By d. emerson eddy — I really liked the recent reimaginings that DC did for their Hanna-Barbera Universe sub-imprint. I know it wasn't everyone's cup of tea, but it resulted in some wildly different takes on the characters, taking them off in fantastic directions that explored some unique sociopolitical topics. And zombies. The Flintstones, Future Quest, Exit Stage Left, and Scooby Apocalypse are all also must reads from this era. One of my favourites took on the stars of the Wacky Races cartoon spin-off, Dastardly & Muttley from Garth Ennis, Mauricet, John Kalisz, and Rob Steen.

Dastardly & Muttley blends together two of Ennis' go-to elements, war and over-the-top violence, but does so in an endearing, pretty much family friendly way that manages to stay true to the absurd, cartoonish nature of the property. Ace pilots Lt. Colonel “Dick” Atcherly and Captain “Mutt” Muller are tasked with stopping a rogue drone involved in a violent nuclear disaster, but things turn strange when drone catches them in a cloud of what could only really be called grawlix. Transforming Mutt into a dog-headed man while Dick slowly becomes a dastardly, moustache-twirling baddie. What follows is a madcap adventure with Dick and Mutt on the run from their own military buddies as reality starts to break down.

There's a wonderful blending of realism and animation to be found in Mauricet's artwork. He has a fine-lined style, somewhat reminiscent to me of Jean-Claude Mézières and Steve Lieber, that makes the switch between a world more grounded in reality versus cartoon weapons and characters compelling, interesting to see how the cartoons really shouldn't exist in the “real” world. It gets even more interesting as the story develops and a very unique take on horror elements appear. I won't spoil the surprise, but it's something incredibly clever that puts an entirely new spin on it.

The division between reality and cartoon is further reinforced by the colors from John Kalisz and Rob Steen's letters. Kalisz uses a fairly naturalistic color palette for most of the world, but when they're affected by the drone, brighter and unnatural, sometimes garish colors come into play. Often accompanied by an almost ghostly effect that makes them really stand out as something that should not be. We also get a wonderful joke that could only be achieved in comics as one of Dick's obscenities in dialogue is obscured by the art.

Dastardly & Muttley by Ennis, Mauricet, Kalisz, and Steen was probably one of the less talked about Hanna-Barbera Universe reimaginings, but it's no less a fun adventure that creatively and faithfully examines the source material. If you want to kind of ease yourself into Ennis' sense of humor, even kind of making fun of himself and grievous head wounds, this is a good starting point.

Classic Comic of the Week: Dastardly & Muttley

Dastardly & Muttley
Writer: Garth Ennis
Artist: Mauricet
Colorist: John Kalisz
Letterer: Rob Steen
Publisher: DC Comics | Hanna-Barbera Universe
In the rogue state of Unliklistan, a cutting-edge nuclear power plant is about to go on-line--but it turns out that the ultra-rare element unstabilium is a bad choice for reactor fuel. In the ensuing explosion, exotic isotopes are loosed upon an unsuspecting world--and the results are cartoonishly catastrophic! Spread by a mysteriously unstoppable Predator drone, the farcical fallout is turning men into beasts, beasts into men and the President of the United States into a raving lunatic!
Only two men--persons--whatevers stand in the way of total global meltdown: Lieutenant Colonel Richard "Dick" Atcherly and Captain Dudley "Mutt" Muller! These fearless, feckless, 50 percent furry fighter pilots must take to the skies in their flying machines to stop the rogue Predator's radioactive cargo from destroying civilization as we collectively pretend to know it!
Collecting the entire six-issue miniseries, Dastardly & Muttley is a zany military satire like no other, mashing up Animal Farm, Dr. Strangelove and Wacky Races in the same anything-goes spirit as the smash-hit Flintstones series!
Release Date: May 5, 2018
Buy It Here: Digital / Physical

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d. emerson eddy is a student and writer of things. He fell in love with comics during Moore, Bissette, & Totleben's run on Swamp Thing and it has been a torrid affair ever since. His madness typically manifests itself on Twitter @93418.