Hate (comics)

Hate is a comic book by writer-artist Peter Bagge. First published by Fantagraphics in 1990 it ran for 30 issues, and was one of the best-selling alternative comics of the 1990s, at its height selling 30,000 copies an issue. In 2000 Bagge revived the series in Hate Annual, a yearly comic that continues the story after Hate in short stories, and includes writings on libertarianism, culture, and topical cartoons.

Hate follows the life of Buddy Bradley, in a continuation of events from Bagge's strip "The Bradleys" from former publications Neat Stuff. It is set for the first half in Seattle and later in suburban New Jersey. Buddy has to deal with the end of adolescence, reluctantly growing up, his relationships with a host of unpleasant acquaintances he has to class as friends, working in dead-end jobs and having no direction in life. Bagge used memories of events from his own life as material.

Hate has been referenced by many commentators as an important example of Generation X comic culture and grunge culture in general. Bagge tends to see the parallels with the grunge lifestyle as largely coincidental, as he was referencing events that had happened to him ten years previous. The comic was also released in Europe in the mid-'90s as Spanish, Italian and German language editions, the Spanish Odio proving particularly popular.

First published by Fantagraphics from 1990 to 1998, it ran for 30 issues, and was one of the best-selling alternative comics. The series continues in Hate Annual, (9) yearly collection of comics stories and articles that began in 2000. A major story and format change took place in issue #16, when Buddy moved from Seattle back home to New Jersey, at which point the comic, once in black-and-white, changed to color. With issue #16, Bagge also started using an inker (rather unusual for an alternative comic book), Jim Blanchard.

Hate's final five issues were 48-page anthologies, featuring a main Buddy Bradley story and then a series of short backup stories by cartoonists such as Rick Altergott, Dame Darcy, and Kevin Scalzo.

In February 2024, Fantagraphics announced a new series by Bagge entitled Hate Revisited, which sees Buddy and his family dealing with modern time shenanigans. It was released on June 6, 2024.

Matthew J. Pustz has called Hate "The ultimate Generation X fable". Bagge managed to create archetypes with whom his audience identified strongly, which contributed to the popularity of the series.

There was a great deal of interaction between fans of Hate, Bagge and the characters. In Hate #3, Bagge ran a competition to "Win a Date With Stinky", to which many fans submitted artwork and photographs. Bagge included cartoon depictions of several of the entrants in the issues that followed.