Thursday, November 16, 2006
Chunga #12
Chunga #12 / Randy Byers, 1013 N. 36th, Seattle WA 98103 / $3.50 or trade / A real pleasure to meet Randy at the worldcon! Chunga is consistently one of the most attractive zines published, thanks to excellent line art and airy layout. The writing is also diverting and funny, the bulk of it in-group stuff devoted to TAFF and Corflu, the twin towers of "that" corner of fanzine fandom. I especially applaud Steve Stiles' brilliant 1969 take-off on Krazy Kat. But Byers' heart-felt "God Cuts the Thread" bears no trace of fannish frivolity. It's a reflection on a horrible juxtaposition: mortality and the budding sexuality of teenaged girls. Prompted by a massacre at a local rave, Randy's piece is an anguished attempt to find affirmation in the most hideous and insane of realities. In that way, it reminds me of the superb though deeply painful film The Sweet Hereafter, and considering the recent obscenities visited upon girls in Colorado and Amish country, it speaks to feelings experienced by most Americans this fall.
