#33 Dr. Horrible and Other Horrible Stories by Zack Whedon
In 2008, I fell in love with "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog," an Emmy winning musical webseries about wannabe supervillain named Dr.
Horrible. Unfortunately, it was a very short series. Fortunately, Dark Horse has published, Dr. Horrible and Other Horrible Stories, a collection of Dr. Horrible-themed short comics that have appeared previously in print, or online. Written by one of the writers of Dr Horrible (Zack Whedon), Dr. Horrible and Other Horrible Stories succeeds by perfectly capturing the humor of the webseries. Perhaps it's because we're already used to consuming the stories in small bites (the show had 15 minute episodes), but I found that the short comic format suited the Dr. Horrible Universe quite well. I also liked the fact that all of the stories (save one) were connected by a single event. I only wish that we had been given more stories. For reviews of each comic, check under the cut.
The first comic, “Captain Hammer: Be Like Me” is Captain Hammer's personal manifesto. My favorite part of this story is just how well Zack Whedon managed to capture Captain Hammer's voice and attitude. The artwork here by Eric Canete is more cartoon-y, and obviously not meant to capture the real-life actors, but I found that I didn't mind at all. In fact, I found it to be a lot of fun. This was one of my favorite stories in the collection. 5 stars
“Moist: Humidity Rising” is the origin story of Moist, whose super ability comes from the fact that he's constantly damp. I like how the comic pokes fun at science accident-themed origin stories by giving us one that's completely ridiculous (super-power humidifier?). I found that I didn't like the artwork (by Farel Dalrymple) for this story quite as much as the other ones, but it was still pretty solid. 4 stars
While the first couple of stories in the collection embrace the humorous tone of Dr Horrible, it's also true that the series had it's fair share of more serious moments. “Penny: Keep Your Head Up” recognizes this by giving us a story that's not all fun and games. I came out of the comic feeling incredibly sorry for Penny, a well meaning young woman that gives so much of herself to others that she often ends up alone, and with nothing. I also really enjoyed the artwork of this comic (done by Jim Rugg), which reminded me of the Archie comics. 4.5 stars
During the webseries, a big deal was made over The Evil League of Evil, but we only got a brief glimpse of the members at the end. The short comic, “The Evil League of Evil” shows us a lot more. Although the story feels a little overstuffed, I loved getting to know the members, and the fact that they're just as ridiculous as I hoped they would be. As a nice bonus, we get to finally see Johnny Snow (who's mentioned in the series, but never seen). I found him to be very similar to Dr Horrible, just on the other side of the law. Although Scott Hepburn's artwork wasn't my favorite out of this collection, I felt he did a pretty good job. 4 stars.
The final comic in the collection is a reprint of the one short “Dr Horrible.” This is Billy's/Dr. Horrible's origin story. I really enjoyed the artwork done by Joelle Jones, as I thought it did a great job of capturing the spirit of the actors without going for a photo realistic look. The story also does a good job at reexamining the old “evil scientist vrs. strong/muscular hero” cliche. “Dr. Horrible” does a great job of capturing humor of the webseries while providing some more action-packed scenes that the series couldn't deliver due to budget restrictions. “Dr. Horrible” is also a great place to end the collection, as it leads into the webseries very well. 5 stars.
Dr. Horrible and Other Horrible Stories is a great collection for those who are fans of Dr. Horrible. It's also a nice selection for those who may be curious about the series but have not seen it yet, as it requires no previous knowledge of the webseries to enjoy it.
Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 78 pages
Source: Lewiston Public Library
Similar Books: The Guild by Felicia Day
Other books I've read by this author: A Shepard's Tale
Next I will be reviewing The War at Ellsmere by Faith Erin Hicks and Black Magic Sanction by Kim Harrison.
Horrible. Unfortunately, it was a very short series. Fortunately, Dark Horse has published, Dr. Horrible and Other Horrible Stories, a collection of Dr. Horrible-themed short comics that have appeared previously in print, or online. Written by one of the writers of Dr Horrible (Zack Whedon), Dr. Horrible and Other Horrible Stories succeeds by perfectly capturing the humor of the webseries. Perhaps it's because we're already used to consuming the stories in small bites (the show had 15 minute episodes), but I found that the short comic format suited the Dr. Horrible Universe quite well. I also liked the fact that all of the stories (save one) were connected by a single event. I only wish that we had been given more stories. For reviews of each comic, check under the cut.The first comic, “Captain Hammer: Be Like Me” is Captain Hammer's personal manifesto. My favorite part of this story is just how well Zack Whedon managed to capture Captain Hammer's voice and attitude. The artwork here by Eric Canete is more cartoon-y, and obviously not meant to capture the real-life actors, but I found that I didn't mind at all. In fact, I found it to be a lot of fun. This was one of my favorite stories in the collection. 5 stars
“Moist: Humidity Rising” is the origin story of Moist, whose super ability comes from the fact that he's constantly damp. I like how the comic pokes fun at science accident-themed origin stories by giving us one that's completely ridiculous (super-power humidifier?). I found that I didn't like the artwork (by Farel Dalrymple) for this story quite as much as the other ones, but it was still pretty solid. 4 stars
While the first couple of stories in the collection embrace the humorous tone of Dr Horrible, it's also true that the series had it's fair share of more serious moments. “Penny: Keep Your Head Up” recognizes this by giving us a story that's not all fun and games. I came out of the comic feeling incredibly sorry for Penny, a well meaning young woman that gives so much of herself to others that she often ends up alone, and with nothing. I also really enjoyed the artwork of this comic (done by Jim Rugg), which reminded me of the Archie comics. 4.5 stars
During the webseries, a big deal was made over The Evil League of Evil, but we only got a brief glimpse of the members at the end. The short comic, “The Evil League of Evil” shows us a lot more. Although the story feels a little overstuffed, I loved getting to know the members, and the fact that they're just as ridiculous as I hoped they would be. As a nice bonus, we get to finally see Johnny Snow (who's mentioned in the series, but never seen). I found him to be very similar to Dr Horrible, just on the other side of the law. Although Scott Hepburn's artwork wasn't my favorite out of this collection, I felt he did a pretty good job. 4 stars.
The final comic in the collection is a reprint of the one short “Dr Horrible.” This is Billy's/Dr. Horrible's origin story. I really enjoyed the artwork done by Joelle Jones, as I thought it did a great job of capturing the spirit of the actors without going for a photo realistic look. The story also does a good job at reexamining the old “evil scientist vrs. strong/muscular hero” cliche. “Dr. Horrible” does a great job of capturing humor of the webseries while providing some more action-packed scenes that the series couldn't deliver due to budget restrictions. “Dr. Horrible” is also a great place to end the collection, as it leads into the webseries very well. 5 stars.
Dr. Horrible and Other Horrible Stories is a great collection for those who are fans of Dr. Horrible. It's also a nice selection for those who may be curious about the series but have not seen it yet, as it requires no previous knowledge of the webseries to enjoy it.
Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 78 pages
Source: Lewiston Public Library
Similar Books: The Guild by Felicia Day
Other books I've read by this author: A Shepard's Tale
Next I will be reviewing The War at Ellsmere by Faith Erin Hicks and Black Magic Sanction by Kim Harrison.
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temporaryworlds , and goodreads
bookish , temporaryworlds , and goodreads