Here is a page from that first Bowl-Shaped World issue (and the last issue from Capital Comics before Nexus moved to First in 1983). Is there anything more to say about Nexus and the first bowl saga (Nexus color issues 6-8), especially by me? Why yes, thank you for asking. At OAX this year I told Steve Rude that these issues are my favorite from the long Nexus saga and he nodded (and signed my pages). He gets that a lot, which is why he and Baron repeated the adventure in issues 45 through 50, leading up to the big 50th issue reveals. Baron used a fill in issue by Keith Geffen in issue 23 to add some depth to that first Bowl trip, and he and Rude essentially replicated the concept in the much later Coming of Gourmando, Nexus' take on Galactus. But it was the first trip, and this first issue (#6) which cemented my love of the book. This is odd in a way, as Nexus loses his powers in the Bowl and is somewhat of a bystander for the heroes journey (with Judah and the Badger) that makes up the tale. So what was it for me? How to explain something so deeply personal (it is unclear whether this type of analysis matters to anyone else but me, but it does help me order my thoughts). Thinking back, it was the right story in the right place at the right time. I was 15 when this issue came out and homesick in my first year at boarding school. I had always loved comics, but felt as I had "outgrown" the superhero or Archie/Richie Rich comics of my youth. I was quickly changing in my tastes of clothes, friends, music, comics, books - really anything. And being away from home at the same time was very disorienting. So it was an exciting relief when I found my group of friends. Among the things which bonded us was the new alternative comics scene - and you can see this all over my original art collection in Badger, American Flagg!, Cerebus, Love & Rockets, Jon Sable, Grimjack and, of course, Nexus. We traded interests in other fields too - music, clothing, ultimate frisbee, dancing, alcohol, weed, theater/movies, girls and probably many other things I have forgotten. Looking back, it was an interesting group in and of itself. Within our concentric circles of friends was the founder of a well-known, billion dollar social network, a guitarist in a very successful 1990s band, a famous actress still on TV, a future CIA agent, others who went on to make their marks in other fields ... and me. We argued constantly about everything, and especially comics and very especially Nexus and Flagg. And for me, the intense humor and friendship in Nexus and the Bowl issues was the embodiment of everything special about that group and those years. I used a scene from Nexus issue 8 as the backdrop of my yearbook page ("Yo! Larry! Get a Tank! We'll Race!"). This is close to the culmination of the Bowl quest - Nexus convinces Badger and Judah to give up their heart's desires in order to be able to return to an imperfect home. This is the only way to leave the Bowl - to mature, understand and appreciate the beauty of life's imperfections. Before Nexus can leave (and return to his powered executioner existence), he must promise to return to the Bowl. When he asks why, he is told for conversation and that the Bowl knows he will return as "There are no dreams here". Dreams being the arch-enemy of Nexus and that which causes him the most pain. Take what you will of this as a life lesson. About 15 years after first reading the Bowl saga, I went out to dinner in NY with one of my boarding school friends and a new to me person. Somehow the conversation turned towards bowls, and from that I jokingly mentioned that my favorite bowl was the Bowl-shaped world. Before I finished the word "world," the new person knew what I referenced. As it turned out, he had also been in the right place at the right time and we again bonded over the right story. Collecting pages from those issues brings me right back to that place again and again. I am honored to add this one to my collection.
