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Lee, Rainer – Super Whiz #1
Super Whiz #1
It’s a damned shame about this book. I really, really wanted to like it. Rainer has a fairly unique take on the punchline, with it often blowing up into a grand spectacle in place of what would probably be a fairly cliched finale. The trouble is that it’s often the same punchline and/or joke: poop. Poop in various forms can be funny; everybody knows this by now. But when you feel the need to throw it in constantly, at some point I have to start thinking that Rainer doesn’t have much more than that to say. This is a collection of gags and short strips, the funniest being the adventures of Tuxedo Bandit, mostly because he does nothing but harass an evil professor. Even that degenerates into constant poop jokes after a few adventures though, sadly. If this comes across like I’m some puritan who can’t stand scatological humor, wander around the website a bit, it should be fairly obvious that that’s not always the case. And I did laugh out loud a few times while reading this, always the sign of a successful comic, or at least the sign that there’s some serious potential here. I guess what I’m trying to say is: try harder next time, dammit! $3
Lee, Rainer – Tuxedo Bandit #3
Tuxedo Bandit #3
According to Rainer it’s been about a year since he sent the last issues of this series and, not to be mean about it or anything, but I can’t see any reason why this took so long. The bulk of the book is just Tuxedo Bandit and Dr. Klaw talking; I wouldn’t be shocked to learn that Rainer has cut and pasted the images of their faces over and over again. Then you throw in the couple of pages that are solid black (the power had gone out), and this is definitely the least visually interesting issue of the series. Then again, the writing has certainly improved and he even manages to draw lips on a few occasions, so it looks like the art has gotten better as well. It’s hard to be sure when these two are trapped in their apartment most of the time. There’s a pile of stories in this one, but they’re mostly connected by a central idea: these two come up with increasingly ridiculous ideas and get increasingly large piles of money from Hollywood for them. Other than that you have Bandit planning a surprise party for Dr. Klaw (with Klaw standing right there), Klaw denying his love for The Rock (the wrestler/actor, not the movie), the British Knights car, blind rowboating, 3-D potato chips, and Bandit finding a cat in the trash. Still plenty of poop for you diehards (if there is such a thing as a poop diehard), and still plenty of funny bits. A little more variety in the visuals would have been nice though. Price is still a mystery, I’m sticking with $4.
Lee, Rainer – Tuxedo Bandit #2
Tuxedo Bandit #2
It’s pretty much always a good sign when the second book in a series takes whatever criticism I may have had of it and disposes of it in the first story. My complaint was “too much poo” for the first issue and, don’t get me wrong, I’m not claiming that I had anything to do with this change, as these two issues came together and I really hope I don’t have that kind of power to influence the creative types anyway. Ever, I mean. I’m a guy with a website, people, let’s keep that in mind. My only “qualification” to do this is the fact that I’ve been reading comics for 20 years or so, and good ones for about 12. Clear? OK, anyway, the first story in this issue deals with the fact that Tuxedo Bandit is constantly crapping on Dr. Klaw. Dr. Klaw finally reaches his breaking point, a therapist is called in, and Rainer manages to hilariously dispose of all the crap jokes in one four page story. All of the pieces are longer this time around, and Rainer manages to go for the cheap laughs all over the place, making this is a much better overall comic because of it. There’s a story about the two of them trying to make some money selling an Alan Arkin autograph, Tuxedo Bandit going on a blind date after getting caught masturbating, Dr. Klaw getting fused with a suckling pig, and Tuxedo Bandit becoming a poet. At the very end there’s also one last poop joke but, as it’s at the end of the book and not surrounded by a hundred other poop jokes, it’s pretty damned funny. So overall I’d have to say to pick this one up over #1, as this one actually fleshes out the stories while maintaining the funny. Of course, if all you’re looking for in a comic is nonstop poop jokes, chances are you’re going to feel like Rainer “sold out” a bit on this one and with that he would go back to his funnier stuff. There’s just no pleasing some people. Again with the no price tag, again I’m guessing $4.
Lee, Rainer – Tuxedo Bandit #1
Tuxedo Bandit #1
Well, I said it in my earlier review of Rainer’s work: the bits with the Tuxedo Bandit were the funniest in the book. So how does as entire book of Bandit adventures hold up? Eh, maybe best left in smaller doses. I still think that Rainer has serious potential, and, as at least a few of the stories in here were also in Super Whiz #1, I still have a whole other issue in my comics pile to see more of his work. I love the completely random observations and the bits of pure meanness on display (like the page I sampled). The trouble is, well, every strip ends pretty much the same way. Tuxedo Bandit abuses Dr. Klaw, physically and mentally (honestly, maybe it would be better to read the whole book as a repressed gay love story), then either convinces or forces Dr. Klaw to eat his shit. Mildly funny once or twice, after that a new punch line is needed. Again, it’s the random observations that save this comic. The last strip of the book involves Dr. Klaw falling for a woman at a scientist convention, and Tuxedo Bandit has some priceless conversation with the woman before Rainer wraps things up (and four whole pages with no poo!). The best bits of this comic almost always involve them getting out of the house, as those are the stories where shit doesn’t have to be the fall back punchline. Still, the image of the Tuxedo Bandit showing up for dinner with Dr. Klaw holding flowers is pretty hard to top. As I seem to be going around in circles here, what’s the verdict? Plenty of funny here and it’s worth a look, but you’re likely to get a bit bored with the repetition before it’s all said and done. No price but that’s one fancy cover, so let’s spin the “guess the price” wheel… $4!
