Swords of Cerebus Vol. 3 (Fall 1981)

Have you ever wondered, what happened between Cerebus issues 20 and 21?” I can’t say that I have because I’m not invested in the Cerebus series/universe. In fact, the only Cerebus books I’ve read are the ones that feature Dave Sim’s Swamp Thing parody, Sump Thing. If you’ve not had a chance to check out, Sump Thing in Cerebus, 25, 82, 105, 106 and 107 you’re  not missing a great deal. But, as a Swamp Thing completist they’re enticing for your collection.

This trade paperback collects 4 Cerebus comics (issues 9-12 from 1979) and features a previously unpublished 8-page story. The story is titled, “What Happened Between Issues 20 and 21” and it features a small, bizarre Swamp Thing appearance/parody.

The 8-page story starts with Cerebus having been drugged (continuing the narrative from Cerebus 20). Trying to elude his captures, Cerebus stumbles in and out of a bar, and winds up being kidnapped by two different evildoers/opportunists who sell him to a freak show. Within the freak show, Swamp Thing can be seen as one of the attractions next to Cerebus.

I don’t believe it’s a coincidence that the Swamp Thing doppelgänger is placed next to someone named, “B’erńi”