The greatest love story ever told has finally been released in graphic novel form. This epic tome features twenty short stories about the domestic life of Henry and Glenn and sometimes their neighbors Daryl and John. Digging beneath Glenn's bricks in the front yard, Henry uncovers Glenn's mother. Freshly unearthed, she moves in with him and Henry. Glenn's issues come to the surface as she critiques his art, replaces his wardrobe, scrubs their dungeon, and recalls his childhood. Later, Glenn tries to sell his signature to a UPS driver, takes a punch, and has some daydreaming adventures with a plunger. Henry, "a loud guy with a good work ethic," shows his darker side and indifference to a fan as he drinks black coffee and bonds with Glenn over their distaste for their own bands. These are two men who truly suffer best alone together.
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REVIEW:
"For those hip to one of the bigger inside jokes in underground comics and music (do inside jokes even exist anymore with the Internet?), it's time for the "Completely Ridiculous" edition of the Henry and Glenn saga. For the uninitiated, the Henry and Glenn Forever and Ever series of comics is based on the ridiculous premise that Henry Rollins—he of Black Flag/punk punditry fame, and Glenn Danzig, of Misfits/Danzig/Samhain renown—are lovers wedded in domestic bliss, as well as neighbors to the satan-worshipping Hall and Oates.
This preposterous concept was conceived in 2005 by Tom Neely and his friends Gin Stevens, Scott Nobles, and Levon Jihanian, in what would become the Igloo Tornado collective. The spark of the idea came in a bar where all truly brilliant ideas come from, and it has snowballed albeit slowly ever since. The result has been dozens of comic panels and gags created by a cadre of talented artists. The resulting work is clever at times, funny in most places, and absurd always.
Given the concept, one may wonder, is it homophobic to pair these two outwardly macho icons in a homosexual relationship just to elicit laughter? Or does the humor lie solely (or mostly) in the unlikeliness of the premise? Well, it could certainly be argued that the concept is juvenile, but maybe the question to ask is, would it be more or less funny if it was Courtney Love and Glenn doing the coupling? Or Joan Jett and Henry? Each has the potential to succeed or fail on its own merit. For me, it’s more about making fun of the hyper-masculinity of these two weightlifting aggro performers and their coveted place in the lore of the 80/90s underground music scene, than any attempt at juvenile humor, but there definitely is that too. Others may arrive at a different conclusion and are certainly welcome to write a click-baitable blog post about it.
One also wonders if the real life Henry and Glenn appreciate this elaborate joke? Henry, yes, Glenn not so much. So far. (Are we surprised?) —Reglar Wiglar
