''Cherry'' (originally ''Cherry Poptart'') is an erotic
comic book
A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
about a sexually adventurous 18-year-old woman and her friends, written and drawn by Larry Welz.
trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from othe ...
.Skinn, Dez, ''Comix: The Underground Revolution'' Thunder's Mouth Press, New York, NY (2004) pp. 71–73. It has also been suggested that Welz decided that the "Cherry" name alone was better as a brand and looked better as a logo. Inside the comic Cherry's name was changed to Cherry Popstar, and that name was used in a number of stories, but she was most frequently referred to by just her first name.
The original series has also spawned a spinoff title in 1992 – ''Cherry's Jubilee'' – which ran four issues, and featured stories from other writers and artists alongside work by Welz. In addition, individual issues are collected in a series of ''Cherry Collection''s. Welz has also produced an issue called ''Cherry Deluxe'' featuring a story by Neil Gaiman.
The original publisher of the comic was
Last Gasp
Last Gasp or The Last Gasp may refer to
* Last Gasp (publisher)
* ''Last Gasp'' (''Inside No. 9''), a TV episode
* '' The Last Gasp'', a 2007 album by Impaled
* ''The Last Gasp'' (novel)
* "Last Gasp" (song)
{{dab ...
through Issue 13.
Kitchen Sink Press
Kitchen Sink Press was a comic book publishing company founded by Denis Kitchen in 1970. Kitchen Sink Press was a pioneering publisher of underground comics, and was also responsible for numerous republications of classic comic strips in hard ...
published issues 14–15, as well as reprinting the Last Gasp issues with some modifications (mostly ads). Beginning with issue 16, Welz formed
Cherry Comics
''Cherry'' (originally ''Cherry Poptart'') is an erotic comic book about a sexually adventurous 18-year-old woman and her friends, written and drawn by Larry Welz.
History
First published in 1982
Though the comic is largely known as an erotic or
pornographic
Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults,
free speech
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recog ...
/
censorship
Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...
awareness campaigns. The series is among the largest-selling of the
underground comics
Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, ...
, and is among those titles credited with reviving that genre.
Contrasting the subject matter with more "innocent" connotations, Welz draws the comic in a simple style reminiscent of
Dan DeCarlo
Daniel S. DeCarlo (December 12, 1919 – December 18, 2001) was an American cartoonist best known for having developed the look of Archie Comics in the late 1950s and early 1960s, modernizing the characters to their contemporary appearance and es ...
, whose style was also the basis for the ''Archie'' comic book series, though he does experiment with different drawing styles, including a 3D edition. The strip so closely followed the "Happy Teenager" genre typified by Archie that lawsuits were threatened, but these failed to stop Welz, who overtly lampooned the Archie characters in the story "Vampironica", though that particular story was pulled from subsequent printings.
Cast
Family
* Cherry—The main character is a
high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
student who is described by the comic's publishers as "blonde, cute, sexy, fun, friendly & smart." Her character is bisexual, promiscuous, has small breasts, and can seemingly become
sexually aroused
Sexual arousal (also known as sexual excitement) describes the physiological and psychological responses in preparation for sexual intercourse or when exposed to sexual stimuli. A number of physiological responses occur in the body and mind ...
simply by breathing. Cherry does not age, but perpetually has "just turned 18". She was ranked 82nd in ''
Comics Buyer's Guide
''Comics Buyer's Guide'' (''CBG''; ), established in 1971, was the longest-running English-language periodical reporting on the American comic book industry. It awarded its annual Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Awards from 1983 to circa 2010. The publ ...
's'' "100 Sexiest Women in Comics" list.
* Pepper—Cherry's mother who is a
divorced
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
MILF
MILF (, as if read as "milf") is an acronym that stands for "Mother I'd Like to Fuck". This abbreviation is used in colloquial English, instead of the whole phrase. It connotes an older woman considered sexually attractive, typically one who has ...
. Pepper is a grown-up version of Cherry, looking very similar and apparently having the same sexual appetites. She and Cherry co-star in some stories, and Pepper stars alone in others. In ''Cherry'' #14, Cherry's father is revealed to be either
George Washington
George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...
, Davy Crockett, Jesse James, or James Dean, as Pepper had group sex with all of them at the same time.
* Cinnamon—Cherry's little sister. She appeared in one single-page mini-story in issue No 2 in which she was indignant about not being allowed to perform any sex acts in the comic, due to being
underage
In law, a minor is someone under a certain age, usually the age of majority, which demarcates an underage individual from legal adulthood. The age of majority depends upon jurisdiction and application, but it is commonly 18. ''Minor'' may also ...
. She is implied to be about 16, since she mentioned she could drive. Welz explained in ''The Gauntlet'' in 1992 that the issue and the character were intended to address the serious concern raised by his publisher that if Cherry was depicted as being under 18, the strip could be classified as
child pornography
Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a ...
.
Boyfriends
* Johnny Fuckerfaster—Cherry's best male friend.
* Ronnie—A boy with a "tuff" car on whom she performed
oral sex
Oral sex, sometimes referred to as oral intercourse, is sexual activity involving the stimulation of the genitalia of a person by another person using the mouth (including the lips, tongue, or teeth) and the throat. Cunnilingus is oral sex p ...
so she could drive (and subsequently wreck) the car.
* Joey—A sexual partner who helps her with her homework.''Cherry'' #2 "Good Ol' Mom"
* Steve—Cherry's "boyfriend".
Girlfriends
* Ellie Dee—Cherry's best friend, Ellie is tall, slender, and dark-haired, and wears large, round eyeglasses. A lover of computers and gadgets, Ellie is often drawn into sexual situations through technological accidents. Occasionally her computer transports her (and sometimes her friends) to 'online' worlds. In issue #8 Ellie is prominently featured in a
Dorothy Gale
Dorothy Gale is a fictional character created by American author L. Frank Baum as the protagonist in many of his ''Oz'' novels. She first appears in Baum's classic 1900 children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' and reappears in most of it ...
/'' Oz'' parody called "Ellie Dee in the Land of Woz". In keeping with her stories' technological themes, her name is a
homonym
In linguistics, homonyms are words which are homographs (words that share the same spelling, regardless of pronunciation), or homophones ( equivocal words, that share the same pronunciation, regardless of spelling), or both. Using this definiti ...
for LED.
* Patty Melt—Another of Cherry's girlfriends, she is short, buxom, and freckled. Patty is as sexually eager as Cherry.
* Lola Palooza—Another of Cherry's girlfriends. A rich, stuck-up character into bondage and domination.
Others
* Captain Eeyow—parody of
Captain Eo
''Captain EO'' is a 1986 American 3D science fiction short film shown at Disney theme parks from 1986 through 1998. The movie stars Michael Jackson, was written by George Lucas, and directed by Francis Ford Coppola (who came up with the name "C ...
, the
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
science fiction character, found in the 3D Issue. In the Eeyow story, Cherry pulls off his pants to find no genitalia of any gender.
*
Steve Tyler
Steven Victor Tallarico (born March 26, 1948), known professionally as Steven Tyler, is an American singer, best known as the lead singer of the Boston-based rock band Aerosmith, in which he also plays the harmonica, piano, and percussion. ...
—Cherry's favorite rock star.
* Mr. Feeney—A teacher Cherry had sex with.''Cherry'' #1 "'S Cool Daze"