Comics
Review: Adventure Time #1
Cartoon Network’s tv show, Adventure Time with Finn and Jake, has a lot of appeal that stems from its frenetically fast paced A.D.D. mixture of everything awesome. A little of this frantic energy is lost in the new comic book version of Adventure Time, which is bereft of an extremely important part of what makes it so fast paced: the sound. To make up for that, however, is the art work of Shelley Paroline and Braden Lamb. Luckily for Finn and Jake, Paroline and Lamb provide 30 pages worth of great art, the first page of which is dedicated completely to showcasing THE MOST EPIC FIST BUMP OF ALL TIME! Sure it’s not horror per say, but kiss my grits. Read on for the skinny…
ART BY: Shelley Paroline and Braden Lamb
PUBLISHER: KaBOOM
RELEASE: Out now!
The first 9 panels of the comic, in addition to a sweet fist bump, also introduce the post-apocalyptic Land of Ooo, the Ice King, Princess Bubblegum and a lot of great parts of Adventure Time. Beware, if you’re not looking extra hard (or read it on a tablet) you will probably miss a lot of hidden gems, like this quote, “There can never be enough fist bumps in any story, fiction or non-fiction.” The artwork is definitely highlighted in this comic, but the dialogue, aka Finn and Jake’s rockin’ battle burns, get thrown out at a fast pace thanks to the writer, Ryan North.
North reintroduces Jake and Finn’s most evil enemy, the Lich. Pendelton Ward, the shows creator, lists George Romero as one of his top influences, and even goes so far to say, “I’m a big post-apocalyptic movie fan and zombie fan. . . and we’re going to make more zombie episodes…” (Newsarama). So it’s great that a character like the Lich is making his big reappearance outside of the TV show, as well as lending me some credibility for reviewing this on bloody-disgusting.
As far as the plot of the comic goes, Jake and Finn don’t easily defeat the Lich, even in Jake Suit form. Instead, they find themselves sucked into a land that resides in an infinite bag of holding. This is a great plot twist that adds a new dimension to the mythos of the show. I feel that this allows both the show and the comic to maintain a consistency that might not have occured had the comic taken place in Ooo itself. It also lets North introduce some new stuff that hasn’t been seen in the show before. But dont worry, Princess Bubblegum is in the bag as well, which rounds out the set up of what will hopefully be a great comic book series.
While comic can convey a great sense of cinema (see Cole Haddon’s The Strange Case of Mr. Hyde), one thing I miss in the comic version of Adventure Time is the sound. Adventure Time has a really great cast of voices that do a lot to bring the show to life. John DiMaggio, Futurama’s Bender, and appearances by actors like Mark Hammil, really add an extra dimension, especially the Lumpy Space Princes who is voiced by Pendelton Ward himself. I think the only remedy for this must be to watch more Adventure Time, because I’m definitely not going to stop reading the comic.
4 out of 5 skulls
Comics
‘Curse of the Where Wolf’ Bites Into August Release With Trio of Werewolf Theatrical Screenings [Exclusive Preview]
Larry Chaney‘s hairy misadventures are continuing in the sequel graphic novel Curse of the Where Wolf from creative team Rob Saucedo, Debora Lancianese, and Jack Morelli, and its author is celebrating with a trio of horror’s greatest werewolf films.
The Curse of the Where Wolf hits shelves on August 7 from Encyclopocalypse Publications.
That coincides with the launch of a theatrical screening event in Houston, Texas, featuring a trio of seminal werewolf flicks turning 45 this year: The Howling on August 7, Wolfen on August 14, and An American Werewolf in London on August 21.
Each screening features a “werewolf in film” presentation as well as a book signing from Where Wolf author and River Oaks Theatre artistic director Rob Saucedo.
In the new graphic novel, “Being a werewolf sucks. Reporter Larry Chaney wanted to be a hero. Instead, he became a werewolf. Now, caught between incredible new powers and a desire to eat everything (and everyone) in sight, Larry must find a cure for his curse. Or die trying.”
“With Where Wolf, I wanted to tell a whodunit set in a furry convention, so the story was pretty contained within a very specific setting and genre. With Curse of the Where Wolf, I wanted to celebrate everything I love about the possibility of comic books. Curse of the Where Wolf is a funny book, in every sense of the phrase, but it’s also an earnest look at a person’s struggle to become a better version of themselves, especially when the alternative is to become a literal monster,” Saucedo says of Curse.
The original graphic novel was previously serialized as the first webcomic hosted on Fangoria before being collected by Encyclopocalypse Publications in 2023 and has already been optioned for film, podcast, and television development ahead of launch by producers James Fino (“The Freak Brothers” for Tubi, “Rick and Morty” for Adult Swim) and Charles Horak (First Date for Magnolia Pictures).
Expect Larry to find himself in even weirder situations in the 362-page full color sequel; Saucedo has provided Bloody Disgusting with exclusive art pages from the upcoming graphic novel that showcase lupine humor.
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