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Slapstick
Steve Harmon was an average teenager who had an average job as your average clown, living in average New Jersey. But after being zapped by weird and mysterious extradimensional energy, Steve became Slapstick - a living, breathing cartoon character! Now, after joining - and then quitting - Deadpool's Mercs for Money, Slapstick is striking out on his own terms! Sure, he's gotta move back in with his parents, but these new business ventures take time. And anyway, he gets to team up with the Amazing Spider-Man - so things must be going pretty well, right?
Collecting: Slapstick 1-5
Collecting: Slapstick 1-5
136 pages, Paperback
First published July 18, 2017
41 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
February 6, 2018
I may be loopy from pain medication (I pretty much always am) but I thought this was hilarious. It also managed to reference virtually every kids' cartoon and toy range since the 1960s. OK, this might not have been the most cerebral comicbook I've ever read but I had an absolute blast reading it... It probably wins the award for 'Most Dirty Jokes in Any Marvel Comic Ever', too.
March 5, 2017
Reading single issues. (Note that, as of this writing only the first 4 issues are out yet.)
And I'm surprised at how much I'm enjoying this title. (Though to be fair, I do have a penchant for both B-list characters and titles with a slight goofiness to them!)
I realize this title isn't for everyone, but if you liked SquirrelGirl, Great Lakes Avengers, Howard the Duck, or Damage Control (amongst others) give this title a try.
And I'm surprised at how much I'm enjoying this title. (Though to be fair, I do have a penchant for both B-list characters and titles with a slight goofiness to them!)
I realize this title isn't for everyone, but if you liked SquirrelGirl, Great Lakes Avengers, Howard the Duck, or Damage Control (amongst others) give this title a try.
October 29, 2017
Listen, kids. Kit's got a story to tell.
The year: 1996. The place? Sunny Southern California. Kit is nine years old, turning ten during that blazing summer. Her neighbor invites her over to sneak into her big brother's room. Going through shoeboxes full of comics, Kit's life has changed. It changes further when said Big Brother comes home, gives a performative teenage fit about his stuff, and then starts lending small stacks of comics to Kit for pocket change.
In that stack is the first book of a limited run series called "The Awesome Slapstick." ( http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php... )
Along with Lobo, Wolverine, the Mask, and the Freakazoid cartoon series, Kit has found a special place where being the weird one is fun, wild, heroic, violent, and, just like the brother, who later ends up behind bars, not always good for you.
But for a kid from a conservative household who is part of a church that bans Disney for supporting gay people, yeah, for awhile, it's enough to have something special to hide away that is part of that harmless mini-rebellion of being a kid, and she jumps in with both feet.
Years later, Kit is dating a man. A wonderful, gentle, thoughtful young man who helped her smuggle her precious books and childhood things out of the house where her mother, having another episode, demands her room be stripped of every book and cartoon character and "start growing up." They use the time her mother's brother is visiting from out of state to move out of the house while she isn't there to ask where she is moving. He picks up a few boxes at a time in his trunk.
He doesn't have a job yet, but spends his time going between thrift stores finding old video games to sell online for a little cash. He uses some of that cash to help her find a four issue limited series called "The Amazing Slapstick," something she vaguely remembered from her childhood. She rereads it in his car on the way to his house, feet up on the passenger seat turning pages, and he smiles as he drives.
A decade later, she's just turned 31, far too old to be reading comics still, by the estimation of some, but the world has gotten kinder to the idea of being yourself. For her 31st birthday, her friend and roommate, Kayleigh, hands her a book she knows she will love, because months before, when discussing childhood memories of comics late into the night, Kit has spoken with starry eyes about a 4-issue limited series she loved as a kid. One with cartoon powers and tons of jokes. "If I could have any power," she said animatedly, "I'd want cartoon ones. I'd like to be able to make people laugh whenever I wanted and know I could do anything I imagined. Everyone wants to be invisible or fly or be really strong, but I'd want it all as long as it didn't have to be serious. That's why I love The Mask so much. It's also the first CD I ever owned, the soundtrack. He never has to be afraid if he can make people laugh..."
She yammers on as usual as Kayleigh smiles, suggests they watch the movie. They make popcorn on the stove and sit together on the couch in their pjs. Kit refuses to stop singing along with "Cuban Pete."
