2 out of 5

Y’know, as I continue to pick up issues of the Adventure Time ongoing, I’ve caught myself questioning my motivation.  Am I really enjoying it, or just picking it up because of Ryan North?  And now that North’s output has expanded beyond his webcomic – having read his BTTF novelization novelization and the Machine of Death books and his Shiftylook Galaga series… you can recognize the patter of his jokes and pacing as soon as he starts to cobble words together.  It’s a very ‘modern’ sense of humor – that uber-aware, faux-innocent cool talk thing that’s borne of all the NOWness of this generation, and is a big part of the style of shows I dig – Adventure Time included, and Gumball, also on Cartoon Network, and Always Sunny.  But this style can produce variations that I don’t find appealing or entertaining or funny – Jimmy Fallon, Regular Show.  And then there’s the whole middleground of amusing that knows the moves but never feels inspired of its own accord, rather just an imitator to the Throne of Flippancy.  Many, many things fall into this category, and chances are, they’re your favorite shows / books / penises.

Anyhoo, I’m glad to say that reading the AT Summer Special refreshingly shows me that I am actually enjoying the ongoing series, and that, while North’s setups can be guessed at from words away, his creativity and seemingly genuine blend of wonder/cynicism about the world is what makes him a writer to return to, for weeks upon weeks of static-paneled Dinosaur comics or for this monthly book.  His Adventure Time IS funny, and madly strange, and thus feels like a true extension of the show, which has no shortage of those qualities.  What our four writers have made for this one shot is a lame ass middleground.  You’ll laugh politely if you’re friends with these people, but then sidle away to go listen to the guy who told the joke the first time (and told it better).

Noelle Stevenson’s ‘Desert Treasure’ has appealingly loose linework and a autumn-y palette we haven’t really seen at all in North’s series, and is perhaps closest to capturing the spirit of the show and its characters, with Finn and Jake selling warm lemonade in the dessert to make some cash to pay the toll to get into a secret cave.  Shorts are tough when they’re gag based, and this suffers along those lines – to the drum roll after the punchline, bow, drop the curtain – but still, it’s an acceptable intro.  Ryan Pequin’s ‘the Sucker Seeker’ – and bear in mind I dig Pequin’s ‘Three Word Phrase’ – starts fun, with Finn discovering a pigeon hangin’ in his underwear drawer – and gets Pequin-funner, with the pigeon become a bad roommate and eating BMO’s calzones, but toootally collapses on itself at the end and maybe is why Pequin doesn’t often do stuff beyond a webcomic.  Now we’re done with the tolerable part of the book and can up the ‘girl power’ ante.  ‘Heart’ by Emily Partridge is wordless, a style I enjoy, but it’s onea’ them ‘awww’ tales and it’s not really what I wanted to use my $5 to read.  They should separate such stories into “Adventure Time Aww Special” (subtitle: the vagina issue),  It’s Marceline and Princess Bubblegum and some friendship.  Finally, let’s ruin the book with Fionna and Cake two characters I have not at all warmed to.  I think the gender-swapping concept is a cool one; I think that the gender-swapping concept as scripted by a girl (on the show) and no longer about adventures but generally boys is the worst offense of sexual stereotypes in writing that we don’t touch because it’s… written by a girl.  But it’s still a stereotype, and you’d slap us boys for writing it stereotypically the opposite way…?  There’s no win.  And this tale by Frank Gibson and Becky Dreistadt – the painted and bubbly art style appeals, but as the strip devolves into feminine nonsense (and not the obvious “we’re women and better than everybody” line, but the “I guess there isn’t a whole lot of self-respect around here…” bit.  Le sigh.), sludging through even the last few panels felt pointless and painful.  In my eyes.

Ho hum, half is okay, half is uninteresting; It’s got nothing on the main series.  Only suggested if you’re collecting any of the creators involved.