Slapstick #3 Review: Fight The Taurs For Gender Equality
By Alex Widen
First it was Bro-Man, now its the Taurs! Can Slapstick defend a mall from the horde of cute warriors without losing his pants?
Slapstick #3
Writers: Reilly Brown & Fred Van Lente
Artists: Diego Olortegui & Reilly Brown
Colorist: Jim Campbell
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The third print issue of the hilarious Marvel Unlimited series dropped last week. As promised in the previous story, the wrath of the Taurs is felt on a mall in Paramus, New Jersey. Much as Bro-Man was a parody of He-Man & The Masters Of The Universe, the Taurs are a parody of two other 1980s cartoons. In their case, a combination satire of The Smurfs and My Little Pony. Slapstick may be the symbol of flash in the pan characters from 1992, but this new series is wickedly fun.
Image by Marvel Comics
Mike Peterson, the best friend of the man-turned-cartoon, is working a shift at the mall’s art supply shop. Another day of trying to brag about his best pal Steve Harmon to his co-worker Jenny is interrupted by something strange. In New York it would be the Masters of Evil or the Sinister Six, or no end of established villains. Since this is New Jersey, their citizens are plagued by more deranged cartoons from Dimension Ecch. The 2D world is the source of Slapstick’s powers.
Image by Marvel Comics
The Taurs of Taurville Are Not So Friendly!
Image by Marvel Comics
The Taurs may be small, but they make up for it in sheer numbers and their zeal for tiny weapons. Slapstick arrives to take down the vengeful centaurs, but it isn’t out of the goodness of his heart. Thanks to his brief alliance with the villain Quasimodo, Steve uses the mission as a bargaining chip to avoid punishment by A.R.M.O.R. While the Taurs may be smaller than Bro-Man, their sheer volume and tenacity begin to overwhelm Slapstick. Not even being sliced into halves stops them!
Image by Marvel Comics
In fact, the only salvation comes from Taurette. Both a parody of Smurfette as well as many people on Tumblr, Taurette is the only female among the entire race of Taurs. She is sick of being mistreated by them and agrees to help Slapstick defeat them. Unfortunately, Steve’s greed, as well as a comedy of errors, botches Taurette’s plan. Only reclaiming a chance item from his shredded “infinite pants pocket” allows him to defeat the Taurs. Yet he may make things worse afterwards!
Image by Marvel Comics
Reilly Brown and Fred Van Lente have crafted this relaunch into a biting and hilarious satire. Their respect and enthusiastic embracing of Slapstick’s past continuity is incredible. They seriously seem to have his history down pat in a better way than many writers have for Spider-Man or Captain America. Yet this only strengthens their comedy skills and sets up many antics. Mike proves to be a great straight man for Slapstick, even while being plenty zany himself.
Image by Marvel Comics
A Brilliant Well Rounded Parody!
Brown and Van Lente have masterfully reworked Slapstick’s core mechanic into being a parody of cartoons. In particular, he embodies Tex Avery / Chuck Jones’ styles of animated humor. Therefore, it makes perfect sense that his arch enemies represent other animated genres. Bro-Man represented 1980s barbarian style heroes, while the Taurs represent a horse of cuddly (and vaguely sexist) merchandise creatures. It makes sense for the franchise, and is actually brilliant.
Image by Marvel Comics
Layered below the masterful revision of Slapstick’s modes of operation are plenty of witty barbs. The dialogue among the characters is always biting. Slapstick’s struggles with women (only due in part to the loss of his “dingus”) make for some of the best bits. It isn’t enough that he embarrasses himself in front of agents Teresa and Isabel, but even with Taurette! Steve’s manic energy and self-serving antics are also major sources of comedy. He’s a superhero by accident.
Image by Marvel Comics
The art by Brown and Diego Olortegui is in perfect sync. The bright color work by Jim Campbell is also key. The “animated” characters are literally more two-dimensional in sharing, inking, and coloring. Thanks to digital coloring techniques, this comes off a lot better than it could have in 1992. The Taurs and Taurette are amazing designs unto themselves. In fact, they might make for fun collectible toys despite the fact that they’re a spoof of such things!
Image by Marvel Comics
Is a Spoof of G.I. Joe a Shot at IDW Now?
Image by Marvel Comics
The next issue, as per the cover, reveals that Slapstick’s next opponents are the War Dogs. They’re canine parodies of G.I. Joe, a franchise Marvel themselves had licensed for a long time. Behind all of the jokes and smashing action is the genuine mystery of who the “champion” all of the cartoons of Dimension Ecch keep requesting. Slapstick naturally believes its him, but it likely is someone else. Is his human form somehow in Dimension Ecch, raising havoc? That might explain a lot!
Image by Marvel Comics
Next: See Cartoon Man fight Bro-Man in #2!
The current Marvel catalog has a lot of comedy-themed titles these days. In fact, Slapstick’s sliver of current popularity comes from being featured in a Deadpool team book. Yet this creative team has taken the opportunity to rework him into something distinct and unique. Lost in the shuffle of the early 90s, he works now as someone smashing a mallet into the symbols of nostalgia. For readers seeking something zany and unique, Slapstick offers the yucks you need.