Cobweb (comics)
Encyclopedia
The Cobweb is a comic book
heroine co-created by famed writer Alan Moore
and veteran underground artist Melinda Gebbie
. Cobweb's only apparent powers were allure and the ability to make an entrance. The Cobweb first appeared in the premier issue of Tomorrow Stories
, an anthology
title in the America's Best Comics line.
showed in the depiction of the Cobweb, whose costume consisted of pulled-back 1940s-style hair, a domino mask
, a diaphanous purple nighty, garter
s and, apparently, no panties. Her sidekick and lesbian
lover, Clarice, was a leggy blonde in skimpy chauffeur's outfit, also with domino mask. Gebbie utilized a number of styles, making one story a surrealist collage
in the style of André Breton
or Max Ernst
, another in tribute to Marjorie Henderson Buell's beloved "Little Lulu
" strip. Gebbie drew most of the Cobweb stories in the twelve-issue run of Tomorrow Stories. The remainder were handled by Joyce Chin and Dame Darcy
.
The Cobweb stories are, as mentioned above, mostly vehicles for Melinda Gebbie's feminist erotica writing style, as well as an opportunity for her to do stories in multiple styles, regardless of any sense of continuity, even going so far as to take place in different time periods. Nevertheless, a recent pair of America's Best Comics specials have attempted to flesh out the origin of Cobweb and Clarice, as well as to explain their often-changing stories.
America's Best Comics (ABC) itself was an imprint of Jim Lee
's Wildstorm Comics. When Lee signed an exclusive contract with DC Comics
, the entire ABC line would eventually end up being distributed by DC. This arrangement caused problems all around when Moore wrote a Cobweb story for Tomorrow Stories #8, which touched on Scientology
founder L. Ron Hubbard
and his connection to occultist John Whiteside Parsons. Fearing legal action, DC ordered the story scrapped. Moore, in response, withdrew his approval for a commemorative fifteenth anniversary hardcover of his landmark Watchmen
graphic novel. The forbidden story eventually found a home in Top Shelf Asks the Big Questions, an anthology published by independent comics publisher Top Shelf Productions
, with Cobweb renamed "La Toile" and wearing a dark green version of her costume. She also appears in a promotional write-up for Moore and Gebbe's Lost Girls
within the same anthology (though she does not appear in Girls.)
, living together with her driver Clarice in Indigo City. Her motivation for fighting crime as the Cobweb is boredom and a yearning for thrills.
-homage in Tomorrow Stories Special #1 explain that Cobweb and Clarice are the latest in a long line of parthenogenetically
-produced daughters, their mutual mothers and their ancestors both fulfilling the roles of the masked adventuress and her loving sidekick for centuries. (Already an often taboo-breaking series, this also injects a sense of incestuousness between the two figures, who are ostensibly raised as sisters, in addition to lesbianism.)
Their lineage begins in the 16th century, when all the males of an Incan village in the remote Valley of Inca-Fingas are all slain by an avalanche while on their way to battle Spanish conquistadors. In order to continue their village, the high priestess Lula Lacalan and her stuttering handmaiden Cla-Cla-Cla emulate the local Desert Grassland Whiptail Lizards, which simulate sex to trigger pregnancy, and are miraculously successful. Their daughters are later able to escape the Valley and, also capable of parthenogenesis
, both continue Lula's and Cla-Cla-Cla's lineages. They and their descendants become legendary pirates, highwaymen, and other such ne'er-do-wells, both to fund and as part of their lives of debauchery.
No matter how far their escapades take them around the world, however, each generation of sisters always return to the Peru
vian valley their ancestors came from, taking up a place in the so-called Graveyard of Glamour, a cavern where the chilled air of the high Andes preserves their bodies. This seems to be a rather bizarre homage to the practice of succession by Lee Falk
's The Phantom
and his predecessors. Since the sisters do this soon after their daughters reach adulthood, and the bodies are pictured as relatively young, presumably a ritualistic lovers' suicide pact occurs in this cavern, although this is not specifically stated.
