Bill Bickel and History of CIDU

William “Bill” Bickel (1955 – 2020) was a writer, journalist, and eventually new-media creator and online publisher. He was also a family man and devoted to several public-spirited causes.

A memorial page, with obituary and tribute comments, is at the website of the funeral home, https://normandean.com/tribute/details/10477/William-Bickel/obituary.html

Along with the paper and online versions of Crimeweek, probably Bill’s most popular project was an online website or forum or blog … called “Comics I Don’t Understand” (and known as “CIDU” from its initials) which went through several different technical platforms and locations. The most recent is online now at http://comicsidontunderstand.com and is still receiving comments.

Fans of “Comics I Don’t Understand” were looking for a way to continue participating in the fun and lively crosstalk and infamous “thread drift” of that site, but agreeing nobody could step into Bill’s shoes and run the original CIDU, a loose voluntary committee got together [not IRL!] and set up the new site that you are reading now. To both acknowledge our debts to Bill’s “Comics I Don’t Understand” yet not encroach on that creation, and to recognize the plural nature inherent in the committee of volunteers, we are using the related but modified name “Comics We Don’t Understand”.