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The Night of the Mary Kay Commandos Featuring Smell O-Toons
Here again for the masses of adoring Bloom County fans is a collectionof the best daily and Sunday strips from the past year. Features the bonus, peel-away insert, Smell-O-Toons, the aromatic fragrance that is dabbed on more Commando pulse points than all other perfumes combined! Little, Brown.
86 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1989
3 people are currently reading
429 people want to read
About the author
Berkeley Breathed
90 books416 followersGuy Berkeley "Berke" Breathed is an American cartoonist, children's book author/illustrator, director, and screenwriter, best known for Bloom County, a 1980s cartoon-comic strip which dealt with socio-political issues as seen through the eyes of highly exaggerated characters (e.g. Bill the Cat and Opus the Penguin) and humorous analogies.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
April 23, 2021
Contains Dukakis', Bush (Sr.)'s, and Bill D. Cat's guesses at the lyrics to the Kingsmen's "Louie Louie"--plus the actual lyrics. Also: a back-cover photo of bunnies!
January 12, 2019
They are all 5's!
January 23, 2016
Opus is the man, well a man in penguin form. Excellent comics to cheer you up on a down day. I read a few every morning to start my day off right. Very recommended
September 25, 2017
As always, it was great. I esp love Breathed's use of little signs to point things out, lol. Oh yeah, it's with smell-o-vision. Really.
May 21, 2024
Lots of old political humor, which is funny because the same jokes could be recycled to apply to today's shenanigans. Really good example of Morgan Housel's Same as Ever: A Guide to What Never Changes. I ❤️ Opus!
December 6, 2021
Have read this so many times over the decades. Love Bloom County Smart sarcastic observant humor Love the part in here about having to add a female to their all male club. Even today it is timely & funny
May 10, 2017
whats not to like these are classic originals. things that people try to imitate. will always read Berkeley Breathed.
October 29, 2020
needed a good laugh!
March 1, 2017
Not really much here you haven't seen, they even joke about how there really isn't a single strip here that you haven't read and unfortunately there really isn't much justification for getting this if you already have the bigger collections.
May 29, 2015
I was lucky enough to pick up a pile of classic Bloom County strips at a library book sale. This is the only one of the set that I remember reading before. It also seems to be when the comic strip was at its best.
In this volume, Bill the Cat runs for president, with Opus as his running mate. Opus is called in front of a congressional committee to determine his liberalism, which takes him out of the running. Bloom County is ordered to meet a gender parity quota, only to learn there's already a woman among them, sparking a witch hunt. Oliver, the young black scientist of the group, discovers that cat sweat regrows hair, and its outlawing (due to "acking" side effects) turns it into a lucrative illegal trade. And Opus breaks into an animal testing facility in hopes of reuniting with his mother, leading to a run-in with the title characters ("Even their uzis are pink!").
This set of strips has Opus gaining prominence as a main character in Bloom County. Whereas earlier strips put him in more of a sidekick role, in these, most of the stories center around him. I don't think that makes him an author mouthpiece, though, unless the author suffers from very poor self-esteem. The strip never resists a chance to point out how awkward, effeminate, and undesirable he is.
The issues that come up in the comic strip kept up with current events very well in their publication in the late 1980's. Most of the punchlines reference the news soundbites in ways most readers would recognize. That doesn't make them foreign or hopelessly dated, though. We still talk about the media's reactionary nature, the War on Drugs, gender roles, animal testing, and divisive politics.
I've been enjoying revisiting these old strips. Dated as some of the jokes are, it's nice to finally understand some of them in their proper context. I'm glad I had the chance to do so.
In this volume, Bill the Cat runs for president, with Opus as his running mate. Opus is called in front of a congressional committee to determine his liberalism, which takes him out of the running. Bloom County is ordered to meet a gender parity quota, only to learn there's already a woman among them, sparking a witch hunt. Oliver, the young black scientist of the group, discovers that cat sweat regrows hair, and its outlawing (due to "acking" side effects) turns it into a lucrative illegal trade. And Opus breaks into an animal testing facility in hopes of reuniting with his mother, leading to a run-in with the title characters ("Even their uzis are pink!").
This set of strips has Opus gaining prominence as a main character in Bloom County. Whereas earlier strips put him in more of a sidekick role, in these, most of the stories center around him. I don't think that makes him an author mouthpiece, though, unless the author suffers from very poor self-esteem. The strip never resists a chance to point out how awkward, effeminate, and undesirable he is.
The issues that come up in the comic strip kept up with current events very well in their publication in the late 1980's. Most of the punchlines reference the news soundbites in ways most readers would recognize. That doesn't make them foreign or hopelessly dated, though. We still talk about the media's reactionary nature, the War on Drugs, gender roles, animal testing, and divisive politics.
I've been enjoying revisiting these old strips. Dated as some of the jokes are, it's nice to finally understand some of them in their proper context. I'm glad I had the chance to do so.
