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REVIEW - CHUMBLE SPUZZ GN by Ethan Nicolle
Chumble Spuzz GN
Review by Dave Baxter, posted February 10, 2008
Words: Ethan Nicolle
Pencils: Ethan Nicolle
Inks: Ethan Nicolle
Title: "Kill the Devil" and "Salmonella"
Price: $10.95
Publisher: SLG Publishing
The Weevil was Ethan Nicolle’s first foray into the highlands of small press country. A good book, a big book, and beautiful, definitely, but not a critical darling, nor a thing that forced industry pros to stand and take note. The Weevil , for all intents and purposes, was a commercial fragment grenade, and could have sent the poor artist into navel-gazing recovery ad infinitum, but instead (thank God), it simply sent him into “&*$ this” mode, which fueled the generation of a gargantuan second graphic novel, a thing crafted with complete devil-may-care abandon, a commensurate pouring out of the hodgepodge that passes for Nicolle’s (seriously twisted) mind, unfettered onto paper. The result, then, is this: the funniest comic book material I have ever read, bar not one past none.
Funnier than Boneyard, funnier than the early issues of Bone; similar to, yes, but funnier still than Ren & Stimpy or South Park; funnier than the latest Will Ferrell or Steve Carell flick; it’s funnier than anything I can think of, actually. Funnier than The Simpsons. Funnier than Family Guy, Futurama, King of the Hill. How am I gauging this? Number of times I laughed, literally, out loud—and I was at work when I read this, supposedly slaving and not reading, and therefore trying very, very hard not to laugh. But I laughed, again and again, having to duck my head and pretend I was suffering from whooping cough disease, or something. Honestly, I wasn’t paying that much attention to the fate of my career. I was enjoying myself far too much.
Chumble Spuzz is the title of this irresistible job-killing treat, a nonsense phrase Nicolle culled from a Calvin and Hobbes strip, and which he puts to wondrous use here. Starring two bizarre little redneck creatures named Gunther and Klem, oh they of the Sam Kieth bucked-tooth grill, the main story begins when the two hicksters win a blue ribbon pig at their local country fair, only to discover that said pig is possessed by the dark lord Satan himself. Horrified, they recruit the passion-filled (read: crazed) Revered Mofo (a cross between a Blaxploitation action hero and a televangelist) along with a gung-ho two-man army corps (no, you read that right, only two) to enter Hell itself and…KILL THE DEVIL! Chumble kicks right off, then, without hesitation, into extraordinarily hysterical waters. It doesn’t so much “poke fun at” as it stabs red hot lances through religious zealotry, unjustifiable biases, the odder parts of middle-American mentality, eating disorders, blood drives, greed, fear of disease, gluttony, the list goes on, and on, and on. The breadth and depth of Chumble Spuzz ’s subject matter is comparable only to the very best of modern humorists, measuring in flavor and approach beyond the heights of absolutely anything and everything ever seen on Comedy Central or the Cartoon Network. Can't quite buy that? Check out the 22-page free preview .
See what I mean?
The rhythm from the get-go is smooth and arguably faultless, the humor hitting again and again at a speed astonishing to experience, especially as it never grows stale. Nicolle’s instincts as a humorist are spot on, and “Kill the Devil” moves with all the natural grace of a live stand-up show, its energy and the placement of the entertainer’s elements coming and going as they should, seemingly with the flow of the audience’s own.
Visually, Nicolle owes a lot to mainstream animation, both Disney-style and the more popular cutting-edge stuff, a little Genndy Tartakovsky and John K., as well as Matt Groening and Doug TenNapel. It’s such a perfect commingling of well-loved aesthetics that the humor turns infallible, allowing for a recognizable array of expression and over-the-top scenarios. And yet the pages of Chumble Spuzz make fun of the very arena they sit so snugly within, the animation and the potty humor, the sarcasm and the punch lines, the classic send-ups, set-ups, and droll or dry witticisms—they’re all here, and they’re exquisitely executed, flawlessly timed, meticulously rendered, and they’re wonderfully self-aware of their own limitations, tawdriness, and yuk-yuk shtick-i-ness. Which magically elevates the entire work to something rare: a funny thing funny for being a funny thing, or, in other words, it’s funny and so sublimely so, that it’s practically art.
Even after the unforgettable “Kill the Devil” storyline concludes, Nicolle treats fans to a slightly smaller (though still giant-sized) second round, that, not surprisingly, as it was drafted after the completion of KtD, surpasses the lead story in every way—no small feat if everything I’m raving about is true (and it is). “Salmonella” is comic infinity-K (that’s karat, or grand, I suppose, either-or, as it’s infinite, and therefore equal). A quick fairy-tale prologue with a guest-appearance by the Keebler Elf and the Cookie Monster (who both suffer wry, dead-on commentary under Nicolle’s pen) and the we’re off for the wrongest, coolest, and, in my opinion, until someone proves otherwise, un-toppable and most unstoppable comedic tale I’ve ever laid my eyes and grey matter to rest upon (wait’ll you see the “chug, chicken, chug” scene—it’s not what you think it is, but what it is, is damn funny).
Chumble Spuzz, ultimately, is…is…what’s a word that means “bestest thing ever and ever and ever?” I’d settle for a word that meant “Sweet Mary Jay-zuz, but Imma in love .” Since I got nothin' for either of those, I’ll have to settle for “unparalleled”. Man…that word seems so small now. I’ve never actually used that word in a review before, but next to the actual book of Chumble Spuzz, it seems so...piddling. Chumble Spuzz is amazing. I don’t think anyone who’s read it has walked away believing otherwise. That makes it “unanimous” to boot. This is one sweet comic sent from the pearly gates above, to show us all how to kick Satan’s a$$ and laugh the whole while doing it.
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To order a copy of Chumble Spuzz of your very own, head over to Amazon or the SLG Website.
And before you do that, read the free 22-page preview and/or check out the book's rather awesome video trailer. As the good Reverend Mofo says: "sweet manna from heaven!"
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