Tales Designed to Thrizzle: Volume 1

   

Surreal... Absurd... Insane... Funny as Hell...

   There's really no better way to describe Michael Kupperman's 'Tales Designed to Thrizzle.' This 2005 comic skewers just about anything. But what makes it so incredible is that every joke is done with complete seriousness. From parodying buddy cop movies with stories starring the duo of Snake n' Bacon (an actual snake and a crispy piece of meat candy) as well as the unlikely pair of Albert Einstein and Mark Twain to the satire of mass media produced comics like a Bazooka Joe wrapper or those found on the back of a cereal box- nothing is sacred like Jesus' half brother, Pagus! And don't forget the Mannister, the man with the superpower to turn into a banister! Or the forbidden history of when America had a prohibition on pleasure unless it took place 5 feet above or below ground; all of which lead to the rich taking flight in sex blimps. (Don't worry, the lower classes got their kicks in underground sex holes..those dirty, dirty sex holes...)

   Man, I'm getting sucked up in the absurdity. Mostly, because this was how my brain works. In high school, I was a founding member of 2 guerrilla comedy troupes and we'd do all kinds of crazy stuff like this. Only, we either taped it or performed it during lunch... But man, those moments of surreal humor kept me sane during a very rough high school experience and it was great to blow off a little steam laughing my butt off reading this!

   My favorite part of these comics are the ads. They parody just about every odd advertisement you'd come across in an old comic book or in the personals of your local newspaper. Don't skip these! Some of them are so off-the-wall that you'll not be able to help yourself with a chuckle or two- like 'Learn How to Fall Down Stairs For Fun or Profit!'

   Great stuff that can't be beaten. Not everything is a winner but you can't lose checking out this strange but brilliant series.

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Tales Designed to Thrizzle, volume 2

In high school, I was a member/ founding member of a couple of guerilla comic troupes. We’d do off the wall stuff like skits, top 10 lists, pratfalls, pranks, and kidnap people’s lunches. The times I spent with my fellow troupe members were the highlight of my school day, unless it was a game day or time for soccer practice. The stuff we did was off-the-wall, odd, and down-right bizarre. I think that’s why I like surrealism and a book like Tales Designed to Thrizzle is about as surreal as it gets.

The book was a short lived and sporadically published Indy comic from 2008-2012. Only 8 issues were ever published and with a $5 price tag and running at about 32 pages a book, I can see why it probably got cancelled. But that doesn’t mean that this book was genius.

Michael Kupperman has a unique art-style that’s part pop art, part retro, part 50s advertisements. This guy could’ve thrived at Sterling, Cooper, and Draper. His renderings of Jack Klugman, Michael Renne, and other famous celebs from the last 50 years are photorealistic. His work is super clean and his color palette is beautiful.

But what makes his stuff so good is the slightly deranged humor. From the adventures of Mark Train and Albert Einstein to a gallery of ‘lesser known’ comic books to parodies of comic book and magazine ads, Kupperman’s stuff is brilliantly weird. In other words, I wish I had thought of it!

There’s at least one more volume out there and I think my library carries it. I hope to get my hands on it soon, because I am hooked on the work of Michael Kupperman and I must get my next fix. If you like humor, absurdity, or parody OR just want to get your hands on some edgy independent comics, I highly recommend Tales Designed to Thrizzle.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.