"I thought you'd like it if I got you the new one," she says with her usual, practiced shrug of humility, not one to be too sentimental.
But Kit can't see it too well through the tears in her eyes.
********************************************************
So how was the book? Isn't this a review? I couldn't tell you how you'd feel, but I can tell you how it made me feel. I loved the feeling I got in reading it that things don't have to be serious to be worth my time. I loved knowing that I don't give a solitary damn about whether or not this is going to get an Eisner. I even had to suppress a sneer at the knowledge that I don't feel obligated to justify why something is enjoyable to me to a cabal of humorless taste-makers in order for me to want to set aside time to read it. I'm not going to suggest everyone run out and read it, or that it has never been done, or that it is even the best at what it has done. I just know it made me happy to see it again.
And yes, I cried even as I laughed, giant rainbow robot blanket wrapped all around me and eating pixie stix on my front porch in my cartoon pjs, because it was a reminder for me that no matter what, some things will never change.
And one of those is how I will always laugh at anyone using the word "dingus."
And that's my Goodreads Goal, folks.
The year: 1996. The place? Sunny Southern California. Kit is nine years old, turning ten during that blazing summer. Her neighbor invites her over to sneak into her big brother's room. Going through shoeboxes full of comics, Kit's life has changed. It changes further when said Big Brother comes home, gives a performative teenage fit about his stuff, and then starts lending small stacks of comics to Kit for pocket change.
In that stack is the first book of a limited run series called "The Awesome Slapstick." ( http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php... )
Along with Lobo, Wolverine, the Mask, and the Freakazoid cartoon series, Kit has found a special place where being the weird one is fun, wild, heroic, violent, and, just like the brother, who later ends up behind bars, not always good for you.
But for a kid from a conservative household who is part of a church that bans Disney for supporting gay people, yeah, for awhile, it's enough to have something special to hide away that is part of that harmless mini-rebellion of being a kid, and she jumps in with both feet.
Years later, Kit is dating a man. A wonderful, gentle, thoughtful young man who helped her smuggle her precious books and childhood things out of the house where her mother, having another episode, demands her room be stripped of every book and cartoon character and "start growing up." They use the time her mother's brother is visiting from out of state to move out of the house while she isn't there to ask where she is moving. He picks up a few boxes at a time in his trunk.
He doesn't have a job yet, but spends his time going between thrift stores finding old video games to sell online for a little cash. He uses some of that cash to help her find a four issue limited series called "The Amazing Slapstick," something she vaguely remembered from her childhood. She rereads it in his car on the way to his house, feet up on the passenger seat turning pages, and he smiles as he drives.
A decade later, she's just turned 31, far too old to be reading comics still, by the estimation of some, but the world has gotten kinder to the idea of being yourself. For her 31st birthday, her friend and roommate, Kayleigh, hands her a book she knows she will love, because months before, when discussing childhood memories of comics late into the night, Kit has spoken with starry eyes about a 4-issue limited series she loved as a kid. One with cartoon powers and tons of jokes. "If I could have any power," she said animatedly, "I'd want cartoon ones. I'd like to be able to make people laugh whenever I wanted and know I could do anything I imagined. Everyone wants to be invisible or fly or be really strong, but I'd want it all as long as it didn't have to be serious. That's why I love The Mask so much. It's also the first CD I ever owned, the soundtrack. He never has to be afraid if he can make people laugh..."
She yammers on as usual as Kayleigh smiles, suggests they watch the movie. They make popcorn on the stove and sit together on the couch in their pjs. Kit refuses to stop singing along with "Cuban Pete."
"I thought you'd like it if I got you the new one," she says with her usual, practiced shrug of humility, not one to be too sentimental.
But Kit can't see it too well through the tears in her eyes.
********************************************************
So how was the book? Isn't this a review? I couldn't tell you how you'd feel, but I can tell you how it made me feel. I loved the feeling I got in reading it that things don't have to be serious to be worth my time. I loved knowing that I don't give a solitary damn about whether or not this is going to get an Eisner. I even had to suppress a sneer at the knowledge that I don't feel obligated to justify why something is enjoyable to me to a cabal of humorless taste-makers in order for me to want to set aside time to read it. I'm not going to suggest everyone run out and read it, or that it has never been done, or that it is even the best at what it has done. I just know it made me happy to see it again.
