Writer: Dennis P. Eichhorn
Artist(s): Ivan Brunetti, Tom Van Deusen, Michael Arnold, Gerald Jablonski, Aaron Lange, Dame Darcy, R.L. Crabb, Pat Moriarity, Colin Upton, Max Clotfelter, J.R. Williams, Noah Van Sciver, David Lasky, David Collier, Sean Hurley, Ashleigh Talbot, Stan W. Shaw
Release Date: 31st December, 2015
“Extra Good Stuff” is a brand new anthology of offbeat and irreverent autobiographical comix from award-winning creator Dennis P. Eichhorn, who sadly passed away just a few months ago. As with his previous offerings – released as part of his long-running “Real Stuff” series – these stories are filled with sex, drugs and (the King of) rock n’ roll, and are delivered in a shockingly honest fashion by a diverse cadre of guest artists.
While many readers will likely still be mourning his passing it’s clear that Eichhorn lived one hell of a life, and he takes great delight here in sharing some tawdry tales of drug use, near-death experiences and questionable moral choices. There isn’t much of an attempt to gloss over anything that happens within these pages, and everything is delivered in an unrelentingly honest fashion. The assembled artists have a lot of fun with this approach, illustrating everything from drug-addled lectures on the history of grunge to a transgender prostitute’s genitalia being pressed up against a restaurant window (yeah, you heard me) with a sense of gusto.
The artwork itself, it has to be said, is a little hit or miss. Some strips are delivered with restraint and polish, some with enthusiasm and energy, and others… well, others just plain look bad. There’s a fine line between ‘edgy’ and ‘messy’, and this collection crosses that line more than is acceptable; in my opinion, at least. That said, there’s an overall aesthetic that Eichhorn is clearly going for, even in spite of the diverse styles of the assembled artists, and for a grungy, ‘zine style of book, this is exactly what you should probably be expecting.
Another thing about this collection that cannot be ignored is the fairly inconsistent nature of the strips; for every absolute gem of a tale there’s another that left me scratching my head wondering just how it made the cut. The good outweighs the bad for the most part, but it does detract somewhat from the overall reading experience when the flow is continually interrupted by bouts of unsatisfying navel gazing.
These niggles aside, die-hard fans of Eichhorn are in for an absolute treat, although more casual readers may find this a considerably tougher read. While its far from his best work, there’s still a lot to like here, and the delivery of several of the strips is borderline genius.
Overall, this feels like a collection that could easily have been trimmed down to half the page count without sacrificing too much, but which still gives a wonderfully frank insight into the demented, depraved life of one of the comic world’s truly unique characters.
Rating: 2.5/5.
You can purchase Extra Good Stuff from Turnaround Publisher Services (who generously provided the review copy of this title) via their official website.
The writer of this piece was: 
Craig Neilson-Adams (aka Ceej)
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