[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Writers: Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis
Artists: Dale Eaglesham, Tom Derenick and Jan Duursema
Inker: Hi-Fi
Summary
The gang is holed up in Dinkley Tower, where Velma’s brother, in typical Scooby villain fashion, tells everyone his plans. He does not want a cure for the Monster Plague, but he wants to figure out a way to control the monsters. He does not care if he hurts anyone along the way, he wants total control and domination. His wife, Daisy, and he have some words. He and Velma have some words and ultimately, Daphne and he have some words. When I say “words,” I mean, he gets slapped a lot and kicked in the junk.
In the back story, Scrappy-Doo and Cliffy have a long discussion about nutrition and loyalty. Really. That is what it is about. For real.
Positives
The Hanna-Barbera team has been killing it since the first issue of Scooby Apocalypse dropped. Ken Pontac’s brilliant Wacky Raceland never found its audience, Future Quest ends this month and The Flintstones will be ending next month. In their own way, each of these books has said something scathing about the world in which we live. There is something about the social commentary that each book has that makes it perfect for nerds like me.
The best part of this book, and the two leading up to it, is the addition of Rufus T. Dinkley. In addition to being the perfect villain for this series (we need to take the blame off Velma) as he wants to be the leader of the Monster Plague world, he is the perfect reflection of the current leader of the free world.
Sometimes, satire is subtle and takes work. In Future Quest, Parker is reminding us of a time when we all got along and worked together against a common enemy. We did not care if you were brown, white, alien, time-traveling ghost, whatever. If we had a common goal, we could meet it together. Sometimes though, satire is just about holding up a mirror. Giffen and DeMatteis have a HUGE mirror held up here. Take a look. It is not just how the art team beautifully draws Trum…I mean Dinkley to have the bad hair and scowly, jowly face, but his attitude. The words that come out of his mouth and the way he thinks that everyone loves him and no one can do anything without him. He dies believing that the monsters are building a statue of him to honor and worship, not building an effigy to burn. It is precisely on the nose and there can be no misinterpretation. It is kind of sad and beautiful at the same time.
Negatives
There is a lot of recap in each issue. I know that part of writing a comic is that we need to remind the readers what came before, but this entire series is full of “here is what you missed” moments. It is a minor distraction to a book that has very few flaws. On the upside, if you are just starting with issue 13, you will be just fine.
I am not a huge fan of Scrappy-Doo in any incarnation. As a cartoon character, as a movie villain, nor here. There are already enough monsters out there. We do not need him too. He drags this book down. I get that ultimately there will be a showdown, but I am not looking forward to it.
Verdict
This is a fun book that begins year two with a bang. I say, buckle up, grab a sandwich and a shotgun and come along for the ride.
