BuzzFlash Reviews
July 2005
Sutton Impact: The Political Cartoons of Ward Sutton
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Two
things about Ward Sutton's style: he goes right for the jugular and the
guy draws cartoons bursting with color. He's like the shock and awe of
political cartoonists. In a league with Tom Tomorrow, Ted Rall and Aaron
McGruder, Sutton's cartoon panels leap off the page at you, getting to
the core psychological truths and ironies of Bushevism.
Experiencing a Sutton cartoon is kind of like watching "The Daily Show": his
sardonic humor gets you closer to the truth than the nightly news, much closer.
And, like "The Daily Show," Sutton varies his delivery. His most common cartoon
is six panels, but he also might toss in a two-page "poster" of Red State Republican
demons. Or a cartoon feature called "Miss War Manners," in which Hitler compliments
Bush for his skill in tying together the Iraq War propaganda with 9/11. One of
our favorite styles is Sutton's comparison pages, such as "How Gipperesque is
Dubya" and "Bubba vs. Dubya." He splits the page in half making multiple comparisons
that are irreverent and hilariously accurate.
How about these two match-ups in Reagan vs. Bush: [Reagan] frequently confused fiction with reality; [Bush] frequently tries to confuse the public with his fictional version of reality. Anyone want to argue with that?
The front cover of "Sutton Impact" sets the tone. An "All-American Family" in U.S. Flag T-shirts blissfully stands in front of a Statue of Liberty that is draped in the now infamous torture hood and sheet used in Abu Ghraib, with electrical wires for torture attached to her arms. Her crown and lamp of liberty have fallen to the ground of Liberty Island. It really is funny. We promise. You have to see it.
And, yes, occasionally Sutton lances right through wimpy Democrats. Take for instance Joe Lieberman's "Dear Diary." Joe confides to his wife, Hadassah, "I'm just writing about pursuing my dream." "Of becoming president?" Hadassah asks. "No, of becoming a Republican," Lieberman responds.But Sutton's poison cartoonist brush is primarily used to lampoon the hypocrisy, treachery, greed, and basic evil of the Busheviks and their fanatical Republican supporters. Like "The Daily Show," he never fails to be entertaining and provocative.
It's a downright patriotic political parody collection, because it exposes the fraud of those who would fashion themselves true Americans, when they are just really incompetent hypocrites and frauds.
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