November 17, 2015
Bloom County is one of the best daily comic strips ever created. From the political satire to the goofy penguin, Bloom County just made you smile. I loved every character Berke Breathed created and looked forward to reading the newspaper every day just to see what was going to happen.
I remember cutting out the funniest strips and stapling to my work room. I also used to tape them to my college notebooks so I would have something entertaining to read during long, boring lectures. I miss Bloom County a lot, that is why a collection like this is so precious. Even though I have read these strips many times, I love revisiting them every few years. Bloom County was one of the best and should not be missed.
As for the Smell-O-Toon, I never opened it. I doubt it still has a fragrance after 16 years. Still, I am temped . . .
I remember cutting out the funniest strips and stapling to my work room. I also used to tape them to my college notebooks so I would have something entertaining to read during long, boring lectures. I miss Bloom County a lot, that is why a collection like this is so precious. Even though I have read these strips many times, I love revisiting them every few years. Bloom County was one of the best and should not be missed.
As for the Smell-O-Toon, I never opened it. I doubt it still has a fragrance after 16 years. Still, I am temped . . .
October 19, 2012
Funny! Brilliant! Irreverent!
Bloom County at its peak... Follow the infamous '88 election campaign of Bill n' Opus (see why they received a very substantial contribution from The United Cocaine Producers, Smugglers, Pushers, and Affiliated Scum).
Find out the "odd and terrible link" between the twin decline of both America's Rock n' Roll and Highways (it involves Elvis).
Discover what kind of firearms Mary Kay Commandos actually carry (they're deadly and they're pink).
The answers to these and many other questions you've never really wondered about will be revealed by reading this fantastic collection of Bloom County comic strips.
Would I recommend it? Surely you jest -- Of course I would!!!
Bloom County at its peak... Follow the infamous '88 election campaign of Bill n' Opus (see why they received a very substantial contribution from The United Cocaine Producers, Smugglers, Pushers, and Affiliated Scum).
Find out the "odd and terrible link" between the twin decline of both America's Rock n' Roll and Highways (it involves Elvis).
Discover what kind of firearms Mary Kay Commandos actually carry (they're deadly and they're pink).
The answers to these and many other questions you've never really wondered about will be revealed by reading this fantastic collection of Bloom County comic strips.
Would I recommend it? Surely you jest -- Of course I would!!!
May 11, 2008
I can't sing the praises enough for this comic strip and its characters: Opus, Milo and Steve Dallas. At one point, I owned them all. He really tickles my funny bone with his warped humor and just enough pop culture and political satire to make it interesting. Check out his other collections: Tales Too Ticklish to Tell, Penguin Dreams and Stranger Things, Billy & the Boingers Bootleg, Toons For Our Times and Bloom County Babylon.
October 3, 2013
When I was working in any of the many bookstores where I was employed and I did not want (or have the time) to read my current book, I would grab one of these collections to read on my too short break. I slowly but surely worked my way through several series. These are great time killers and will usually improve your mood no matter how hectic the day. Laughter can be the best solution to dealing with the public.
October 30, 2017
Only Berkeley Breathed could come up with a title like "Night of the Mary Kay Commandos Featuring Smell O-Toons." This was a great collection of cartoons and I loved the "Smell O-Toons" tie in. Berkeley Breathed is an excellent artist and has an excellent sense of humor. This is a a wonderful work.
April 4, 2008
i'll never forget how even though the animals were drawn to look extra disney cute.....and by animals, i mean the ones mary kay was using for experiments....i still laughed because it seemed so strange. god i'm weird.
July 10, 2008
This classic recently surfaced from our shelves. I've really missed Opus, Bill the Cat, Milo, Steve Dallas, Milquetoast, and the rest. Amazing how 20 year old political comic strips can still be relevant, and more importantly HILARIOUS! Bill 'n Opus in '08!
February 6, 2009
This is my favorite in the works of Berkely Breathed. Who can not enjoy the thought of Mary Kay ladies in combat gear and oozies?! Although this book does show it's age with the political themed humor, I think overall, adults will enjoy the satire and funny illustrations.
July 26, 2010
Another of my favorites in the Bloom county collections.
August 31, 2008
Milquetoast...the loveable roach
The Basselope's a girl!!
More politics
Is Opus's mom really dead???
Tribute to Emily Dickinson
The Basselope's a girl!!
More politics
Is Opus's mom really dead???
Tribute to Emily Dickinson
February 13, 2009
Bloom County reminds me of my college days and Mike Tamaro. Good times!
May 6, 2011
And this is why I no longer wear make up.
November 26, 2011
Too funny!
Read
September 1, 2013Bloom County Book 7
July 16, 2014
Worth reading for the title sequence alone. Funny stuff.
May 29, 2025
2025 reread. Opus and company take on the '88 election, animal testing, and the illicit cat sweat tonic trade. Satire at its best.
May 22, 2016
Long, long ago, it was part of my treasured Bloom County collection, and read and re-read many times. Sigh.
January 25, 2011
The last of the comics were good!
February 2, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews