Hardknock #5
various
Reviewed by Darren Hick

Mmm... Ice cream and brussel sprouts. Certain combinations seem palatable only to pregnant women. Hardknock might very well be one of those combinations -- I wouldn't know. There's one thing I do know: as with any anthology, there are good elements and bad elements. What Hardknock does is find the extremely good and the extremely bad, and combines them in a single, stapled periodical (though "occasional," it seems, would be a better term).

I first opened Hardknock #5 to a full-page "ad" for A.H.A.: Ass Hair Away ("You'll say Aha!, when your ass hair is gone!"). Despite (or possibly because) being terrible crude schoolyard humor, the mock-ad is suprisingly well done. In terms of art design, it's actually rather attractive. It's the magazine equivalent of a mock-ad on Saturday Night Live (currently the best feature of that once well-produced show). I had high hopes for the rag. Well, easy come, easy go.

The following page began a four-page episode of "The Armazing Stumps McGraw," the poorly drawn, poorly written story of a one-armed (well, one-handed) boy who's dedicated his life "to avoiding danger at all costs." Written and drawn by Bernard Carson, "Stumps" is apparently an institution at Hardknock. And, of course, "It's an heirloom" is always a handy excuse for that horrible sculpture over the fireplace. There's another Stumps story later in the book (by an unnamed creator), and he shows up again in the next issue (I know because I skimmed it).

Next up is a wordless, nameless 15-page comic by Sean Bates and Craig Gunderson. Although relying on repeated photocopying and manipulation of panels, Bates' and Gunderson's piece is a nice study in contemplative pantomime. Two rock-men speak in pictures (including a particularly nice rendition of "peckerhead" or, perhaps, "dickhead"), contemplating time and direction. Without actual dialog, it's a little difficult to explain much more of it than this. Rendered in thin-line ink and sparsely patterned pencil shading, Gunderson's art is minimalist but attractive. I'm willing to give it credit, though I don't altogether understand where he's going with it. Though it looks like the product of an art-school exercise, it's a quiet (for more reason than simply that it's pantomimed), attractive read.

So, there's a mix. There's a short interview (so we're told) with Judd Hirsch, some freeform poetry, and a couple other offerings. And according to the masthead, there're six editors, two interns and a proofreader. I'm not certain whether or not to take this seriously (they have names, after all). In any case, too many voices can't be heard. Some of the talents working on Hardknock are just that -- talents. Others are not. It's a mixed bag. Hardknock was conceived by six artists who, according to the letter I received, have been friends since college. Friendship is a many-splendored thing, but it doesn't necessarily produce a cult of personality. And without a cult of personality, voices get lost somewhere between a work and the anthology they're produced in.

Hardknock #5 costs a middle-of-the-road $2.50, and can be ordered from Craig Gunderson, 261 East Lincoln, Suite 203, DeKalb, IL, 60115. For more info, write to hardknock@usa.net.