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Zap Comix #7
Zap Comix #7
Started in 1968 by Robert Crumb who drew the two first issues (#0 & 1), Zap Comix introduced readers to the new genre of Underground Comix. The first five issues defined the scope of the new art, inspired by but completely detached from any previous comic style, Zap artists became the reference for a new generation of cartoonists. Crumb, S. Clay Wilson, V. Moscoso, R. Griffin, G. Shelton, Spain Rodriguez and R. Williams changed the face of comics, lifting them from the confines of the Comics Code to the rank of recognized art form.
Sangrella / Spain --
The adventures of Fat Freddy's cat / Gilbert Shelton --
Mr. Natural meets "the kid" / R. Crumb --
Hookin' & Jabin' with Zeak the Zuke / Robt. Williams --
Futuristic glimpse / S. Clay Wilson --
The mentor in the mason jar / Robt. Williams --
R. Crumb presents R. Crumb / R. Crumb.
Sangrella / Spain --
The adventures of Fat Freddy's cat / Gilbert Shelton --
Mr. Natural meets "the kid" / R. Crumb --
Hookin' & Jabin' with Zeak the Zuke / Robt. Williams --
Futuristic glimpse / S. Clay Wilson --
The mentor in the mason jar / Robt. Williams --
R. Crumb presents R. Crumb / R. Crumb.
52 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1974
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 21, 2023
Really cool cover. Looks like something that could have been a Heavy Metal cover. The first story, also by Spain also feels like something that could have been published in Heavy Metal... if they were a lot more bold. Damn, it's some weird sex-slave, sci-fi dystopia where males have been rendered useless. It ends pretty abruptly and doesn't make a heck of a lot of sense. But cool nonetheless. Which really could be said about most of the stories in this volume.
The whole gang is in this one. More anthologies need to be like this, just a group of people contributing their short stories that would otherwise not see print for quite awhile. I feel like Fantagraphics NOW! is trying to do that, but the contributors are inconsistent (and the consistent guys are actually the most boring).
S. Clay Wilson - Over the top sex and violence with drawings that match. Each panel has so much going on, it's hard to even tell what's on the page. There's been multiple times where someone is shot in the head while giving oral on a man. Weird.
Gilbert Shelton - The funniest guy in the group. He has a more typical comicbook approach to comedy and it works well. Doesn't rely on gratuitous sex and violence to sell the gag.
Rick Griffin
Robert Crumb - Mr Natural... hey, I'm actually starting to like this character!
Robert Williams - fantastic artwork, but he doesn't really have his own unique style here. He seems to be aping classic cartoon styles. The stories just go off the rails, its quite fun. Here a mason jar full of stinky garbage becomes sentient.
Victor Moscoso - continuing his classic comic strip style story with a dream like atmosphere.
The whole gang is in this one. More anthologies need to be like this, just a group of people contributing their short stories that would otherwise not see print for quite awhile. I feel like Fantagraphics NOW! is trying to do that, but the contributors are inconsistent (and the consistent guys are actually the most boring).
S. Clay Wilson - Over the top sex and violence with drawings that match. Each panel has so much going on, it's hard to even tell what's on the page. There's been multiple times where someone is shot in the head while giving oral on a man. Weird.
Gilbert Shelton - The funniest guy in the group. He has a more typical comicbook approach to comedy and it works well. Doesn't rely on gratuitous sex and violence to sell the gag.
Rick Griffin
Robert Crumb - Mr Natural... hey, I'm actually starting to like this character!
Robert Williams - fantastic artwork, but he doesn't really have his own unique style here. He seems to be aping classic cartoon styles. The stories just go off the rails, its quite fun. Here a mason jar full of stinky garbage becomes sentient.
Victor Moscoso - continuing his classic comic strip style story with a dream like atmosphere.
March 18, 2025
Zap away the stress of a hard day! More underground comix! Let's see what's inside!
Sangrelle:
A new artist to Zap, Spain. I love this style of art. Crazy sci-fi chicks. Super erotic. The story is strange, but I dig it. A world where men are no longer needed to procreate. They are an endangered species. Though not all women like it that way.
Fat Freddy's Cat:
From the universe of the Freak Brothers, we get a goofy little comic about Fat Freddy's cat watching the boys get into some trouble.
The Mentor in the Mason Jar:
A wacky one about a strange blob of eyes, teeth, hair, and claw that can somehow see bits of the future.
Changes:
Really cool comic. Super surreal and shows a lot of weird morphing. There's not a big plot, but I still loved this one for the crazy art and storytelling through morphs.
And all kinds of other wacky goodness!
Sangrelle:
A new artist to Zap, Spain. I love this style of art. Crazy sci-fi chicks. Super erotic. The story is strange, but I dig it. A world where men are no longer needed to procreate. They are an endangered species. Though not all women like it that way.
