Reviews

The Flintstones, Vol. 1 by Mark Russell, Steve Pugh

emilymalonzo's review against another edition

4.0

I really enjoyed this comic! I felt like the connections to modern times were a little too obvious but they were fun. My favorite part was the comic about war and how Bamm-Bamm was born.

dantastic's review against another edition

5.0

I'm not normally a Flintstones fan but I loved Mark Russell's writing on The Wonder Twins so I grabbed this.

The Flintstones, much like the Jetsons, has always been a satire of modern life but Yabba Dabba Doo this is some dark stuff!

Mark Russell and Steve Pugh take on such topics as religion, consumerism, bullying, spring break, elections, war, slavery, genocide, and marriage, focused through the lens of America's favorite modern stone age family. Dark, cynical absurdity abounds as Fred, Barney, and their families try to navigate through life.

For a comic based on a cartoon that's best days were forty or fifty years ago, this has a very timeless feel, probably because the issues Mark Russell explores are very human ones. Steve Pugh's art style does a great job setting the tone of the book, not as cartoony as Hanna-Barbera but not quite as realistic as a lot of modern comics. The star of the show is Mark Russell's biting wit, though.

I'm not saying that The Flintstones is DEFINITELY one of the top five comics of the last ten years, just that it PROBABLY is. Five out of five stars.

quequel's review against another edition

4.0

Nostalgia com muita reflexão.
Eu só esperava me divertir, ter um momento nostálgico, mas acabei ganhando tudo isso e uma boa dose de tapa na cara.

val_z's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder

Spoilers ahead. Truth be told, I’ve never been a die-hard fan of The Flintstones. Probably because I’m a millennial and by the time I was a kid in the 90’s The Flintstones was already a sitcom of the past. Also, by that time The Simpsons was a hit with adults and kids alike. Honestly, I was just beguiled by Fox kids. To me The Flintstones is nothing but the honeymooners in the prehistoric era. And they just have the unique gimmick of co-existing with dinosaurs. This comic is a nice modern day update on The Flintstones. There’s nothing revolutionary about the comic but it still works well satire. Mark Russell seems to be using this comic as an outlet to vent about all the things about modern day society he dislikes. He lampoons organized religion, cable news, politics, consumerism, and the Vietnam War. This whole comic is about existentialism. I think Russell seems to being saying treasure the little things you have in life, since life is fleeting. But that’s just my interpretation. Oh and if you’re one of those people that uses the inane term woke about everything in media this is not the comic for you. So you’ve been warned. Anyway, let me go on with the rest of the review. The comic has beautiful artwork and does a great job of world-building. I love the small touches about the universe that it makes that make the world feel somewhat grounded. Like the fact that Fred uses a goat for his lawnmower, or that he uses an octopus to wash dishes. And this is one of those comics where you have to suspend your disbelief. Honestly, the comic didn’t pick up for me until the aliens showed up. The aliens end up being petulant teenagers who have no compunction about killing humans. Inevitably the humans do win the war, and it ends with the great Gazoo as the game warden, that will help humanity fight against another impending invasion. That was an especially nice touch. Some things are little too cute for my liking, like the clear Carl Sagan proxy. His character is just a confidant for Pebbles and Bam-bam. But this is a satire, so I should give it some grace. Anyway I digress, I did enjoy Fred’s Vietnam flashback, and it was interesting to read for the most part. The tree people Barney and him were fighting are clearly meant to be a stand in for the Vietcong. But it does end with Barney adopting Bam-Bam, so that was nice touch. There are other side characters that are interesting. There’s Fred’s bowling ball that’s an armadillo that talks about his existential crisis with the elephant that does the housekeeping. I thought that was interesting conceptually. This comic is basically a series of vignettes and some stories work better than others, but it always kept me engaged. Definitely buy it on Thrift-books if you’re interested, but don’t go in expecting anything amazing. Nuff said.

golden_lily's review against another edition

4.0

Things DC did:

That

kvltprincess's review against another edition

5.0

Great social commentary without being too heavy. Absolutely hilarious.

kmorningstar13's review against another edition

funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

helpfulsnowman's review against another edition

3.0

You ever had a depressed vacuum?

chitownbookworm's review against another edition

funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

abbymars's review against another edition

5.0

Never would have read this if I didn't hear the 2 strong recommendations on slate podcasts. For a prehistoric book - it is certainly timely. Even as a non - comic reader - I loved it.