5 out of 5

This is a flip-book – Bongo (Simpsons) one side, Spongebob the other.  Let’s go Bongo first, as that’s what I read first.

I’m not a big fan of The Simpsons comics, because they sort of sit in that stagnant pool of yuks that classic Archie comics occupy: pure distraction, but not much else.  You could say the same about Spongebob, as it’s ostensibly a gag book as well, but I find that S.Bob encourages a lot more insanity than most tonally-similar books; it can go off the rails in a way other titles don’t.  That being said, taken in small doses, The Simpsons books are still entertaining, maintaining the series’ irreverent humor but with a tad more focus than the current show’s ADD style, which is for the best.  And the short featured here – ‘Tales from the Springfield Bear Patrol’ – by Brian Houlihan (words), James Lloyd (art), Andrew Pepoy (inks), Nathan Hamill (colors) and Karen Bates (letters) was really spot-on fun, totally silly but to the point, and with a good punchline.  Is the Bear Patrol an ongoing Simpsons comic gag?  I couldn’t tell ya’.  But for this FCBD funnybook, it’s Homer, Lenny, Carl, and Barney, who of course are in a group that, like, saves people from bears, tasked with solving a mystery involving a rampaging bear on the ‘Celebrities Dancing With Bears’ TV show.  It’s as silly hilarious as it sounds, with good joke pacing / visual timing, and really delightfully bold inks and colors.  The Simpsons side of the book also features a Sergio Aragones autobiographical short which is charming.

S.Bob and Squidward star in “Squidward and the Golden Clarinet,” in which ‘Bob forefully regales Squid with Mermaid-Man tales, getting Squidward hooked, much to his own chagrin.  Foibles ensue courtesy of the reliably funny Derek Drymon, with Gregg Schigiel and Ramona Fradon flipping between the classic Spongebob art style and the old-school Mermaid-Man look.  Mark Martin adds some really varied and deep colors, especially noticeable on the backgrounds.  A short from Kochalka appears, and he actually managed to make me laugh out loud.

We like free.