And yes, I cried even as I laughed, giant rainbow robot blanket wrapped all around me and eating pixie stix on my front porch in my cartoon pjs, because it was a reminder for me that no matter what, some things will never change.
And one of those is how I will always laugh at anyone using the word "dingus."
And that's my Goodreads Goal, folks.
February 2, 2018
Slapstick: That's Not Funny (No really, it's not.)
The only reason I ordered this to my hold shelf at the library was a goodreads review that stirred the same nostalgia in me that it did in that reader's heart and mind. I remember picking up Slapstick #1 at my neighborhood grocery store in 1992 (In my city, that's where we went for a limited selection of comics and Marvel collectors trading cards.). I can picture some of the art, but I don't remember anything about the story, and I'm pretty sure I only had one part of that limited series (which apparently was voted Best New Comic by Marvel readers that year?) so it wasn't much of a story.
The original Slapstick was a thing of its time - the same time period that Animaniacs and The Mask and several other Jim Carrey moves came out and were much-quoted and imitated by adolescents and high schoolers in the U.S. Having recently re-watched the first few seasons of Animaniacs on Netflix, I know that series was far ahead of its time and still stands the test of time. Read this hilarious look back in time at an imagined pitch meeting at Warner Brothers for Animaniacs! It introduced a new generation to the Marx Brothers' comedic style, combining political savvy with slapstick, and even gave us insight into films of the time that our parents were probably more familiar with.
On the other hand, I'd wager that rewatching The Mask, Ace Ventura, or Dumb and Dumber would be rather painful experiences at this point in my life.
Slapstick: That's Not Funny is just a lot of dick jokes and references to popular cartoons, toys, and cartoons derived from toys from the second half of the '80s into the early '90s. It's not the *worst* comic book I've read - after all, I was able to get through every panel of all 6 issues collected - but it's not one I would recommend to anyone. I would not even recommend it to the presumed target demographic of teenage boys fueled by sugar and a new influx of sex hormones, because we can do better, and they really don't need more of this garbage.
my review is at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
The only reason I ordered this to my hold shelf at the library was a goodreads review that stirred the same nostalgia in me that it did in that reader's heart and mind. I remember picking up Slapstick #1 at my neighborhood grocery store in 1992 (In my city, that's where we went for a limited selection of comics and Marvel collectors trading cards.). I can picture some of the art, but I don't remember anything about the story, and I'm pretty sure I only had one part of that limited series (which apparently was voted Best New Comic by Marvel readers that year?) so it wasn't much of a story.
The original Slapstick was a thing of its time - the same time period that Animaniacs and The Mask and several other Jim Carrey moves came out and were much-quoted and imitated by adolescents and high schoolers in the U.S. Having recently re-watched the first few seasons of Animaniacs on Netflix, I know that series was far ahead of its time and still stands the test of time. Read this hilarious look back in time at an imagined pitch meeting at Warner Brothers for Animaniacs! It introduced a new generation to the Marx Brothers' comedic style, combining political savvy with slapstick, and even gave us insight into films of the time that our parents were probably more familiar with.
On the other hand, I'd wager that rewatching The Mask, Ace Ventura, or Dumb and Dumber would be rather painful experiences at this point in my life.
Slapstick: That's Not Funny is just a lot of dick jokes and references to popular cartoons, toys, and cartoons derived from toys from the second half of the '80s into the early '90s. It's not the *worst* comic book I've read - after all, I was able to get through every panel of all 6 issues collected - but it's not one I would recommend to anyone. I would not even recommend it to the presumed target demographic of teenage boys fueled by sugar and a new influx of sex hormones, because we can do better, and they really don't need more of this garbage.
my review is at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
November 29, 2017
Slapstick: That's Not Funny (No really, it's not.)
The only reason I ordered this to my hold shelf at the library was a goodreads review that stirred the same nostalgia in me that it did in that reader's heart and mind. I remember picking up Slapstick #1 at my neighborhood grocery store in 1992 (In my city, that's where we went for a limited selection of comics and Marvel collectors trading cards.). I can picture some of the art, but I don't remember anything about the story, and I'm pretty sure I only had one part of that limited series (which apparently was voted Best New Comic by Marvel readers that year?) so it wasn't much of a story.
