I feel like I've betrayed The Cause today, my friends. For some reason or another, the fact that Monkey In A Wagon Vs Lemur On A Big Wheel is put out by that small publishing concern that I love to hate, Alias, eluded me entirely. However, let's take out the whole "Mike S Miller makes my teeth ache" portion of the equation and evaluate this title on its own merits, shall we? There's a set of four dialogue-free stories in this well-stapled, nicely papered pamphlet: the title piece, a pirate tale called "Yo Ho Ho," the superlative cautionary gambling story "A Day At The Raises," and "Monkey Versus Lemuria," exploring the origins of a long-standing, apparently species-wide grudge, and you know what? This isn't a bad little thing at all.
While the nautical tale (baffingly enough) fails when it comes to cleverness (writer Tony DiGerolamo seems to lack in inherent absurdity that Ken Lillie-Paetz brings to his co-creation,) the rest of this book ably entertains while showing off the talents of artists Chris Moreno (the other co-creationatory sort) and Julie Faulkner. Lillie-Paetz really seems to run with the concept, allowing Moreno and Faulkner to indulge their cartoonish tendencies with absurd moments that reminded me of the more vicious Warner Brothers cartoons and referencing works as diverse as Charlotte's Web and Metropolis.
It's the uniform excellence of these other pieces that made me more disappointed in "Yo Ho Ho." DiGerolamo's story is more straightforward, yes, and Moreno's art is a thing to gaze upon in wonder, but it seems to miss the entire point of having a naval officer lemur defeat a monkey pirate on the high seas, which is to make me laiugh like a five year old. So, is the whole kit and kaboodle worth three American dollars? Not quite, but I am not really regretting the purchase, as 3/4 of this thing was right up my alley.
Now, to change the subject away from animal antics and to talk about science fiction espionage that's funny and enthralling at the same time. I've been trying to figure out how can I succinctly review the burst of fresh air that is Smoke, the final chapter of which came out this week. I finally came up with something that people in comics should do more often for the creators they like: express some gratitude.
So, thanks, Alex De Campi, for the future-shock script that never pandered while it entertained. Igor Kordey, your art was splendid. Yes, I'm gushing a bit, but I'm just so darn pleased with how it all came together in the end.
Now, to figure out if I'm actually going to review all the books I picked up this week...
While the nautical tale (baffingly enough) fails when it comes to cleverness (writer Tony DiGerolamo seems to lack in inherent absurdity that Ken Lillie-Paetz brings to his co-creation,) the rest of this book ably entertains while showing off the talents of artists Chris Moreno (the other co-creationatory sort) and Julie Faulkner. Lillie-Paetz really seems to run with the concept, allowing Moreno and Faulkner to indulge their cartoonish tendencies with absurd moments that reminded me of the more vicious Warner Brothers cartoons and referencing works as diverse as Charlotte's Web and Metropolis.
It's the uniform excellence of these other pieces that made me more disappointed in "Yo Ho Ho." DiGerolamo's story is more straightforward, yes, and Moreno's art is a thing to gaze upon in wonder, but it seems to miss the entire point of having a naval officer lemur defeat a monkey pirate on the high seas, which is to make me laiugh like a five year old. So, is the whole kit and kaboodle worth three American dollars? Not quite, but I am not really regretting the purchase, as 3/4 of this thing was right up my alley.
Now, to change the subject away from animal antics and to talk about science fiction espionage that's funny and enthralling at the same time. I've been trying to figure out how can I succinctly review the burst of fresh air that is Smoke, the final chapter of which came out this week. I finally came up with something that people in comics should do more often for the creators they like: express some gratitude.
So, thanks, Alex De Campi, for the future-shock script that never pandered while it entertained. Igor Kordey, your art was splendid. Yes, I'm gushing a bit, but I'm just so darn pleased with how it all came together in the end.
Now, to figure out if I'm actually going to review all the books I picked up this week...
