Cerebus No. 2 - Remastered & Expanded is a reprint of the second issue of Dave Sim's comic book series Cerebus the Aardvark. A part of the Cerebus: Remastered & Expanded series from The Waverly Press in collaboration with Aardvark-Vanaheim, this reprint is in black & white, apart from the covers. It was financed with a Kickstarter campaign and features seven cover variations.[1]
In addition to the reprint, the Kickstarter campaign featured a number of additional items, including trading cards and a "Printer's Proof" edition that features the same material, arranged somewhat differently from the finalized version.
Story[]
"Captive in Boreala"[]
Hearing that mercenaries are needed for the Blood Wars, Cerebus joins a group of soldiers going to Boreala. A band of marauders attacks, killing the other soldiers and taking Cerebus captive. They intend to sell him to a freak show in Gurann. Cerebus, however, insults the Chieftain in Paranian, his native language. Honor demands a duel. The chief chooses the large (but not particularly bright) Klog as his champion. With the assistance of his Earth-Pig Snout Punch, Cerebus wins. He joins the marauders.
After three days, the marauders are ambushed by about fifty soulless warriors. Cut off from the rest of the group by one of them, Cerebus leaps from a cliff and breaks through the ice into a series of tunnels with ancient writings and carvings. He soon realizes that the legend of the Eye of Terim is true and that he has discovered the lair of Khem. Cerebus braves the treacherous terrain and finally reaches the fabled Eye, a golden glowing sphere. His desire to sell it for a fortune proves greater than his fear of the dark demon.
Cerebus spies a distant exit and carries the (unexpectedly heavy) Eye towards it. The demon attacks him by sending ethereal tendrils into his brain in search of his soul. Due to the Earth-Pig's Aardvarkian nature, however, Khem fails. Cerebus breaks free and escapes. Without a fresh soul, Khem essentially starves to death. The souls of his warriors, all those who had fallen victim to Khem's trap in the past, are free, and the Eye is revealed as a worthless iron sphere. Too, during Cerebus's time underground, Khem's warriors wiped out the Borealans. Cerebus departs under the rising full Moon, hungry and poor, vowing to reach the nearest port before the next moonrise.
Additional[]
- "A Note from the Publisher" by Deni Loubert
- "Next Issue - Song of Red Sophia"
- "Aardvark Comment"
Expanded Material[]
- Introduction by by Dave Sim
- Cover and story "Salty Night's Drink" from Reader Written Comics - cover by Bruce Shane, story art by Dave Sim based on "Cyclops & Stumps" by Chris Mackey and "Possessed Ring" by Michael Sakara
- A Cerebus convention illustration by Dave Sim circa 1978
- "Lost" Cerebus story "Anatol's Solecism" with notes by Dave Sim
- The original line art for the cover to Cerebus No. 2 and the five Remastered & Expanded editions.
Characters[]
- Cerebus (last seen in issue 1; next appearance in issue 3)
- Chieftain (only appearance)
- Khem (first appearance; next appearance in issue 151)
- Klog (only appearance; dies)
Objects[]
Locations[]
- Boreala -- location of the story
- Tansubal -- mentioned as being where Cerebus joined the expedition
- Gurann -- its freakshow and marketplace mentioned
- Temza -- the port that is Cerebus' destination at issue's end
Notes[]
See Cerebus No. 2 for details on the original publication.
Cover Gallery[]
Print runs were as indicated.
600 copies
400 copies
300 copies
200 copies
150 copies
150 copies
100 copies
Printer's Proofs were each limited to 30 copies, signed and numbered by Dave Sim. Originally released as a set of five, they were later made available individually.
