“I think at this point in time, you know if you’re a fan of Kevin Smith or not.
What’s good about books and comics is that they take a little more effort, so while people can sit back and just let a Kevin Smith movie wash over them, then run to Rotten Tomatoes and trash it, they’re less likely to do it with a book because you have to lift a goddamn finger.
I like Kevin Smith, the guy, a whole lot. He seems very nice, his story is inspiring, and I think he’s fiercely loyal to his friends and loved ones in a way that we all try to be.
This book in particular reminded me of the old View Askew days.
Children born into the smartphone era, let me set the scene a little:
Kevin Smith made a set of movies (Clerks, Mallrats, and Chasing Amy) that were pretty beloved. They were fun, they were funny, they were interesting.
These movies were like…you know how someone will talk about a shitty band and say, “Listen, they didn’t sell a lot of records, but dozens of other bands were launched because of this band”? Kevin Smith was like that, but the movies themselves were also good! It was the perfect combo of enjoyable movies and something that seemed accessible.
Then there was the peripheral stuff. There was the Clerks cartoon (which is fucking hilarious, BTW. I don’t know who was asleep at the wheel and let all that shit fly, but things worked out there), there were comics, and there was the View Askew message board, which was the fetal version of what would grow into social media.
Think Reddit, but instead of having separate boards for different topics, people would create threads for whatever. Sometimes they were Askew related, sometimes they were totally unrelated.
And in these early days, Smith himself, and other Askewniverse people, would actually get on the boards and chat with people. It was such a weird, brave new world where you could type something and maybe chat with a real movie director. At this time, this was kind of unheard of. It’s not like Scorsese was chatting with you online, you know?
And Smith expanded into Smodcast, which was one of the first big podcasts and podcast networks.
Not to mention opening a real-world comic store. It was a life goal of mine to go there, which I did in…maybe 2012 or so?
Anyway, Smith’s movies, I think what I want to say about them is that he made several movies that were for me, and he’s made some movies that aren’t, and that’s totally fine. Even if some of his movies are for him, I don’t have a problem with that, and really, nobody should. It’s not like anyone is forcing you to go see them. I wouldn’t say they’re overhyped. They’re not unavoidable like a Star War or something.
I think, at this point, when you get into Kevin Smith media, you know that you’re getting into Kevin Smith media.
So, my review of this book goes like this: if you think you’ll like it, you probably will. If you don’t, you’re probably right.
Read accordingly.”