Rick and Morty Vs. Dungeons & Dragons

Take someone whose never watched a single episode of Rick and Morty, nor have they ever played D&D, and have them read this book? Well, that's me. But thanks to the personal recommendation of Oni Press editor, Sarah Gaydos, I gave this book a try and I loved it!

At last year's Bull City Comic Com, I interviewed Gaydos as she was the driving force behind the epic Star Trek Vs. Transformers crossover when she worked at IDW. I asked her for any sneak previews of her new projects over at Oni and she told me that I must read this crossover even if I had never played Dungeons and Dragons or ever seen an episode of the Adult Swim hit series.

So I took up Sarah Gaydos challenge when I found this book where else but at my local library! And I loved it!

All of Morty's friends at school are enjoying role-playing games. Not wanting to be left out, Morty goes to his local gaming shop to find out what the fuss is all about. At the store, Morty flirts with a girl gamer who invites him to play D&D one night after the store closes.

Not knowing how to play the game, Morty reluctantly goes to Rick for assistance. Turns out, Rick Sanchez is a total gamer! So, Rick and his older buds try to teach Morty the basics of the game. Only Morty keeps dying! 

Running out of patience and character sheets, Morty insists that Rick create a world in which the rules of Dungeons and Dragons exist for reals in order to truly experience the game in a LARPing sort of way. With Morty's mom and siter eager for adventure and Morty's dad secretly being a master gamer himself, it seems that the Smith family might finally found a way to bond as the perfect family!

I have no real way of knowing if this comic book was anywhere really like the show as I've never seen Rick and Morty. But I know a bit about D&D from reading articles and having discussions with friends who do pole play. (Those certain episodes from The Big Bang Theory helped with my a priori knowledge of the game as well.) But what I can say is that this miniseries was a very funny and a fun read. 

I liked that all versions of D&D are explored including the CBS Saturday morning cartoon and Forgotten Realms. Well, almost all. Why is the Fourth Edition considered unspeakable garbage? I'm interested to learn if that's just an inside jokes or if that edition of Dungeons and Dragons is really that awful. Since Jim Zub is a big name D&D comics writer, I might just have to PM him on Twitter and ask....

The artwork by Troy Little was a great. It was a very good mix of Rick and Morty cartoon meets realistically gritty Dungeons and Dragons art. Now in the comics, all of the orcs, dragons and villains are drawn in the style of the Adult Swim series. But a lot of those amazing covers done by Little and friends have Rick and his grandson illustrated in an epically 'advanced' way!

The only thing I could have done without were the character sheets of the Smith and Sanchez clan. Since I don't play D&D, I didn't understand them. I didn't know if they were meant to be real or done as a joke. If it was the former, I missed out on the punchline.

Rick and Morty Vs. Dungeons and Dragons was a great read for anyone. As long as you are a geek that loves hanging out with friends at their favorite LCS or playing board games and such, you'll enjoy this book. You don't have to be a fan (or even all that acquainted) with either franchise. But it sure won't hurt if you are!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

   In my life there have been 2 books that no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't finish them. For summer reading in high school, I had to read Wuthering Heights. I tried twice, getting stuck and crapping out at exactly page 51! The other book was Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

   In 1998, Johnny Depp starred in a version of the film. I was a big Depp buff at the time and I really wanted to see it. But a friend recommended that I read the book first. So, I checked it out at the library- I never could get past the first chapter. Never really did see the picture either.

    Then a few days ago, I came across the graphic novel adaptation of the book. Having completely said 'The heck with Bronte', I decided not to let 2 books hold me back and I checked it out. 

    A large majority of Thompson's own words are used in this book. Each page of Thompson's attempt to find the American dream in Las Vegas of all places, contains large excerpts of the original text which before being published as Fear and Loathing was a 2-part article that ran in Rolling Stone in 1971. 

    The premise of the book has Thompson, under the name of Raoul Duke and his attorney, a Dr. Gonzo, renting a red convertible behemoth and driving to Sin City. In their trunk is a literal pharmacy of legal, illegal, and unimaginable things to get them high. Duke is supposed to be heading to Las Vegas to cover an off-road race for a sports publication. He then is asked to stay longer to cover a naroctics officer's conference. All-the-while, Duke and Gonzo claim to be searching for the American Dream.

    Honestly, I think the whole thing was an excuse to go gambling and get high as a freaking kite in the Seediest City in the World under someone else's dime. The first half of this book is literally unreadable. All Duke and Gonzo do are get high, become extremely paranoid and try to kill one another! However, this could all or partially be made up as Hunter S. Thompson's Gonzo Journalism style combined both fact and fiction; sometimes considering hallucination and anecdote as gospel truth.

    The second half of this graphic novel adaptation was actually pretty good. Duke has to cover a convention of drug enforcement officers and he and his lawyer often prank the unwitting lawmen, acting as DEA agents from L.A., with horror tales of animal sacrifice and perversion overtaking the City of Angels' drug scene. I preferred this section's madcap to the latter part's madness.
     This version of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas adapted and illustrated by Angora Napkin's Troy Little is probably the closet I will ever come to reading (and completing) Thompson's actual tome. But that's okay- this was some intense reading regardless and I feel like I conquered the book. I did happen to enjoy the cartoonish art and unique editing styles of Troy Little's. It fit in nicely with the source material and it's possibility of not being 100% the truth. 

   Not as bad as I thought but I really can't see why it's such a landmark book of the American experience either.  
   
   Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.