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Mild Mannered Reviews - Bizarro Comic Books

Bizarro #3

Bizarro #3 (of 6)

Scheduled to arrive in stores: August 19, 2015

Cover date: October 2015

"Unwanted: Unliving or Undead"

Writer: Heath Corson
Penciller: Gustavo Duarte
Inker: Gustavo Duarte

Reviewed by: T.A. Ewart (aka liheibao)

Click to enlarge



Ol' Gold Gulch is being terrorized by El Papagayo, and so Bizarro, Jimmy and Chastity Hex decide to handle the situation in a manner worthy of the Wild West, a showdown ensues. Bizarro inhales the renegade ghosts, who in turn possess him. Jimmy wisely calls in the aid of other ghosts, in the form of Jonah Hex and El Papagayo is defeated, leaving the duo, plus Chastity Hex, to continue onwards to Bizarro World (Canada).

4Story - 4: It's the first story where the events weren't secondary to the humor and it's a pleasure to read. Both Bizarro and Jimmy do some clever moments, allowing for the joke-a-thon to be tolerable, and the overall tale is better for it. It does take a quarter of the issue to get there, but once in motion, Bizarro becomes more entertaining, and thereby, funnier. It's also a nice touch to include Jonah Hex through Chastity Hex being his descendent. It's probably one of the few times in the last four years that a book has shown a willingness to be connected to the legacy and history of DC Comics, albeit in such swift fashion. Still, doing so allowed a resolution to the problem presented in the narrative, that actually makes sense in terms of the world created for Bizarro and Jimmy. It's rare that giving a book a full go is a rewarding proposition, but after two issues that were head-bangers to get through, and a quarter more here, this installment was right on time and very rewarding for the patient reader.

Can you name all of the members of Jonah Hex's posse? Fans of the Justice League animated series might recall them, but there was a time that knowing who they are was a commonplace and simple thing to do, even for a casual reader. DC deserves a lot of credit for taking a go at a book like Bizarro, but they sideline it by not giving themselves a proper go with New 52 and now DCYOU. You have over 75 years of history, which can lend itself to a myriad amount of situations and storytelling, but only if embraced as done in Bizarro. As the market share shrinks, that might be something to consider, rather than anything but that.

4Art - 4: The X-ray of Bizarro's internals is priceless. While much of the humor is verbose, this is spot-on wit. Good show.

4Cover Art - 4: The Good, the Bad, and Stupid, and no idea whom is which.


Mild Mannered Reviews

2015

Note: Except for digital first releases, the month dates are from the issue covers, not the actual date when the comic went on sale.

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