Everybody knows that Ted Rall is a dick, right? Not that I’ve ever met the guy, but everybody knows the story by now of how he’s suing Danny Hellman over a practical joke? I’m sure it’s possible that he’s a perfectly wonderful human being whose side of the story just isn’t being told here (to be fair, I haven’t heard his side of the story, but I can’t imagine how he could justify ruining another human being) but, really, it doesn’t make a bit of difference. Why? Because I still like his comics. Sorry, maybe it isn’t accepted to say that out loud, but I do. Haven’t kept up with his weekly work, although I do see a strip once in a great while, but I usually like what I see. This is supposed to be a review for this book though, not a character analysis, so I apologize. This is the story of the battles Ted had with a bully back in his middle school days. He tries to kill the kid on more than one occasion, which probably seems insane until you think back to any of the times that you were bullied as a child. What did you want to do to the person doing the bullying? Probably something along the lines of throwing bricks at his head or slamming his head in a locker a few dozen times. He’s painfully honest (although he does seem to have more than a little bit of an ego when describing himself but, again, it’s not like I know the guy and say that he’s exaggerating) but I never did think much of his boxy art. The dialogue more than makes up for it, but the point of this review is simple. If you hate Ted Rall because of what’s going on with him and Danny Hellman, fine, hate away. I still think he’s a gifted cartoonist who deserves to be read without focusing on his personal life.
Posted by Kevin 