The original Slapstick was a thing of its time - the same time period that Animaniacs and The Mask and several other Jim Carrey moves came out and were much-quoted and imitated by adolescents and high schoolers in the U.S. Having recently re-watched the first few seasons of Animaniacs on Netflix, I know that series was far ahead of its time and still stands the test of time. Read this hilarious look back in time at an imagined pitch meeting at Warner Brothers for Animaniacs! It introduced a new generation to the Marx Brothers' comedic style, combining political savvy with slapstick, and even gave us insight into films of the time that our parents were probably more familiar with.
On the other hand, I'd wager that rewatching The Mask, Ace Ventura, or Dumb and Dumber would be rather painful experiences at this point in my life.
Slapstick: That's Not Funny is just a lot of dick jokes and references to popular cartoons, toys, and cartoons derived from toys from the second half of the '80s into the early '90s. It's not the *worst* comic book I've read - after all, I was able to get through every panel of all 6 issues collected - but it's not one I would recommend to anyone. I would not even recommend it to the presumed target demographic of teenage boys fueled by sugar and a new influx of sex hormones, because we can do better, and they really don't need more of this garbage.
The only reason I ordered this to my hold shelf at the library was a goodreads review that stirred the same nostalgia in me that it did in that reader's heart and mind. I remember picking up Slapstick #1 at my neighborhood grocery store in 1992 (In my city, that's where we went for a limited selection of comics and Marvel collectors trading cards.). I can picture some of the art, but I don't remember anything about the story, and I'm pretty sure I only had one part of that limited series (which apparently was voted Best New Comic by Marvel readers that year?) so it wasn't much of a story.
The original Slapstick was a thing of its time - the same time period that Animaniacs and The Mask and several other Jim Carrey moves came out and were much-quoted and imitated by adolescents and high schoolers in the U.S. Having recently re-watched the first few seasons of Animaniacs on Netflix, I know that series was far ahead of its time and still stands the test of time. Read this hilarious look back in time at an imagined pitch meeting at Warner Brothers for Animaniacs! It introduced a new generation to the Marx Brothers' comedic style, combining political savvy with slapstick, and even gave us insight into films of the time that our parents were probably more familiar with.
On the other hand, I'd wager that rewatching The Mask, Ace Ventura, or Dumb and Dumber would be rather painful experiences at this point in my life.
Slapstick: That's Not Funny is just a lot of dick jokes and references to popular cartoons, toys, and cartoons derived from toys from the second half of the '80s into the early '90s. It's not the *worst* comic book I've read - after all, I was able to get through every panel of all 6 issues collected - but it's not one I would recommend to anyone. I would not even recommend it to the presumed target demographic of teenage boys fueled by sugar and a new influx of sex hormones, because we can do better, and they really don't need more of this garbage.
March 22, 2019
Reprints Slapstick! (Limited Series 2) #1-6 (February 2017-July 2017). Slapstick is no hero. In fact, Slapstick is trying to set himself up as a mercenary and has been working with Deadpool as a result. When a cartoon hero named Bro-Man invades Earth, Slapstick learns that the key to his humanity could be back in Ecch which originally gave him his powers. Slapstick finds the S.H.I.E.L.D. division A.R.M.O.R. is threatening to throw him in jail and that he and his friend Mike might be in for the adventure of a lifetime.
Written by Reilly Brown and Fred Van Lente, Slapstick!: That’s Not Funny reprints the second Slapstick limited series that was released as part of the Marvel Now! line. The collection features art by Diego Olortegui.
Slapstick was an interesting idea in the 1990s. The original series which introduced the character Slapstick #1-4 (November 1992-February 1993) was a blending of comic book heroes and cartoon book plots along the lines of Who Framed Roger Rabbit. While ultimately, the series didn’t work, I always liked the idea, and I was kind of excited when Slapstick returned as part of Avengers: The Initiative. This series branches off of Slapstick’s recent appearances, but it feels like it doesn’t push the concept far enough.
The fun of Slapstick is that he’s a manufactured cartoon hero. He is a regular guy stuck with a cartoon body like Jim Carrey in The Mask, but the idea that he’s bitter and angry about it feels like it should be R-Rated instead of PG-13. The jokes about his “lack of endowment” don’t quite work in this format, and I wanted it either pushed farther or not do it at all. It needed to be incredibly violent for it to be effective.