This continues until the beginning of the 20th century when the current Cobweb's great-grandmother, La Toile the "mistress of villainy", embarks on a life of espionage after an encounter with Mata Hari
. Disillusioned with her mistress' down-spiral into drug abuse and Satanism (rather than the usual amount), her partner Clothilde flees to America with their daughters, using stolen money to found the Lakeland Ornamental Gardens. As adults, La Toile's daughter Lorelei becomes the first Cobweb, with Clothilde's daughter Claudia as her sidekick, attempting to make up for their ancestors' crimes as vigilantes, battling criminals and later saboteurs from 1928 until 1945. Their daughters Laverne and Clara then take over in 1953, operating in Indigo as well as fighting evil worldwide as part of Tom Strong
's science hero
team, America's Best. They retire in 1971 to raise Laurel and Clarice, and soon after return to the lost valley in Peru
to join their ancestors when their daughters come of age.
The tale in Tomorrow Stories Special #1 reveals that, despite their close relationship, Cobweb and Clarice's relationship has only recently blossomed. The story explains that their first kiss occurred on June 14 of the previous year, having revealed their true feelings while caught in an apparently inescapable trap, which they are able to escape from when the villain deactivates it to watch them make out. Prior to this, Clarice had apparently only loved Cobweb from afar, despite her constant fawning, and Cobweb had often formed a latently sexual relationship with many of her foes, if not outright become a lover at some point. During this time, she also formed an at first antagonistic relationship with another Tomorrow Stories feature character, Greyshirt
, the two of them eventually recognizing the other as their equal. This may have ended completely, or remains an on-again/off-again romance that Clarice remains silently jealous of, although no story has been definitive on this point.
As stated, the current mythos of this character place Cobweb and her partner as eventually having children together parthenogenetically, passing along their identities to their children when they reach adulthood, and then joining their ancestors in Peru. This is a tradition that the current Cobweb and Clarice both accept, although no story as of yet has shown them in a rush to fulfill these obligations.
As Laurel, Cobweb lives in the stately Lakeland Pagoda, the former site of the Ornamental Gardens, underneath which is located the Vaults of Voluptuousnes, a secret headquarters which parodies both Superman
's Fortress of Solitude
and the Batcave
. Revealed in the aforementioned Tomorrow Stories Special, the Pagoda connects to the Vaults via hidden "Passion-Poles", a clear parody of the bat-poles
, which automatically change Laurel and Clarice's clothes as they slide down. The Vaults contain a gallery of Cobweb's rogues including the wholesome, monogamous Perverso-Cobweb (an homage to Bizarro
), Cobweb's arsenal of billy-clubs (actually a collection of bizarre dildos reminiscent of such super-hero gadgets as Batman's batarang
or Hawkeye
's trick arrows
), samples of the debilitating substance chocolatite (a chocolate version of kryptonite
), and the Nano-Bordello of Zontar (the bottle city of Kandor
).
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
heroine co-created by famed writer Alan Moore
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
and veteran underground artist Melinda Gebbie
Melinda Gebbie
Melinda Gebbie is an American comics artist and writer, probably best known for Lost Girls, the three-volume graphic novel she produced in collaboration with writer Alan Moore, published by Top Shelf.-Biography:...
. Cobweb's only apparent powers were allure and the ability to make an entrance. The Cobweb first appeared in the premier issue of Tomorrow Stories
Tomorrow Stories
Tomorrow Stories was an American comic book series created by Alan Moore for his America's Best Comics line, published by Wildstorm .-Overview:...
, an anthology
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
title in the America's Best Comics line.
Publication history
Artist Gebbie's deep background in feminist eroticaErotica
Erotica are works of art, including literature, photography, film, sculpture and painting, that deal substantively with erotically stimulating or sexually arousing descriptions...
showed in the depiction of the Cobweb, whose costume consisted of pulled-back 1940s-style hair, a domino mask
Domino mask
A domino mask is a small, rounded mask covering only the eyes and the space between them. Since the 18th century, the domino mask is worn during carnival. Venetian Carnival masks were known as domini because they resembled French priests' winter hoods, being black on the outside and white on the...
