Mirsky, Robb – Ha! Magazine Summer 2024

July 16, 2024

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Ha! Magazine Summer 2024

Public service announcement: Robb has released a collected edition of his Sludgy comics, which is required reading for anybody who likes laughter and/or pathos. Or just great comics. But hey, howsa about this comic here? It’s another collection of gags and funnies, with maybe a lesson or two to be learned if you’re not careful! Or not; any morality learned from these strips is strictly up to you. Stories in this one include a very practical deal with the devil, Dripsy Mutt and his sad efforts to make people laugh, good ol’ Chucky and his unlucky (then lucky, then unlucky again) attempt at dating, a few ads against smoking that would be more effective than whatever else is currently running, those lovable scamps DIngus and Dum-Dum and their lengthy journey to try and make chicken soup, the struggles and horror of Toddler Body, and John Kinkade and his journey to bring the residents of a small village… freedom maybe? There’s also a full color bit in the middle with our friends from the Lemonade Brigade trying to shake down a lemonade stand and their attempt to start a band. Please understand, as always, these are my fairly dry descriptions of strips that are filled with laughs, and it is forever a hopeless task for a reviewer to try to convey humor through description and/or light critical suggestions. As for that end of things, about all I have on that front is a few spelling errors, but I’m guessing they’re the kind of things that only stand out to real pedants, like me. If you’re also like that, see if you can spot them! If not, take in the funny and enjoy why don’t you? Oh, he also says that supplies are limited for that Sludgy book, and since this particular issue is already sold out on his website (don’t worry, I linked to a source that still has copies), I’d be inclined to believe him on the limited copies. $10


Mirsky, Robb – Ha! Magazine

November 22, 2023

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Ha! Magazine

It’s time for another gaggle of comics from America’s favorite funny man, Robb Mirsky! OK fine, maybe not all of America, but give them time. This is a collection of shorties that mostly appeared in various other anthologies, but even if you’ve bought every comic put out over the last several years, at least a few of these appear to be new. And even if you did, why not get them in one handy package? This is the part of the review where I attempt to talk about funny things without sucking all the joy out of them, which has had mixed results in the past. So if you’re looking for something short: if you already like his work, or if you just need a laugh, absolutely give this one a shot. For you folks who like to know exactly what you’re getting, stories in here include a lesson on trash, a relentlessly cheery man out for a walk, an action hero pushed out of an airplane (that was maybe the funniest thing in here for several reasons), a few four panel strips with the lovable duo of Dingus and Dum-Dum, a pretty great Halloween story that I maybe shouldn’t have ruined by using the punchline as the sample image, and a few other bits that I’m leaving for you. There’s also a story where Robb is visited by his younger punk self as he’s driving his kids to school, berating older Robb for changing and selling out. It’s a fantastic piece for any former punk (or punk-adjacent) person, and he did a solid job of defending his life choices to his punkier self. I mention this one in detail mostly because he ended up pulling out a punk album that he hadn’t heard in years by NOFX, which in my punky days was considered to be a sellout band because (reasons long forgotten, if they were ever real). Which wasn’t the punchline he was intending, I reckon, but a hilarious illustration to me of the hopeless endeavor of remaining a “pure punk” with constantly changing rules. Kids, I’m old enough to have watched friends have to deal with Green Day going from small punk band to megastars and the turmoil they went through. The struggle is real! And silly. $10