The character design for Slapstick did always work for me. It is a challenge to try to create a cartoon in a comic book world, and Diego Olortegui does a nice job envisioning that look. The series has a lot of fun playing with classic cartoon tropes and characters resemble classic Looney Tunes, G.I. Joe, My Pretty Pony, He-Man, Disney, and more. It is the type of series that background art is rather rich and fun.
Slapstick!: That’s Not Funny almost works but fails to make it over the hump. The collection is rather short and with references to the original limited series, it would have been nice if the collection had just included the original Slapstick series in addition to this. Slapstick will keep popping up in Marvel comics, but Deadpool’s behavior and style makes him a bit irrelevant now since it is the same humor. Maybe a harder “completely adult” version of the character would be more interesting…of course with Marvel movies coming out of the woodworks, Slapstick could theoretically take the lead again.
Written by Reilly Brown and Fred Van Lente, Slapstick!: That’s Not Funny reprints the second Slapstick limited series that was released as part of the Marvel Now! line. The collection features art by Diego Olortegui.
Slapstick was an interesting idea in the 1990s. The original series which introduced the character Slapstick #1-4 (November 1992-February 1993) was a blending of comic book heroes and cartoon book plots along the lines of Who Framed Roger Rabbit. While ultimately, the series didn’t work, I always liked the idea, and I was kind of excited when Slapstick returned as part of Avengers: The Initiative. This series branches off of Slapstick’s recent appearances, but it feels like it doesn’t push the concept far enough.
The fun of Slapstick is that he’s a manufactured cartoon hero. He is a regular guy stuck with a cartoon body like Jim Carrey in The Mask, but the idea that he’s bitter and angry about it feels like it should be R-Rated instead of PG-13. The jokes about his “lack of endowment” don’t quite work in this format, and I wanted it either pushed farther or not do it at all. It needed to be incredibly violent for it to be effective.
The character design for Slapstick did always work for me. It is a challenge to try to create a cartoon in a comic book world, and Diego Olortegui does a nice job envisioning that look. The series has a lot of fun playing with classic cartoon tropes and characters resemble classic Looney Tunes, G.I. Joe, My Pretty Pony, He-Man, Disney, and more. It is the type of series that background art is rather rich and fun.
Slapstick!: That’s Not Funny almost works but fails to make it over the hump. The collection is rather short and with references to the original limited series, it would have been nice if the collection had just included the original Slapstick series in addition to this. Slapstick will keep popping up in Marvel comics, but Deadpool’s behavior and style makes him a bit irrelevant now since it is the same humor. Maybe a harder “completely adult” version of the character would be more interesting…of course with Marvel movies coming out of the woodworks, Slapstick could theoretically take the lead again.
November 22, 2017
"That's not funny" sums ups my experience pretty well.
Marvel "Infinite Comics" are not my favorite to start with, but I expected Slapstick to be, worst case scenario, a rip-off of Dark Horse Comics' The Mask, but if failed at being a "toon" in most ways.
Slapstick won't move a muscle unless he's getting payed and is obsessed with getting his "wangdoodle" back, to the point of hiring a villain who he betrays instantly when confronted by the good guys.
Slapstick spends most of the comic fighting... pop-culture parodies and it feels like the people behind this know more about popular cartoon than "classic toons", he fights a He-Man parody, My Little Pony centaurs and meets G.I.Joe dog people.
The minimum I expected of Slapstick was for him to be able to take a beating, but most of the people he meets know his weak point, the best I got was Slapstick getting an imprint of a fist on his face, speaking of which, you'd think he'd pull more funny faces, but we don't really get much in that department either.
His cartoon powers seem to limited to invulnerability, except he's not, a mallet called Gertie, which is kinda tiny, "magic pockets", from which he just pull pop-culture references and a grenade or two. It looks like he can change costumes, but only uses this power to dress up for women he wants to impress.
I'll end this with a minor spoiler that proves they don't seem to know what to do with a toon. The big baddie is defeated by an anvil, but they don't show it because the baddie wasn't a toon at that moment. Like I said before they fail at toon faces and instead of having a flat head, pained expression and stars flying around, it's just a panel with the anvil falling and the next panel has the anvil on the floor... that's it... that's...not funny?
Marvel "Infinite Comics" are not my favorite to start with, but I expected Slapstick to be, worst case scenario, a rip-off of Dark Horse Comics' The Mask, but if failed at being a "toon" in most ways.
