First off, I have to admit that the mid-1980s Peanuts is not, to me, Peanuts at its best.  It’s not a strip of fresh discovery at this point (as it not only was before but also would be again); what new energy is being put into there is focused on Spike, and even that goes quickly dry. However, Peanuts is like pizza and sex, in that you’d have to go an awful long way from being at its very best to make it not worth enjoying. The Complete Peanuts 1983-1984 starts with a good strip and has plenty more along the way.

What does this book have for the attentive fan? Plenty. You get to see Marcie’s eyes on more than one occasion! Lots of people’s hair gets mussed up, even Franklin’s! There are references to a Jewish holiday and to the work of Cyndi Lauper! You learn about “espirit d’escalier” and narcolepsy! We meet Flashbeagle and Harold Angel!

If you’re look to Peanuts as a source for knowledge of the future, this one fails. After all, on March 29, 1984, Lucy states her belief that she will not be able to be the first woman president, because there is likely to be one before she grows up. Now, if we assume that Lucy was 7 when she made that statement, that would mean that today, in 2012, she would be 35… and thus as “grown up” as you have to be in order to legally run for U.S. president. And yet, we’ve not had a female president yet (and unless something particularly freaky happens, we won’t get one this election, either…. yes, there are still female candidates in the race, but I don’t think Roseanne Barr, who is running for the Green Party nomination, stands any chance in an election that also includes the independent candidate The Naked Cowboy.)

If you want it now, order it – it’s shipping already, and it’s a mere $18.35 at the moment, more than a third off list price. And you can preorder the next volume for $17.01. But if you’re willing to wait on getting this current volume, just go preorder the boxed set of both of these volumes, for less than the list price of a single volume.

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