Church & State, Vol. 2 (Cerebus, Vol. 4) [Paperback]

Dave Sim (Author), Gerhard (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Church and State, Volume II, is the second part of a story that exists as a whole and as part three of the Cerebus the Aardvark series. Many consider this volume to be Dave Sim and background artist Gerhard's best visual work to date.

The action picks up right after the cliffhanger at the end of part one of Church and State. Cerebus attempts to regain his lost throne amidst warnings of a larger crisis. Mountain climbing, the introductions of Prince Mick and Prince Keef (exactly who you might think they are), the Super Secret Sacred Wars, and an Ascension to Vanaheim mark this second half of the Church and State opus. The major plot lines, which started 10 years earlier in Cerebus and High Society, are resolved (to some degree). The ending sets the stage for the more restful and introspective volumes--Jaka's Story and Melmoth--that follow.

Product Details

• Paperback: 630 pages
• Publisher: Aardvark-Vanheim (July 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0919359116
• ISBN-13: 978-0919359116
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #314,161 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Aardvark in the Dark Ages aspires to epic, August 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Church and State II (Cerebus, Volume 4)

This ambitious series must have started as a drunken dare. Dave Sim, sometime in writing his black and white comic book about a mercenary aardvark, decided to make it a 300 issue epic, complete with his aardvark becoming pope and meeting God. This book (the second of the Church and State arc) is generally considered Sim's best work, before he suffered the Woody Allen syndrome of abandoning the plot and satire-driven formula that drove his success for plodding, self-involved storylines. This book pokes fun at everyone, including the Rolling Stones, Groucho Marx, Elric, the entire Catholic church, and yet somehow manages to have an interesting interaction with God.

The only caveat I would warn readers with is this: reading this book is going to make you want to buy the rest of this series, and that's going to get expensive.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THe High Point part 2, January 11, 2000

By 

PowerManG4 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Church & State, Vol. 2 (Cerebus, Vol. 4) (Paperback)

In my opinion the two volumes that comprise Church and State are the best of Cerebus. No longer Prime Minister and no longer caring about anything Cerebus is nominated to pontiff and decides everyone should give them gold. His object lessons with the young and old will give you a heartattack they are so funny. The underlying statements on religion, politics, and humanity is thought provoking and intense.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Aardvark Evolution, February 10, 2006

By 

J. C. Foster (Overland Park, KS United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Church & State, Vol. 2 (Cerebus, Vol. 4) (Paperback)

***This review contains spoilers***

I've only recently gotten into Cerebus, and I can't get them fast enough. I thoroughly enjoyed volume 1. High Society was interesting in the development of the story and character, though I didn't really connect with it the way a lot of people did. Then I got to Church and State and was blown away. I finished part 2 in one marathon session, reading years worth of material in just hours.

It's not often I've read a comic that made me sit back and say "Wow." It's also not often to read a comic where the main character rapes someone and you STILL like him, even though he isn't supposed to be likable. Many people seemed to be turned off by the decidedly darker tone the story takes, but I found it fascinating. Cerebus was truly evolving.

The biggest change was that Cerebus was no longer some asexual celibate. The storylines were even more mature than before, with Cerebus emerging as a lustful, sexual being, capable of emotions more complex than just annoyance and anger. His relationships with all the various women in the story were all well designed and almost tragic in that everything Cerebus gets involved with always ends in the worst possible way. He blows his relationship with Michelle by listening to the wrong person. He's married to Sophia and doesn't love her, yet he is afraid to leave her. When he finally realizes his true love is Jaka, he can't have her. It's quite sad, actually.

The artwork is better than ever. Cerebus is no longer just a gray blob, but now has some muscular definition, making him seem even more real. And the backgrounds are just stunning, many of which are shown with no dialogue at all.

And then there's the ending. What a punch to the gut. The Judge's last words to Cerebus cut like a chainsaw, and the final scene of Cerebus returning to the destroyed city, walking the empty streets is just haunting. I haven't been able to get it out of my head. And while the overall story of Church and State may not be as overtly funny as what came before it, it's still funny in it's own way. Some people are turned off by Cerebus's harsh behavior, but I thought it was great. After being manipulated for so long with disastrous results in High Society and Church & State 1, he unleashes his rage like a hurricane once he becomes the pope. I thought it was just perfect.