Friday, February 19, 2010

COMIC REVIEW: Weekly World News #2 (IDW)



Weekly World News #2 picks up the fun of the first issue, following the further adventures of Ed Anger as he crusades to show the world their beloved freaks are not what they seem. Alan Robinson's art and Chris Ryall's scripts make this one of my favorite new titles.



I love reading a variety of titles each month (so much so that it's hard to keep up sometimes), ranging from superheroes and hopeless zombie/apocalyptic stories to completely off the wall titles like this. Reading this book is just so much fun, from the easter eggs (like Billy Beer and the Twilight Zone) to crotchety old Ed Anger's curmudgeonly rants. And lest you think this title is all fun and no substance, Ryall brings a story that keeps you wanting to know what happens next, like who will Bat Boy save? Where does Ed Ape get such snazzy turtleneck sweaters? Where did Manigator find Billy Beer?

The highlight of this issue was the montage of Bat Boy's altruistic achievements. I laughed out loud (literally) at his saving a LOLcat. There are other homages to pop culture that I won't reveal here, but they are just as good.

As always (or at least for these two issues so far), included are annotations to point out all the fun things you may have missed, and some reprints of articles from the real Weekly World News, like Ed Anger's rant about smut on TV. I'm totally hooked on this series. I mean, where else will you see a half-man, half-reptile in comics? Oh, right. Killer Croc. But did Killer Croc ever drink a beer with Batman? I don't think so. Score one for Manigator! Seriously, though. Put this one in your pull list at your local comic shop. Never has it been so much fun to hang out with somebody's cranky old grandpa.

Stacey Rader
Senior Reviewer

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