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causticbryn's review
3.0
I found the first two or three issues to be the perfect blend of weirdness and absurdist humor, with lovingly rendered artwork. The last issue was just as pretty but the dadaist humor seemed forced and unfunny.
tin_squid's review
Sort of a less funny Perry Bible Fellowship. Only not.
If I was really high I think I would have loved it. Just on a general day-to-day basis though, I couldn't really get into it. I'll probably give it another go before I take it back to the library, but I'm not holding out a lot of hope.
If I was really high I think I would have loved it. Just on a general day-to-day basis though, I couldn't really get into it. I'll probably give it another go before I take it back to the library, but I'm not holding out a lot of hope.
jonh's review
5.0
This is a reread for me, and no matter how many times I blaze through it, Tales Designed to Thrizzle always delights and surprises.
Resembling a pulpy comic book from the 195os--up to and including the ads on the back page--Kupperman sends up pop culture touchstones from every decade, through his own unique brand of absurdist humor.
When I was but a wee lad, I understood "absurd" as "random": not strictly speaking, but most examples of absurdist humor I could grasp amounted to random, unconnected elements entering a narrative to catch the reader (me) off guard. And I built my own sense of humor around that understanding. But as I've gotten older, I've realized that absurdist humor is at its funniest when the absurdity is not just a reference but follows through. To put it another way, that which is seemingly illogical is best served by a strong internal logic.
Kupperman has that absurdist internal logic in spades. He doesn't just reference: he crafts a whole world around seemingly incongruous elements. Parallel dimensions spring up within the pages of Thrizzle, to where Albert Einstein, Mark Twain, a snake or a slice of bacon could solve crimes.
And Thrizzle, I might add, is drawn incredibly well. Kupperman captures the "stiffness" of 1950s comic characters, and that combined with didactic, explicit dialogue makes for a very self-referential, wry contrast with some of the more absurd elements.
In short, Tales Designed to Thrizzle is a whole heap of fun. Some of the stories feel a little long, but there's such a wonderful variety of content in here, and the format encourages you to skip around, that no one piece is ever a drag.
Check it out!
Resembling a pulpy comic book from the 195os--up to and including the ads on the back page--Kupperman sends up pop culture touchstones from every decade, through his own unique brand of absurdist humor.
When I was but a wee lad, I understood "absurd" as "random": not strictly speaking, but most examples of absurdist humor I could grasp amounted to random, unconnected elements entering a narrative to catch the reader (me) off guard. And I built my own sense of humor around that understanding. But as I've gotten older, I've realized that absurdist humor is at its funniest when the absurdity is not just a reference but follows through. To put it another way, that which is seemingly illogical is best served by a strong internal logic.
Kupperman has that absurdist internal logic in spades. He doesn't just reference: he crafts a whole world around seemingly incongruous elements. Parallel dimensions spring up within the pages of Thrizzle, to where Albert Einstein, Mark Twain, a snake or a slice of bacon could solve crimes.
And Thrizzle, I might add, is drawn incredibly well. Kupperman captures the "stiffness" of 1950s comic characters, and that combined with didactic, explicit dialogue makes for a very self-referential, wry contrast with some of the more absurd elements.
In short, Tales Designed to Thrizzle is a whole heap of fun. Some of the stories feel a little long, but there's such a wonderful variety of content in here, and the format encourages you to skip around, that no one piece is ever a drag.
Check it out!
brucefarrar's review
2.0
This is a very silly volume. The artwork was deliberately incongruous, mildly entertaining, and occasionally funny. The best jokes were in the text such as the book review of an imaginary history of food, which claims that capers “are created by force-feeding arugula to cats and then waiting three hours” or the ads for “Dr. Learning Series of Booklets” offering such titles as: “WHAT GOES ON INSIDE YOUR EAR? Wouldn’t you like to know? The truth will amaze you.” or “TELLING BABOONS. They won’t listen. But you’ll know how to tell them.” or “MAKE MONEY WRITING. Ransom letters, stick-up notes, etc.” However, for my money, the laugh-out-loud jokes are too few and far between.
pelks's review
2.0
This book suffers in comparison to Volume Two- maybe I would have given it a higher rating if I didn't love Volume Two so darn much.
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