, a diaphanous purple nighty, garter
Garter
Garter can refer to:*Garter , an item of clothing used to hold up stockings*Order of the Garter, the senior British order of chivalry*Ladies of the Garter , female members of the mediaeval Order of the Garter...
s and, apparently, no panties. Her sidekick and lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
lover, Clarice, was a leggy blonde in skimpy chauffeur's outfit, also with domino mask. Gebbie utilized a number of styles, making one story a surrealist collage
Collage
A collage is a work of formal art, primarily in the visual arts, made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole....
in the style of André Breton
André Breton
André Breton was a French writer and poet. He is known best as the founder of Surrealism. His writings include the first Surrealist Manifesto of 1924, in which he defined surrealism as "pure psychic automatism"....
or Max Ernst
Max Ernst
Max Ernst was a German painter, sculptor, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was one of the primary pioneers of the Dada movement and Surrealism.-Early life:...
, another in tribute to Marjorie Henderson Buell's beloved "Little Lulu
Little Lulu
"Little Lulu" is the nickname for Lulu Moppett, a comic strip character created in the mid-1930s by Marjorie Henderson Buell. The character debuted in The Saturday Evening Post on February 23, 1935 in a single panel, appearing as a flower girl at a wedding and strewing the aisle with banana peels...
" strip. Gebbie drew most of the Cobweb stories in the twelve-issue run of Tomorrow Stories. The remainder were handled by Joyce Chin and Dame Darcy
Dame Darcy
Dame Darcy is an alternative cartoonist. Her comic book, Meatcake, has been published by Fantagraphics since 1993. Darcy has also released several graphic novels, Frightful Fairytales, Dame Darcy's Meatcake Compilation, The Illustrated Jane Eyre, Dollerium , Comic Book Tattoo, and Gasoline .-...
.
The Cobweb stories are, as mentioned above, mostly vehicles for Melinda Gebbie's feminist erotica writing style, as well as an opportunity for her to do stories in multiple styles, regardless of any sense of continuity, even going so far as to take place in different time periods. Nevertheless, a recent pair of America's Best Comics specials have attempted to flesh out the origin of Cobweb and Clarice, as well as to explain their often-changing stories.
America's Best Comics (ABC) itself was an imprint of Jim Lee
Jim Lee
Jim Lee is a Korean-American comic book artist, writer, editor and publisher. He first broke into the industry in 1987 as an artist for Marvel Comics, illustrating titles such as Alpha Flight and Punisher War Journal, before gaining a great deal of popularity on The Uncanny X-Men...
's Wildstorm Comics. When Lee signed an exclusive contract with DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
, the entire ABC line would eventually end up being distributed by DC. This arrangement caused problems all around when Moore wrote a Cobweb story for Tomorrow Stories #8, which touched on Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
founder L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...
and his connection to occultist John Whiteside Parsons. Fearing legal action, DC ordered the story scrapped. Moore, in response, withdrew his approval for a commemorative fifteenth anniversary hardcover of his landmark Watchmen
Watchmen
Watchmen is a twelve-issue comic book limited series created by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colourist John Higgins. The series was published by DC Comics during 1986 and 1987, and has been subsequently reprinted in collected form...
graphic novel. The forbidden story eventually found a home in Top Shelf Asks the Big Questions, an anthology published by independent comics publisher Top Shelf Productions
Top Shelf Productions
Top Shelf Productions is an American publishing company founded in 1997, owned and operated by Chris Staros and Brett Warnock and a small staff. The company is based in Marietta, Georgia, Portland, Oregon, and New York City, New York....
, with Cobweb renamed "La Toile" and wearing a dark green version of her costume. She also appears in a promotional write-up for Moore and Gebbe's Lost Girls
Lost Girls
Lost Girls is a graphic novel depicting the sexually explicit adventures of three important female fictional characters of the late 19th and early 20th century: Alice from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Dorothy Gale from The Wizard of Oz and Wendy Darling from Peter Pan...
within the same anthology (though she does not appear in Girls.)
Fictional character biography
Laurel Lakeland is a millionaire's heiressBeneficiary
A beneficiary in the broadest sense is a natural person or other legal entity who receives money or other benefits from a benefactor. For example: The beneficiary of a life insurance policy, is the person who receives the payment of the amount of insurance after the death of the insured...
, living together with her driver Clarice in Indigo City. Her motivation for fighting crime as the Cobweb is boredom and a yearning for thrills.
Family history
A series of pin-up art calendar pages in the ABC: A-Z special as well as a World's Finest ComicsWorld's Finest Comics
World's Finest Comics was an American comic book series published by DC Comics from 1941 to 1986. The series was initially titled World's Best Comics for its first issue; issue #2 switched to the more familiar name...
