| Print |

Written by Erin Jameson Thursday, 21 May 2009 17:00

Tommy Kovac's twisted tale of skinless rabbits is not for the faint of heart.

 

 

120 pgs., b/w; $10.95

(W/A: Tommy Kovac)

 

Before I get into this review, let me say one thing: perspective is the name of the game here.  One girl's "a bit much" might be someone else's belly laughs.  Your humble reviewer might be a bit of a prude, it's true.  The term "snob" might have been tossed about once or twice, as well, but let's not be hurtful here, okay?  But I try to approach every book I read with a grain of salt.  Just because it's not for me, doesn't mean it's not for someone out there.  I mean, it's been published, right?  So clearly someone wants to read about skeletal zombie bunnies doing...umm, things.  They do things, things that I don't even want to type about or, as I've discovered, read about.

So, first things first, when you see that "Parental Advisory Suck It" label on the front of the book, it's not a joke.  It really, sincerely isn't something you want a small child reading.  I'm not even sure I would give it to anyone under the age of about 17, to be frank.  It's one long dirty joke and, ladies, the author thinks you're gross.  So it's a decidedly one-sided dirty joke, at that.  The book itself is a series of short comics, some linked throughout the book by reappearing characters and some total one-shots.  I will say that the book includes an interesting cast of characters, including a gay, bitchy Satan and his crew of boy toys, the Woobies and Pretty-Pretty Pony Macabre, who spends most of the book on fire.  Most of the humor in the book comes from the Woobies, who live to serve the Skelebunnies.  There's also a pretty funny comic where the boy Skelebunny tries to figure out what he and his sister are named right before he runs into the Genie of the Donut, who demands a name.

Honestly, this book isn't terribly subtle with its dirty humor (a suggested activity in the Teacher's Guide at the end is to count the penises in the book) but the art is occasionally incredibly intricate and lovely.  And, to be fair, the humor does manage to rise above genitalia and poop jokes every now and again.  There are brief and mocking forays into such topics as identity and organized religion but, even then, you have to fish them out from under the dirty pictures of the Devil.  I'm not sure that there's anyone, specifically, that I would recommend this for.  I wouldn't buy it, I wouldn't tell any of my friends to buy it and I'm going to have to suggest you give it a miss, dear reader, unless you're feeling dirty or want to shock a grown-up friend.  The book begins with an intro from SLG's founder and owner, Dan Vado, in which he tells us of the many times he discouraged the inclusion of Skelebunnies comics in Kovac's other acclaimed books.  Vado eventually came around and published this and, to this day, feels a little shame about it.  Well, Tommy Kovac wouldn't say it, but I will, Mr. Vado.

Dan, you were right. | Erin Jameson