Paul Jenkins puts Eddie Edison, the professional sidekick to no fewer than four super-heroes, through the mill in the latest issue of this wacky mini-series. We see Eddie’s unique relationship with a Batman character, a character that is actually rather frightening in his absurdly proud embrace of a lifestyle that just might raise Fredric Wertham from his grave. I love how oblivious the Batman character is, how much pride he obviously feels at the hilariously bizarre life that he lives. We also see the obliviousness of the Superman character, as Eddie pulls a clever trick to make the Superman character believe that Eddie can fly, reusing a silly gag from issue #2 in a clever way.
The villain of the issue is called Doctor Scurrilous, who is collecting items for the silliest weapons this side of the old Tick cartoon. The rundown of Doctor Scurrilous’s weapons is the funniest gag in the issue.
In a way this is an odd comic because it treads a strange line between the wistful silliness of the Tick cartoon and the more risqué humor of many of the British comics writers. It’s strange to see a joke about the “Hydro-Tuxedo” next to a joke that involves threatening a bad guy with cutting off his testicles. But for me it all works, maybe because Chris Moreno’s art makes everything seem very light and silly and fun. Why be outraged, why worry about what’s going on, when the art doesn’t do anything but make the story look very silly?
This is a light, wacky mini-series that continues to be lots of fun.