Slapstick won't move a muscle unless he's getting payed and is obsessed with getting his "wangdoodle" back, to the point of hiring a villain who he betrays instantly when confronted by the good guys.
Slapstick spends most of the comic fighting... pop-culture parodies and it feels like the people behind this know more about popular cartoon than "classic toons", he fights a He-Man parody, My Little Pony centaurs and meets G.I.Joe dog people.
The minimum I expected of Slapstick was for him to be able to take a beating, but most of the people he meets know his weak point, the best I got was Slapstick getting an imprint of a fist on his face, speaking of which, you'd think he'd pull more funny faces, but we don't really get much in that department either.
His cartoon powers seem to limited to invulnerability, except he's not, a mallet called Gertie, which is kinda tiny, "magic pockets", from which he just pull pop-culture references and a grenade or two. It looks like he can change costumes, but only uses this power to dress up for women he wants to impress.
I'll end this with a minor spoiler that proves they don't seem to know what to do with a toon. The big baddie is defeated by an anvil, but they don't show it because the baddie wasn't a toon at that moment. Like I said before they fail at toon faces and instead of having a flat head, pained expression and stars flying around, it's just a panel with the anvil falling and the next panel has the anvil on the floor... that's it... that's...not funny?
June 1, 2020
I got this comic for 20 cents and sometimes you can find some gems that are worth MUCH more than what they're at.
Yeeah...Noth this one tho.
Well, I know that sounds insolent, my bad, but this really is not funny.
The premise sounds fun enough, a teenager who was mutated into a cartoon character blessed with the ability to beat the shit out of everyone he makes a buck out of, and point out he no longer has...man parts (I already cursed once I'll spare you now).
That brand of humor can be quite enjoyable when used right.
I get it, the protagonist is purposefully made super annoying. It would have been an interesting dichotomy, however, to show how the world is different that this cartoon. How the story and circumstances create a fun narrative and the protagonists just keeps ruining it. He then regrets it, making him relatable and then he actually learns.
But nah.
The whole cast is annoying as well with predictable jokes that might work for a younger audience, but if you're gonna show gore and violence it would make sense to add solid mature jokes as well.
That solidifies that this story should be taken seriously but it does not take itsef too seriously.
It got half of it right.
The whole way I was blown away...by how someone would choose to leave this in a published book with your name attached to it. Some missed opportunities, and not a very good read.
I'll acknowledge maybe this wasn't the most exciting project to undertake but it didn't seem like they tried. The creators should not be remembered solely for this, I guess you can call it a bump in the road.
Stay groovy fellow reader.
Yeeah...Noth this one tho.
Well, I know that sounds insolent, my bad, but this really is not funny.
The premise sounds fun enough, a teenager who was mutated into a cartoon character blessed with the ability to beat the shit out of everyone he makes a buck out of, and point out he no longer has...man parts (I already cursed once I'll spare you now).
That brand of humor can be quite enjoyable when used right.
I get it, the protagonist is purposefully made super annoying. It would have been an interesting dichotomy, however, to show how the world is different that this cartoon. How the story and circumstances create a fun narrative and the protagonists just keeps ruining it. He then regrets it, making him relatable and then he actually learns.
But nah.
The whole cast is annoying as well with predictable jokes that might work for a younger audience, but if you're gonna show gore and violence it would make sense to add solid mature jokes as well.
That solidifies that this story should be taken seriously but it does not take itsef too seriously.
It got half of it right.
The whole way I was blown away...by how someone would choose to leave this in a published book with your name attached to it. Some missed opportunities, and not a very good read.
I'll acknowledge maybe this wasn't the most exciting project to undertake but it didn't seem like they tried. The creators should not be remembered solely for this, I guess you can call it a bump in the road.
Stay groovy fellow reader.
August 25, 2020
One of my favorite comic book series of all time was the original 4-issue "Slapstick" comic, published in the early 1990s. Over time, Slapstick has seen different interpretations: His original exuberant presentation, a very sinister anti-hero, and a Merc for Money.
That's Not Funny combines the different interpretations back into an single character. The writers plainly put a lot of care into their work. The artists, likewise, brought back the aesthetic of a living cartoon character.
