I overlooked this interview with Trudeau in which he explains about the
recent plot twist in which B.D. loses a leg in Iraq. He had this to say
about the craft of comic strips:
One
of the great things about a comic strip is that the narrative moves
forward in tiny, daily increments. The artist can keep a
theme alive in the readers’ minds for weeks. That lends it a power that
sometimes eludes daily journalism. It’s a great opportunity for me to
explore this subject in depth, and I hope I get it right.
Being a relatively newer reader of Doonesbury (since the ’80s, I
suppose), I didn’t realize that B.D. served in Vietnam as well. It’s a
bit strange to imagine character development for characters that don’t
age — weirder still that Mike and daughter Alex grow older nonetheless.
Thanks to GoneEast for the tip.
