Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Dr. Horrible: One-Shot Wonder REVIEWED


Greetings, minions! Say hello to big, stinky, kind of disgusting but nonetheless *awesome* fear for it is I, Doctor Horrib.. no wait, that's not true. Let me try again.

Stand aside and consider your day saved in a both rugged and charming manner, citizens, for I am Captain Ham... no, that's not it either.

Hey, Buffyfest, it's me, your nerdiest blogger just back from running to the comic book store in the manner that a fat kid runs away from a dodge ball with Dr. Horrible #1 (of one) grasped tightly in my teeny, tiny, itsy, bitsy grasp. Yeah. That'll do.

So! Zack Whedon is our writer, Joelle Jones makes with the art and Dark Horse wraps the whole thing up in a nice bow for consumption by the massively massive masses but is it any good? Is the $3.50 a worthy investment or should you just keep saving up for that nifty freeze ray you've had your eye on? Well, harken close, kiddos, because working in this industry of funny books has earned me some, at least, perceived cache. In other words: I know what's up.

In a word: Yes. In two words: Do it! In three words: It was awesome. Four words? You get the point. See what I did there? Seriously, gang, the book is a winner. This idea that Scott Allie and co. came up with to tell a series of single issue stories has really paid off and there's no better example thus far than this very book I hold in my hands. The story leaps right off the page with wit, charm, and even, dare I say it, a little tenderness. But mostly it's funny and Joelle Jones captures the crap out of Neil Patrick Harris and Nathan Fillion. You want a criticism? Okay. Penny is the weak point of the story. She gets only the briefest of cameos and it falls flat on it's face. In fairness, I think it's best to leave her out of the narrative since there just isn't much of her story to tell. If it's a heroic lady person you're after, you'll have to stick with Buffy.

But, but, but! Let's not put all our focus on the one debbie downer and lose sight of the wonderfully horrible forest of amazing doom that is this book. You know who else shows up? Moist! I love me some sweaty, jewish henchman and Moist is a special fellow who plays his special part specialfully...? There's even a cool ad in here for Brad Meltzer's upcoming arc of the Buffy comic. Yes, even the commercials are cool. What's not to love?

I'm asking you, I'm telling you, nay, demanding you run out and retrieve your copy today. Start up your jalopy, fill it up with petroleum distillate and re-vulcanize your tires, post haste, and get yourself down to the local comic book shoppe. You won't regret it and maybe, just maybe, if the book sells really well... we could get some more comics starring a certain Doc and his supposedly well endowed arch nemesis. When you're done come on back and let me know what *you* thought. Consider yourself winked at as I slowly saunter away, Buffyfest.

2 comments:

Kaaren said...

I just went and purchased it from my local comic book shop tonight. Can't wait to read it!

she fell down said...

note: this long ass comment contains many spoilers.

walking through town, passed my favorite comic shop and thought "didn't one of my friends just tell me that dr. horrible came out, and it's good, and i should read it? who was that?" bought the comic from the hot british shopkeeper, got the bus home, made dinner and then, "oh shit, that was the dude on buffyfest, i just conflated a blogger with a friend." i'm shoving that issue into the back of my brain for now.

just dug into the comic. the wry expressions on dr. horrible's face are brilliant, the contrasting color in the crowd scene is really effective, and it's nice to see a wee bit of the doctor's early origin. i had to pause on the page of the laundry scene where the newscaster details how justice joe was killed. so the good dr. saw that when he was an impressionable youth? the pipe with the head and...explains so much, and makes me feel better about his membership in the evil league of evil. i have no doubts of his evilness, but i feared him sitting at the same table with bad horse.
as for penny, she might as well have not been in the comic at all.
all in all i really loved it.