Fat Freddy's Cat:
From the universe of the Freak Brothers, we get a goofy little comic about Fat Freddy's cat watching the boys get into some trouble.
The Mentor in the Mason Jar:
A wacky one about a strange blob of eyes, teeth, hair, and claw that can somehow see bits of the future.
Changes:
Really cool comic. Super surreal and shows a lot of weird morphing. There's not a big plot, but I still loved this one for the crazy art and storytelling through morphs.
And all kinds of other wacky goodness!
February 2, 2023
wilson and williams are do visually dense you have to look closely and long just to determine what in hell is actually going on, which their work rewards on the whole (this will vary according to taste)
April 2, 2025
Zap Comix #7, 1973
My personal favorite Spain Rodriguez work all contained in this issue, starting with the cover which I'll just say has to be one of the best covers in the entire series. It matches the tone of Spain's feature in this issue - the nine-page "Sangrella" which is a rare dip into a futuristic sci-fi setting where a female assassin is tasked with recovering a MacGuffin that enables women to reproduce without the need for men. It's something that feels almost at home in Heavy Metal, but Spain was doing it before the magazine hit circulation in the States. It's a funny action heavy story that also allows Spain to draw a ton of BDSM type situations too.
Gilbert Shelton follows up with the two-page story about Fat Freddy's Cat caught amidst a drug raid and is pursued by a police dog. Shelton's piece is followed by some S. Clay Wilson pieces that are solid. Rick Griffin has an untitled story that follows that includes some fantastical illustrations followed by a strange Biblical passage. I've never really understood what Griffin was getting at here, and upon this re-read I'm still a bit nonplussed.
R. Crumb's "Mr. Natural Meets the Kid" story is a solid story involving Mr. Natural working with Prem Rawat, an Hindu guru who rose to fame in his childhood and established a fanbase in the States. Mr. Natural soon grows to resent the Kid and tries his level best to knock him down a peg, but to no avail. It's a thinly veiled jab at the "new age spirituality" that grew to prominence in '60s hippie culture, but still works today given how many cults begin with similar mindsets.
Robert Williams, S. Clay Wilson, R. Crumb and Victor Moscoso round out the final few stories. Williams' "The Mentor in the Mason Jar" is a hilarious tale of a drunk who searches through a dump and discovers a magical mason jar. Wilson's "Futuristic Glimpse" is a story of two gay crooks who go on a series of violent rampages. Crumb does a little autobio piece that feels like it could have easily been a piece in Harvey Pekar's American Splendor. And Moscoso does yet anther medley of wordless images that craft a surreal yet obscured narrative.
Easily one of the strongest issues in the series, but it's Spain's contributions that stand above all for me here.
My personal favorite Spain Rodriguez work all contained in this issue, starting with the cover which I'll just say has to be one of the best covers in the entire series. It matches the tone of Spain's feature in this issue - the nine-page "Sangrella" which is a rare dip into a futuristic sci-fi setting where a female assassin is tasked with recovering a MacGuffin that enables women to reproduce without the need for men. It's something that feels almost at home in Heavy Metal, but Spain was doing it before the magazine hit circulation in the States. It's a funny action heavy story that also allows Spain to draw a ton of BDSM type situations too.
Gilbert Shelton follows up with the two-page story about Fat Freddy's Cat caught amidst a drug raid and is pursued by a police dog. Shelton's piece is followed by some S. Clay Wilson pieces that are solid. Rick Griffin has an untitled story that follows that includes some fantastical illustrations followed by a strange Biblical passage. I've never really understood what Griffin was getting at here, and upon this re-read I'm still a bit nonplussed.
R. Crumb's "Mr. Natural Meets the Kid" story is a solid story involving Mr. Natural working with Prem Rawat, an Hindu guru who rose to fame in his childhood and established a fanbase in the States. Mr. Natural soon grows to resent the Kid and tries his level best to knock him down a peg, but to no avail. It's a thinly veiled jab at the "new age spirituality" that grew to prominence in '60s hippie culture, but still works today given how many cults begin with similar mindsets.
Robert Williams, S. Clay Wilson, R. Crumb and Victor Moscoso round out the final few stories. Williams' "The Mentor in the Mason Jar" is a hilarious tale of a drunk who searches through a dump and discovers a magical mason jar. Wilson's "Futuristic Glimpse" is a story of two gay crooks who go on a series of violent rampages. Crumb does a little autobio piece that feels like it could have easily been a piece in Harvey Pekar's American Splendor. And Moscoso does yet anther medley of wordless images that craft a surreal yet obscured narrative.
Easily one of the strongest issues in the series, but it's Spain's contributions that stand above all for me here.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews