3 crampons out of 5

(covering Ambush Bug, Son of Ambush Bug, and Ambush Bug Year Zero)

Ambush Bug.  What to say.

Ambush bug is a mess.  There’s no doubt about it.  It is at times incomprehensible – both in dialogue and art – and yeah, moreso when things started out than by the time we get to Year Zero, but it’s still incomprehensible, despite the pencils and paneling getting cleaned up, the over-abundant sound-effects and slapdash pacing make piecing together who’s talking to who and why the ultimate Burroughs cut-up experiment.  Purposeful?  I have no idea.  It seems like Giffen and penciller Fleming are going for punny humor, so I don’t think it’s purposefully this confusing, but then, whatever, issue one created on acid, who knows, and it for some reason resonated with fans so now we’re stuck with A-Bug never making sense?

I admit that I, too, am compelled to read these things, even though they’re sort of a pain to navigate, and I want to collect the rest of the series, even though any concept of plot is lost and gone forever… like, seriously, it doesn’t matter at. all. what issue you read or in what order, because the Bug is like Deadpool but completely removed from any narrative limitations.  If Deadpool can break the fourth wall, Ambush Bug can write the comic.  Ambush Bug can exist “because he was made up,” and can port to another panel in the book and have cameos of long dead heroes and yet, somehow, be part of some incredibly disturbed official DC narrative.  Perhaps that’s the appeal?  That Ambush Bug is included in the festivities even though for all intents and purposes there’s no way to actually make sense of his role?  He’s not a forgotten character from Infinite Crisis or something, he remembers it all, he remembers nothing, he probably “remembers” Marvel characters.  And the reverence for the character – love him or fucking hate him – is impressive.  Since his appearance in the 80s, he’s had these little guest spots in various titles, an in-joke – yeah, I guess generally perpetrated by one of those guys involved in Ambush’s beginning, but not always.

You thought this review was going to be about the comics?

If you’re going to track down any series, I’d start at the end and work to the start.  Year Zero is semi-readable, and has all the hallmark Ambush Bug elements of nonsense.  Things actually get more random and more poorly written and more poorly drawn as you go back to his roots.  I have memories of mish-mashy patterns of lines and colors that are supposed to be a 22-page Ambush Bug comic.  I kept it because I thought A.Bug was funny and he had a doll named Cheeks that he threw at people at that was funny too.  It’s still funny.  I still have no idea what the shit it’s about, and it still looks like a mess.