Writer: Dave Sim
Artists: Dave Sim & Gerhard
Publisher: Aardvark-Vanaheim
Well, it’s over. Cerebus does indeed die alone, unloved, and (presumably) unmourned (except by his legion of diehard fans). His death is a comic pratfall, and he’s dragged kicking and screaming into the light.
Frankly, I don’t get the ending. What did Cerebus see at the end? Was it a God different from what he expected? Did he realize he was dying and tried to fight it? What’s the significance of seeing Jaka flanked by Bear and Rick? I might check out the magazine ‘Following Cerebus’ just to get some clues. And it’s because I don’t fully understand this ending, I can't score this issue. I do recommend reading it, but it would make more sense if you’ve read at least the last 100 issues. (Events in “Rick’s Story” and “Going Home” play important roles in “Latter Days”.)
I am convinced that Dave Sim has gone completely around the bend. This issue ends with a prayer Dave wrote himself and claims to recite at least once a day. It has the formality of Catholic prayers, the supplication of Islamic prayers, and the academic accuracy of Jewish prayers. In short, he thanks God for each book of the Bible, by name, (Old and New Testaments), the Koran, the prophets of Israel, Jesus, Muhammad, and the good life he’s had. He asks for forgiveness of his transgressions, submits himself to God’s judgment, wisdom, and mercy, and praises the Almighty in every possible way. He renews his vow to “never again marry”, or “cohabit with a woman”, and asks for His wisdom to help “exercise all caution, all restraint, all common sense, all good judgment” in dealing with womankind.
Now, I will not criticize Sim’s unique theology, or his opinions on God. Nor will I take issue with his blending of leading religions to form his own theology. (My own beliefs are a combination of Christianity, Taoism, Objectivism, what I learned from comics, and the almighty law “I Am Right”.) What does bother me is how far Sim’s views and behaviors differ from conventional thought. What I’ve seen is a man isolating himself from almost all human contact, rejecting conventional wisdom, and spending a great deal of time and effort demonstrating why he is right and the majority of the world is wrong. I can speak from experience when I say that is not conductive to good mental health.
Reading ‘Cerebus’ for the last few years has been less a following of a tale but more of watching an artist retreat further and further from reality. I still find Sim to be an intelligent man and a great comic book artist. It’s his personal views and behaviors that worry me. And since ‘Cerebus’ has been the focus of Sim’s life for the last 26 years, not to mention a forum for the display and discussion of his ideas, it’s hard to separate the work from the man. Personally, I think Dave Sim could make a good cult leader. But having met him in person, I know he lacks the personal charisma and magnetism to attract followers.
It will be interesting to see what Sim does now. Everything he’s done, his book reading, his investigations of religion, his study of art, all of it was in service to ‘Cerebus’. Everything he did was connected to a story (or THE story), in ‘Cerebus’. And now it’s done. What’s next?
I wouldn’t rule out suicide. Though I’d rather see him keep working. He’s too good an artist to remain unemployed.
[Ed’s note: Cerebus saw hell. The light was hell, and he was being dragged into it - hence his desperate plea for God to save him from it. It wasn't Rick he saw, he saw Ham Ernestway ... if you look at the people there, they were all parts of his past which caused him problems, or he caused problems for, so he realised that they were - in fact - demons and he'd spend eternity being punished in the company of people he hated (bear in mind the last we saw of Jaka he was really, really pissed at her because (he thought) she'd made him miss the death of his dad).]
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