Royal Flush #1

Posted: Tuesday, September 10, 2002
By: Darren Schroeder

Creator(s): Josh Bernstein
Publishers: Number Foundation
From: USA
Price: $8.95 (US)

Bright cover to bright anthology that some of most bizarre humour I have read in a while. The ad for the kickboxing Jesus made me laugh so much I was struck by a lightening bolt. The stories in this issue are so far off the wall they're in the neighbor's bathroom.

The Mitzvah 4 beat up Nazi scum with chutzpa to burn. You also get a handy guide to all that wacky Yiddish dialogue.

Hispanic Batman and Roberto is another delight, with lots of amusing going ons as the caped crusader tries to save Eric Estrada and Gloria Estefan from a genetic experiment that just seems so nasty.

The Happy Meal Adventurestakes the prize for weirdest contribution to this anthology, with a gene bomb transforming 4 friends into sentient convenience food. Oh the condiments!

The visuals keep up with the ideas, making us believe that a hot dog can run, A walrus can watch baseball and Clown Police can save us from crime. The styles on display are wide ranging, from peanut rip offs to some funky anthropomorphic material. Thin scratchy pen work seems to be the main trend on display, with less attention being paid to pretty pictures than on getting the scruffy details of the characters just right. Eric Rodriquez and Josh Bernstein collaboration on Hispanic Batman and Roberto is a prime example of this. The characters all have bags under their eyes, lots of stubble and look as though they slept in their costumes, which all adds to the humour of the piece.

This is a handsomely packaged publication with square binding and striking cover art. Track it down soon for some fresh comic laughs.

In a Word: Winner.



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