-homage in Tomorrow Stories Special #1 explain that Cobweb and Clarice are the latest in a long line of parthenogenetically
Parthenogenesis
Parthenogenesis is a form of asexual reproduction found in females, where growth and development of embryos occur without fertilization by a male...
-produced daughters, their mutual mothers and their ancestors both fulfilling the roles of the masked adventuress and her loving sidekick for centuries. (Already an often taboo-breaking series, this also injects a sense of incestuousness between the two figures, who are ostensibly raised as sisters, in addition to lesbianism.)
Their lineage begins in the 16th century, when all the males of an Incan village in the remote Valley of Inca-Fingas are all slain by an avalanche while on their way to battle Spanish conquistadors. In order to continue their village, the high priestess Lula Lacalan and her stuttering handmaiden Cla-Cla-Cla emulate the local Desert Grassland Whiptail Lizards, which simulate sex to trigger pregnancy, and are miraculously successful. Their daughters are later able to escape the Valley and, also capable of parthenogenesis
Parthenogenesis
Parthenogenesis is a form of asexual reproduction found in females, where growth and development of embryos occur without fertilization by a male...
, both continue Lula's and Cla-Cla-Cla's lineages. They and their descendants become legendary pirates, highwaymen, and other such ne'er-do-wells, both to fund and as part of their lives of debauchery.
No matter how far their escapades take them around the world, however, each generation of sisters always return to the Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
vian valley their ancestors came from, taking up a place in the so-called Graveyard of Glamour, a cavern where the chilled air of the high Andes preserves their bodies. This seems to be a rather bizarre homage to the practice of succession by Lee Falk
Lee Falk
Lee Falk, born Leon Harrison Gross , was an American writer, theater director, and producer, best known as the creator of the popular comic strip superheroes The Phantom and Mandrake the Magician, who at the height of their popularity attracted over a hundred million readers every day...
's The Phantom
The Phantom
The Phantom is an American adventure comic strip created by Lee Falk, also creator of Mandrake the Magician. A popular feature adapted into many media, including television, film and video games, it stars a costumed crimefighter operating from the fictional African country Bengalla.The Phantom is...
and his predecessors. Since the sisters do this soon after their daughters reach adulthood, and the bodies are pictured as relatively young, presumably a ritualistic lovers' suicide pact occurs in this cavern, although this is not specifically stated.
This continues until the beginning of the 20th century when the current Cobweb's great-grandmother, La Toile the "mistress of villainy", embarks on a life of espionage after an encounter with Mata Hari
Mata Hari
Mata Hari was the stage name of Margaretha Geertruida "M'greet" Zelle , a Dutch exotic dancer, courtesan, and accused spy who was executed by firing squad in France under charges of espionage for Germany during World War I.-Early life:Margaretha Geertruida Zelle was born in Leeuwarden, Friesland,...
. Disillusioned with her mistress' down-spiral into drug abuse and Satanism (rather than the usual amount), her partner Clothilde flees to America with their daughters, using stolen money to found the Lakeland Ornamental Gardens. As adults, La Toile's daughter Lorelei becomes the first Cobweb, with Clothilde's daughter Claudia as her sidekick, attempting to make up for their ancestors' crimes as vigilantes, battling criminals and later saboteurs from 1928 until 1945. Their daughters Laverne and Clara then take over in 1953, operating in Indigo as well as fighting evil worldwide as part of Tom Strong
Tom Strong
Tom Strong is a comic book created by writer Alan Moore and artist Chris Sprouse initially published bi-monthly by America's Best Comics, an imprint of DC Comics' Wildstorm division.-Background:Tom Strong, the title character, is a "science hero"...
's science hero
Science hero
Science hero is a term coined by Alan Moore in his work for America's Best Comics to describe fantastic heroes. This includes those that have a science fiction explanation for their powers, as well as magical and non-powered characters. The term is used extensively throughout the ABC titles,...
team, America's Best. They retire in 1971 to raise Laurel and Clarice, and soon after return to the lost valley in Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
to join their ancestors when their daughters come of age.
