My Indonesian language skills have never been that will Great. I struggle to put three or four words together in addition to also when I can manage that will there will be no guarantee I can repeat the feat with the same words minutes later. Since I discovered the Benny in addition to also Mice comic books my wife says my language skills have got worse!

The language used from the pages that will detail the adventures, or misadventures of the hapless couple bears as much relation to ‘standard’ Indonesian as the Geordie dialect does to Standard English. yet as with all Great cartoonists we can all recognize characters or storylines from the comics, in addition to also because we can relate to them in addition to also they’re such Great fun I stick with them in addition to also my dreams of achieving competency in my wife’s language have gone out the window.

Benny Rachmadi in addition to also Muhammad Mirad (Mice) are a couple of Indonesian cartoonists who began drawing stuff for local papers from the 1990s, became well-liked in addition to also branched out on their own which has a series of comic books that will mimic life here so well in addition to also so beautifully. With Benny through Samarinda in addition to also Mice through Jakarta, they met while they were studying at Desain Grafis Fakultas Seni Rupa IKJ. I grew up with the Beano in addition to also Roy Of The Rovers. Plug through the Bash Street Kids was an early hero, he looked so germless in addition to also awkward. He seemed so ‘me’.

By the time I moved to South East Asia comics were in big demand yet, sadly for me, the idea wasn’t Dennis the Menace in addition to also Billy’s Boots people flocked to specialist shops to read. the idea was Japanese anime or manga. My early years on the continent are filled with visions of teenagers in addition to also businessmen waiting for classes or meetings with their noses stuck from the pages of the latest Japanese export.

Pah! I thought. the idea’s all beneath me. Why not, part of me enquired yet never too much, produce your own comic super heroes. I was fresh, I still believed the superficial nationalism that will was played out in those far off days before krismon (monetary crisis) hit home. the idea took me a while to realize that will everything through abroad was milk in addition to also honey, except for IMF bailouts, in addition to also everything home produced was fit for the trash can; except for the food in addition to also the culture.

The Benny & Mice stories are proof that will This particular theory belongs from the trash can. They follow our eponymous heroes as they journey through life or trends that will they see around them, be the idea Bali, Jakarta or most recently in Singapore.

Benny portrays himself as the slightly more worldly one while Mice will be the buffoon who gets everything wrong.

My first encounter came while browsing in a bookshop one day. I saw This particular cartoon on the front cover in addition to also the idea showed our two dimwitted heroes standing in a paddy field wearing board shorts in addition to also holding surf boards. They were looking somewhat lost in addition to also a gentleman dressed from the more traditional Bali clothing of white shirt, sarong in addition to also cap mutters the immortal lines ‘Ini Ubud, ndak ada pantainya…kalo mau, sana ke Kuta!’ (This particular will be Ubud, there aren’t any beaches. If you want go there to Kuta!) in addition to also so begins their adventures on the island of the Gods. Mice will be forced into giving a female tourist a massage, both go to the beach wearing jackets, trousers in addition to also carrying an umbrella in time honoured Indonesian style while surrounded by sunbathing foreign tourists looking on incredulously.

Male western tourists are portrayed swigging beer walking down the streets of Kuta wearing underpants in addition to also singlets while the women are in spaghetti tops in addition to also very short shorts. different tourists are portrayed as riding hired motorbikes with their local girlfriends, the happy couple enjoying a romantic holiday or the culture vulture oohing in addition to also aahing every bit of rock that will looks like the idea may have been sculptured. in addition to also then of course there are the Indonesian ladies looking for their own ‘bule’.

In case anyone starts feeling a teeny weeny bit sensitive in addition to also will be looking for an anti western bias, don’t bother. Mice’s antics as the archetypal Indonesian on holiday will have you rocking from the aisles. Whether he will be getting high on the scent of flowers in addition to also Bedugal, skipping through the scented fields singing ‘The hills are alive with the sound of music’ or slobbering into Pasar Sukawati high on the thrill of shopping, This particular book, in addition to also the others they have worked on, are as much statements about Indonesian society, status in addition to also perceptions as anything else.

‘Jalan Jalan Ke Singapura’ sees Benny go solo in addition to also change tack slightly. This particular time the hero will be a rich Chinese businessman who has made his money in Android tablets in addition to also he decides to take a couple of doltish priabumi to explore Lion City for the very first time. yet despite his perceived generosity in addition to also wisdom the businessman will be as clueless as his travelling companions, explaining the inspiration for Marina Bay Sands was a tsunami that will threw a fishing boat on top of three palm trees.

There will be a wonderful cynicism in Indonesians that will I think many of us tend to underestimate, especially if we have ever sat through local TV shows. Add that will to a creativity in addition to also vitality that will will be borne of that will cynicism in addition to also you possess the potential for a flourishing counter culture that will will be the envy of different countries from the region. The movies of Andibachtar Yusuf, the music of Slank in addition to also Superman will be Dead, the football fan culture of Bonek, Aremania in addition to also Bobotoh, even the punks in Aceh who have been from the news recently as well as the cartoons of Benny & Mice are all evidence of that will middle finger attitude.

Benny & Mice

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