Here we can see that Bloom County was just crackling with creativity and a real desire to "cut loose" from the beginning. Some of the strips covered "current events" and were topical, meaning circa 1980, but if you were around for any of that time it's a nostalgic trip back to the days of Boy George and when Ozzy Osbourne was best known as a singer. But the vast majority of the strips ring very true today as they deal with the absurdities of the human animal.
A word about the format: Bloom County in it's original form included both the standard "3 panel" strips that appear in your every day newspaper in black and white, plus a larger full page color version for the Sunday paper. The other Bloom County volumes (as well as Bloom's sequel "Outland") were in a larger physical book form. (Similar to what you may have seen if you're a collector of, say, Calvin and Hobbes, or Dilbert). This first volume is a smaller book (similar in format to the endless volumes of Garfield which became available). But this is where it all began, and it includes much of the "best stuff".
If you want to know what America was laughing at in 1980, this is it. But you know what? I reread these strips every so often, and they STILL make me laugh that loud, roll on the floor, tears streaming down my face, people coming into the room to see WHAT are you laughing at kind of laugh. We don't get that kind of laugh often enough. Thank you, Mr. Breathed.
Bloom County fans don't just laugh at the jokes, they care about Opus and the rest. Even Steve Dallas, the ruthless but inept lawyer, wins sympathy.
The humour tends to the wit and satire end of the cartoon spectrum with only occasional bursts of slapstick. The satire is aimed mainly at lifestyles and steroetypes rather than current events which makes it still sharp as it ages.
It is a very male-centric book. Female characters are introduced in order to give the main players a romantic interlude or to prop up some situation.
Bloom County was one of the best cartoons of its time and Loose Tails is a real gem.