Laurel Lakeland
The current Cobweb apparently started her crimefighting careers at a very early age, although as Li'l Cobweb she was less than successful, and not taken seriously by adults.The tale in Tomorrow Stories Special #1 reveals that, despite their close relationship, Cobweb and Clarice's relationship has only recently blossomed. The story explains that their first kiss occurred on June 14 of the previous year, having revealed their true feelings while caught in an apparently inescapable trap, which they are able to escape from when the villain deactivates it to watch them make out. Prior to this, Clarice had apparently only loved Cobweb from afar, despite her constant fawning, and Cobweb had often formed a latently sexual relationship with many of her foes, if not outright become a lover at some point. During this time, she also formed an at first antagonistic relationship with another Tomorrow Stories feature character, Greyshirt
Greyshirt
Greyshirt is a comic book character in Alan Moore's Tomorrow Stories, published by Wildstorm , under the America's Best Comics imprint. The character was co-created by Moore and Rick Veitch. The character is a pastiche of Will Eisner's The Spirit...
, the two of them eventually recognizing the other as their equal. This may have ended completely, or remains an on-again/off-again romance that Clarice remains silently jealous of, although no story has been definitive on this point.
As stated, the current mythos of this character place Cobweb and her partner as eventually having children together parthenogenetically, passing along their identities to their children when they reach adulthood, and then joining their ancestors in Peru. This is a tradition that the current Cobweb and Clarice both accept, although no story as of yet has shown them in a rush to fulfill these obligations.
As Laurel, Cobweb lives in the stately Lakeland Pagoda, the former site of the Ornamental Gardens, underneath which is located the Vaults of Voluptuousnes, a secret headquarters which parodies both Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
's Fortress of Solitude
Fortress of Solitude
The Fortress of Solitude is the occasional headquarters of Superman in DC Comics. Its predecessor, Superman's "Secret Citadel", first appeared in Superman #17, where it was said to be built into a mountain on the outskirts of Metropolis...
and the Batcave
Batcave
The Batcave is the secret headquarters of fictional DC Comics superhero Batman, the alternate identity of playboy Bruce Wayne, consisting of a series of subterranean caves beneath his residence, Wayne Manor.-Publication history:...
. Revealed in the aforementioned Tomorrow Stories Special, the Pagoda connects to the Vaults via hidden "Passion-Poles", a clear parody of the bat-poles
Batman (TV series)
Batman is an American television series, based on the DC comic book character of the same name. It stars Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin — two crime-fighting heroes who defend Gotham City. It aired on the American Broadcasting Company network for three seasons from January 12, 1966 to...
, which automatically change Laurel and Clarice's clothes as they slide down. The Vaults contain a gallery of Cobweb's rogues including the wholesome, monogamous Perverso-Cobweb (an homage to Bizarro
Bizarro
Bizarro is a fictional character that appears in publications published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Otto Binder and artist George Papp as a "mirror image" of Superman and first appeared in Superboy #68...
), Cobweb's arsenal of billy-clubs (actually a collection of bizarre dildos reminiscent of such super-hero gadgets as Batman's batarang
Batarang
A batarang is a roughly bat-shaped throwing weapon used by the DC Comics superhero Batman. The name is a portmanteau of bat and boomerang, and was originally spelled baterang. Although they are named after boomerangs, batarangs have become more like shuriken in recent interpretations...
or Hawkeye
Hawkeye (comics)
Hawkeye , also known as Goliath and Ronin, is a fictional character that appears in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Tales of Suspense #57 and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Don Heck. Hawkeye joined the Avengers in Avengers Vol. 1 #16 Hawkeye...
's trick arrows
Trick arrows
Trick arrows are fictional arrows often found in the world of comic book superheroes. They are often used by archers such as Green Arrow of DC Comics, and Hawkeye of Marvel Comics. In some portrayals, particularly during the Silver Age, trick arrows are sometimes shown to defy the laws of physics...
), samples of the debilitating substance chocolatite (a chocolate version of kryptonite
Kryptonite
Kryptonite is a fictional material from the Superman mythos —the ore form of a radioactive element from Superman's home planet of Krypton. It is famous for being the ultimate physical weakness of Superman, and the word kryptonite has since become synonymous with an Achilles' heel —the one weakness...
), and the Nano-Bordello of Zontar (the bottle city of Kandor
Kandor
Kandor is the name of the former capital city of the fictional planet Krypton in the DC Universe. It is best known for being stolen and miniaturized by the supervillain Brainiac...
).