The cyborg… Excuse me, ROBONIC Stooges are about to face their greatest challenge yet! It may take a few friends (and maybe an older brother) to prevail. Your Major Spoilers review of The Stooge Wars #1 from American Mythology Productions awaits!
THE STOOGE WARS #1
Writer: S.A. Check
Artist: Diego Tapie
Colorist: Diego Tapie
Letterer: James Couts
Publisher: American Mythology Productions
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: September 7, 2022
Previously in The Stooge Wars: Could this be The Robonic Stooges last stand?! The fate of the world hangs in the balance as the mysterious stranger known only as The Overyonder has kidnapped the planet’s greatest heroes and deadliest villains to battle for the ultimate prize! Can Moe, Larry, and Curly pull their ragtag team together? Or will the combined forces of Professor Cluck, PoodleMan, Dr. Crackula, and the rest of the Stooges’ “legendary” rogue’s gallery prove too much for the boys?
PAGING CAP’N HOWARD, CAP’N FINE, CAP’N HOWARD
Things begin, as they so often do for the Robonic Stooges, with a beating. The trio is sent flying into a wall, leading to the usual slapstick shenanigans, with a twist: As Moe abuses his best friends, they each disappear from reality, then he himself is transported away. They find themselves on an alien world with two suns, possibly Tatooine, where a shadowy figure approaches… only to reveal himself as the Fourth Stooge, Shemp! The Stooges are then greeted by a being calling himself The Overyonder, who admits to being a fan and has brought them to his strange battle world to fight for his amusement. He’s also brought all of their villains, a little superheroic backup, and created a few strongholds for them to use in their war. Curly gets a new costume, everyone is trapped under a massive weight, and after a massive back-and-forth battle, the mysterious power item ends up in the hands of the dimmest being in the battle… and that’s saying something!
ENTER: THE SHEMP!
First of all, I do have to admit a little disappointment at the fact that, while Robonic Shemp is shown on the cover in full costume, he ends up wearing a trench coat in the interior pages of the issue. I strongly suspect that it’s some sort of rights issue, as previous stories have also danced around the presence of the elder Horowitz, using his likeness and dancing around his name and role as a founding Stooge. That said, this issue reminds me of the cartoon funny books of my youth, which presented straightforward comedy stories featuring the Looney Tunes or Woody Woodpecker without any pretense. Combining that with a series of references to Marvel Super-Heroes Secret Wars from 1984 and this is a comic book aimed squarely at me and people my age. Tapie’s art is wonderfully silly and I especially appreciate Curly’s jelly donut-themed “Venom” costume, but the designs of all the new characters are delightful, balancing traditional superhero nonsense with the peculiar H-B aesthetic of the Robonic Stooges.
BOTTOM LINE: GOOFY FUN
If you’re a Stooge purist or someone who has no tolerance for straightforward nonsense, The Stooge Wars #1 probably isn’t for you. But if you’re looking for a single-issue story that doesn’t skimp on comedy, action, and the occasional poke in the eyes, this is a comic for you, earning 3 out of 5 stars overall. Comic readers of a certain age, who likely grew up watching Three Stooges shorts on TV and in auditoriums throughout the Carter administration, should check this one out.
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THE STOOGE WARS #1
This issue is a mélange of '70s cartoon and '80s comics with a straightforward comedy story and energetic art equaling a good read.
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Writing6
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Art6
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Coloring6
Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.