Earnest Nonsense

So Cerebus is on his way up the wall to the moon. Along comes a character with a flaming carrot for a head shouting: 'To the rescue!'. This was the comic book hero Flaming Carrot. This was I believe the only appearance by Flaming Carrot in Cerebus. It was also the first time that another character had appeared in their original form with the permission of the creator. Flaming Carrot had his own book, which at the time was published by Dave's label' Aardvark Vanaheim.

It was a pretty surreal chapter, in fact all the moon ones were. The carrot leads Cerebus up the the wall, acting as a guide. Curiously enough despite the lack of air the flame on his head never goes out and he and Cerebus seem to be able to breathe easily and talk. Nothing the carrot says makes sense, but then again very little in Cerebus life of late has made sense.

Suddenly a walking sponge appears. Flaming Carrot introduces him to Cerebus as Sponge Boy. I assume he was a character in the Carrot's book, I don't know. The Carrot leaves Cerebus to make his own way up the wall to the moon because he has to take Sponge Boy back home.

The scene with Cerebus clambering up the wall of skulls with the full moon glowing above is breathtaking and all the more impressive for being rendered in black and white.

The last panel is Cerebus almost at the top, glowing golden orb still clutched in one fist, looking up suspiciously at something.

Nothing really happened in this, but it was amusing for the participation by Flaming Carrot and Sponge Boy. That may have been Aardvark Vanaheim's version of cross promotion.