Plotwise: Slapstick meets up with his old friends and peers. He ends up on a quest to restore a part of his body that has been missing for a long time.
I purchased both the trade paperback and the Comixology digital format. The digital version takes advantage of the format in ways that are completely appropriate to the character. Even there, the staff behind "That's Not Funny" went the extra mile to showcase what Slapstick can be.
This is the version of Slapstick that I would like to see continue in future comics.
That's Not Funny combines the different interpretations back into an single character. The writers plainly put a lot of care into their work. The artists, likewise, brought back the aesthetic of a living cartoon character.
Plotwise: Slapstick meets up with his old friends and peers. He ends up on a quest to restore a part of his body that has been missing for a long time.
I purchased both the trade paperback and the Comixology digital format. The digital version takes advantage of the format in ways that are completely appropriate to the character. Even there, the staff behind "That's Not Funny" went the extra mile to showcase what Slapstick can be.
This is the version of Slapstick that I would like to see continue in future comics.
March 4, 2020
There were a lot of problems with this book. First, the main character is a Dinkle-style unlovable loser. Second, it seemed to want to coast on some clever homages/references but they were largely unnecessary and thinner than they looked.
There were a couple of shining moments like the dialog bubbles of the sliced-in-half He-Man. But two stars for the failure to launch and the abrasiveness of it.
There were a couple of shining moments like the dialog bubbles of the sliced-in-half He-Man. But two stars for the failure to launch and the abrasiveness of it.
September 17, 2017
I honestly thought this was a rather funny comic. I picked it up from the library on an impulse and would recommend it to others. It uses slapstick's cartoony look, along with other cartoon parodies of predominantly 80's cartoons, as a contrast to the rest of the art in the book. The art is where it's most interesting but it some humorous discussion on the challenges of being a cartoon character. It's short, sweet and extremely fun and the main thing is I had fun which is what I expected :)
December 19, 2017
I read the first issue only and not the entire book. I found myself not really caring for the protagonist and don't really care for this style of humor, which is why I really didn't care for it. I would suggest picking up a single issue and seeing if it is something you enjoy. I do like the art and the cover art is very nice.
It tries to be like Rodger Rabbit where you have a more real-world setting and then you have silly cartoon characters in it, but it didn't work for me.
It tries to be like Rodger Rabbit where you have a more real-world setting and then you have silly cartoon characters in it, but it didn't work for me.
September 6, 2024
This was surprisingly good. After some lamentations on Slapstick's part which serve as an reintroduction to the character, a connection gets created to the 2D world which changed Slapstick from a human to a cartoon. Various parody characters come through and start making trouble. It's like Deadpool mixed with Who Framed Roger Rabbit. The artist and colorist do a fantastic job of mixing 2D and 3D characters in almost every panel.
January 15, 2019
One of the most juvenile pieces of tripe that I have ever held the dishonor of holding within my own two hands and the sheer disgrace over the fact that I spent money on it.
Acceptable art means nothing if the story and writing is complete utter trash.
And it is heartbreaking that this low-quality trash was seriously okay'd and released by Marvel.
Acceptable art means nothing if the story and writing is complete utter trash.
And it is heartbreaking that this low-quality trash was seriously okay'd and released by Marvel.
October 18, 2020
So, let's get this straight. Slapstick is not Deadpool. Slapstick is not Spider-Man. Slapstick is...not very funny. This book is full of pop culture references and dick jokes and nothing else. I did honestly laugh twice so its not the worst. The art is serviceable. Overall, this is not a good read.
September 7, 2017
In the end there is some interesting pop culture satire here that pays off. The issue is the story is uneven and it really takes time to get us to the over side where Van Lente's style can kick in full force.
October 8, 2020
Well this was...surreal. I needed a book about clowns for a reading challenge this month and someone suggested this. I know enough about Deadpool to know it was going to be bizarre, but this was a whole new level.
November 11, 2017
One strange book and not for kids.
April 7, 2020
An enjoyable read by one of my favorite comic book writers/artists: Reilly Brown.
This comic earns bonus points for taking place in New Jersey.
This comic earns bonus points for taking place in New Jersey.
January 17, 2021
Hahaha this was hilarious! 😂
November 14, 2025
it’s like reading The Mask if it wasn’t good
March 19, 2017
Hil-Arious!
Slappy is my boy!
Slappy is my boy!
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews