of Work in Graphic Literature, an Inkpot Award, and the prestigious Fauve d’Or at Angoulême. Exhibitions of his original art have appeared across the United States and internationally, with a major retrospective, Modern Cartoonist: The Art of Daniel Clowes, touring museums beginning in 2012. His screenplay work extended beyond Ghost World to projects like Art School Confidential and Wilson, and he has long been a touchstone for discussions about Generation X culture, alternative comics, and the shifting boundaries between the literary and graphic arts.

Reviews

[Rick Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eightball #1, October 1989

The first issue in Dan Clowes' seminal Eightball comic anthology opens with the first chapter of Like a Velvet Glove Cast in Iron, and is then followed by some solid entries like "Devil Doll", "The Laffin' Spittin' Man", "Young Dan Pussey", and the "What is the Most Important Invention of the Twentieth Century?" strip found on the back cover.

I'm particularly a fan of the early portion of Like a Velvet Glove since it really lands a thrilling surreal noir tone that becomes difficult to replicate as the story progresses onwards. It's a fantastic way to introduce new readers into Clowes' body of work since it trains them early on to expect the unexpected. "Devil Doll" is a fun riff on Christian comics as it plays an earnest attempt to demonstrate the importance of worship, but the satire if abundantly clear. The play on Chick tracts being used here was a fun addition. The Lloyd Llewellyn story is a bit of a miss for me, but the Dan Pusssey story that follows is genuinely a great jab at the comics industry.

I've followed Clowes' immense body of work for many years and largely enjoyed just about every graphic novel he's released, but to me Eightball is a magic that can never be replicated again.

[valplanta · Rating 3 out of 5]

what is the most important invention of the twentieth century? Manicures

[George Huxley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dantastic opening to Clowes' series Eightball. Clowes is honestly one of the best living graphic artists ever.

[René · Rating 4 out of 5]

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