Peter Bagge is not only one of the primary architects of the alternative comics scene that exploded in the 1980s and 1990s (alongside peers including Gilbert Hernandez, Jaime Hernandez, and Daniel Clowes), but also someone who helped fashion the aesthetics and attitudes of an entire youth movement. His comic book series, Hate, chronicled the exploits of twentysomething Buddy Bradley and his gang of lovable losers through the rise and fall of the grunge era (and eventually beyond). Bagge’s style became a part of the Gen X zeitgeist and Hate became the best-selling alternative comic of its era, with Bagge’s illustrations gracing countless album and magazine covers as well. The Complete Hate Volume 2 collects Hate issues 16 thru 30 (1994–1998), which comprise the second major arc of the series — the full-color “Jersey suburbs” era! With his rock-impresario career in tatters, his friends dispersed, and his career opportunities at zero, Buddy returns with his tail between his legs (and his neurotic girlfriend Lisa by his side) to his native New Jersey to be closer to family. Also included in this volume is the shocking final fate of the exuberant Stinky, a story that caused jaws to drop in unison all around the world when it was originally released, and the riotous tale of Lisa’s brief conversion to lesbianism and subsequent breakup with Buddy. Part screwball comedy, part soap opera, part loose autobiography, Hate is an enduring chronicle of the 1990s as well as riotously relatable to anyone bumbling through their twenties.
