From the mid-80s, this cross-section of Robert Crumb's work is as representational as it gets. If collecting both Weirdo issues and collaborations with Charles Bukowski and Harvey Pekar weren't enough, this also includes a biography of obscure blues artist Charley Patton and a collection of random bits of personal drawings. There are only so many Crumb-drawn birth announcements for good friends that the world has seen.

Weirdo includes Mode O'Day's run which rivals American Psycho in its ability to slice through the ridiculousness of the 1980s ability to turn anything with depth into a shallow piece of fashionable trendiness. It's more satisfying to know that Crumb did this during while Ellis had already lived the decade and was comfortably listening to grunge when he wrote his observations. Point: Crumb.

Even more satisfying is the ability to see the many versions of Crumb's illustration. While it all has that distinctive "Crumb Look" to it, the variations in line and shading are amazing. When illustrating the Patton story, the lines take on a solid, nearly wood-cut feel in some places - it's as if Crumb wishes to carve out Patton's place in music history even though it has largely been forgotten. The Weirdo issues feature a bit of a "quickie" look to them with few solid areas that look as if they were slapped together in a few hours until you carefully look at the drawings and you realize that the drawing probably took even longer than hard, careful lines would have taken.

The stories are cut from whatever was interesting to Robert at the time. Mode O'Day is the definite highlight. Bukowski will fall flat if you're unfamiliar with his work. Jesus People USA is a self-indulgent piece in an otherwise great collection. ( )