[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Writer: Marc Russell
Artist: Rick Leonardi
Inker: Scott Hanna
Summary
The Great Gazoo has decided to place odds on the survival of humanity. Guess what? He is not impressed and thus, is not giving us much of a chance. I can not say that I blame him. Reverend Tom invents the concepts of sin and Hell, and then he invents indulgences for people to get out of their sins because he did not know “monotheism would be so expensive.” Fred proves he is a great guy. Wilma discovers that the Art World is fickle no matter the century.
Positives
Marc Russell is a satirical genius. Normally, Gazoo is not my favorite character. In fact, in the original show, he drove me crazy. He was the Flintstones version of jumping the shark. However, in the hands of the above mentioned satirical genius, Gazoo is indeed great. He is impartial and sees things from the perspective Russell wants us to see things. Humanity shoots itself in the foot. It is full of greedy monsters who only want to serve themselves.
We are never satisfied. We always need the new thing even when we do not. He sums it up perfectly at the end of the book as we see the Flintstones sit on the couch looking miserable while Pebbles has her headphones on blocking out the world. We see the Rubbles loaded down with new purchases from Tarpit, bulls eye on every single bag. Gazoo says of humanities rise to the top of the food chain,
“Now that they run the world, they devour everything in sight. They self-destruct almost as if they know they do not belong at the top of the food chain. They use fear to fuel their greed and greed to justify their greed.”
New artist Rick Leonardi does an admirable job with Bedrock. His version is dirty and full of jagged edges as it should be. His Betty really captures her “otherness” and I love it. His Wilma is full of life and glorious expressions.
Negatives
While Leonardi does a nice job with the world, there is something about his Fred that is a bit unsettling. Sure, it is likely the more accurate portrayal of what early humans would look like, but I have grown accustomed to Steve Pugh’s view of our Hero.
Verdict
This begins the second half of Marc Russell’s run on this book. He comes out swinging and it is magnificent to behold. Get this book. Tell your pals. I have. Seriously, this is fantastic. How is this not the top selling book each and every week?
