These Things Happen Act 2 & 3

Posted: Tuesday, May 13, 2003
By: Darren Schroeder

Cover of These Things Happen Act 2 & 3 Creator(s): James Woodward
Publishers: VonPhantasi Studios (Self Published)
From: USA
Price: $1.75 (US)

TV talk shows are a great medium for the weird and wonderful side of life to be aired. You get to see famous and well as unknown people, hear what they are up to and be entertained or appalled buy the guest and the host. In this comic you get all that plus the behind the scenes goings on as Bingo Bongo chats with the guests. Thing soon take a turn for the really weird. The shows producer seems to have been kidnapped by a made scientist and had his head transplanted on the body of an emu. The host walks around naked and won't talk to a soul, and some of the crew stand around having deep conversations about the philosophical implications of Happy Days. On top of all this, some strange activist group is stealing words out of the language.

If, like me, you miss the more weird storytelling of Steve Gerber then this book will one right up your alley. Thoughtful issues are mixed up with crazy people and the feeling that there's more serious social commentary going on as well. There is just is no predicting what will happen next. Any comic where a boils somehow develops sentence can do anything.

Material like this could loose the audience very carefully if the artist isn't up to the job. No such problem her. James gives his characters lots of energy and personality so they live up to the out there events. The backgrounds look like they might have been photographs altered to be pale, though perhaps it is just grey wash. There are also some rather neat computer graphics in evidence.

These two issues suggest readers are in for a humour filled story that needs their full attention. This is clever storytelling that doesn't seem to take it self seriously, but nothing this complicated works so well unless a lot of thought has gone into it.

In a Word: Wacky.



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