When I'm thinking of publishing
material that is inspired by a particular iconic book I sometimes
like to get the fonts right. So B/X used the font Souvenir.
Accordingto this article it is #7 of the 8 worst fonts ever.
"Real men don’t set Souvenir," wrote the type scholar Frank Romano in the early 1990s, by which time he had already been performing character assassination on the type for over a decade. At every opportunity in print and online, Romano would have a go. ‘Souvenir is a font fatale . . . We could send Souvenir to Mars, but there are international treaties on pollution in outer space . . . remember, friends don’t let friends set Souvenir.’
I'm not a typesetter and I realize that
typesetting and graphic design is a delicate and intricate art and a
true professional can spot bad fonts and bad font choices when the
other 99% of us will NEVER see what the heck they are talking about.
I mean, these people pay attention to the kerning for pete's sake.
The size of a serif matters. So I can accept that, among
professionals, this font is no good.
But I love Souvenir. It's a great font.
And I know this is really ONLY because of B/X D&D. Had that book
been typeset with some other font I would love that font. Heck, I
love Futura for no other reason than AD&D.
In a sense this gets at what it means
to be a "fan" of a thing. Do we love D&D because it is
a fantastic game system...or do we love D&D because it's the game
we grew up with and the game that has the history? Is it because D&D
gave us joy and we want to hold onto that joy? I suspect it is more
the latter than the former. And this is coming from a self-professed
D&D maniac.
I love Souvenir because it was the face
of B/X D&D and when I see the font it makes me happy. Not because
is a superior font, but because it is a familiar, beloved conduit
between me and my favorite version of my favorite game. Warts and
all.
