Everybody’s favorite toddlers are getting renewed attention again this month. The one an only Rugrats – Tommy and Angelica Pickles, Chuckie Finster, Phil and Lil DeVille, and Susie Carmicheal – are headed to the printed page in the forthcoming graphic novel anthology, Rugrats: Bestest Comics – Book One July 24 through Boom! Studios’ children’s division, kaboom! While the collection is being dubbed “bestest,” it does not entirely live up to that title, though it is not a failure. Rather, it does offer some positives among the more concerning elements that present themselves throughout its 189 pages. The main positive in question comes in the form of its stories, which will be discussed shortly. The way in which the stories are divided up through the table of contents is actually a bit of a concern. The artwork exhibited throughout the collection also proves to be somewhat problematic, along with some of the general writing within the stories. Keeping that in mind, the noted negatives do actually cause some concern for this collection. Not all of the artwork is bad. The bonus cover gallery (IE the bonus content) is another positive that makes up at least somewhat for the shortcomings noted here. When they are considered with the stories overall, they make the collection overall hardly the “bestest” Rugrats presentation but still worth reading at least once.
Rugrats: Bestest Comics – Book One, the new forthcoming collection of Rugrats comics from kaboom! is definitely not the “bestest” presentation but is still at least worth reading once (or once in a while). That is due in large part to the stories culled for the collection. In total, four stories are presented across its 189 pages. The first story follows Tommy and his friends as they face the threat of their parents always being able to keep an eye on them. This is a good story because it was that inability to track them 24/7 throughout the original series’ 9-season run on Nickelodeon (from 1991-2004) that made for so many fun stories. Over the course of this story, the Rugrats’ parents keep track of them through modern technology (smart phones, a drone, etc.) but when Tommy figures out how to disable the cameras, chaos ensues (obviously) and Tommy and company are eventually free from their parents’ helicopter parenting. Speaking of that parenting style, that is one of the story’s jokes, how there are so many helicopter parents out there who are so overbearing. Writer Box Brown also makes a nice commentary about people’s addictions to their phones and technology that definitely resonates alongside all of the pop culture references that plenty of parents are sure to appreciate.
The collection’s story, which is in fact only one of two tales that gets a title in this collection (this will be discussed a little later along with the collection’s other negatives), follows Angelica as she tries to get the latest, hottest Cynthia doll. As always, she shows her familiar bratty nature much to the delight of readers. Meanwhile Angelica is not the only one freaking out over the new Cynthia doll. Things get even funnier when a revelation is made about the doll in question at the store where Angelica, her parents and so many others have shown up, leading to plenty of comedy. Writer Pranas T. Naujokaitis is to be commended for crafting such a familiar style Rugrats story that also gives Tommy another chance to show what makes him so beloved as he makes another toddler’s day along the way. That whole will be left for readers to discover for themselves as it all ties together in the end.
Not all of the stories that flesh out Rugrats: Bestest Comics – Book One are perfect. The third story, which does not bear a title (just like the first story), finds Grandpa Lou playing the part of the conspiracy theorist, spouting theories about lizard people running the world, the moon landing being faked, and even aliens in general. Box Brown, who write the script for the set’s first story, also wrote this story. Yes, it is clearly making fun of all the conspiracy theorists out there but there is just something about having Grandpa Lou being the one spouting off about it all that makes it all uncomfortable. Throughout the 13-year run that the original television series enjoyed on Nickelodeon, Lou was more often than not the voice of reason. So, to have him being that outlandish character is just not believable. Meanwhile it is up to Tommy’s parents, Stu and Didi to ensure neither Tommy nor his friends become conspiracy theorists, too thanks to Lou. The whole concept overall just does not come across as a classic Rugrats story and in turn, leaves it feeling out of place here.
The fourth and final story, titled “Mud Pie,” finds Angelica causing an all-out mud war when she tries to get Phil and Lil to sell “mud pies.” This is a classic style Rugrats tale that (not to give away too much) results in Angelica getting in trouble following her not so nice scheme. When this story, and two of the other three featured in this collection are collectively considered they make for a relatively stable foundation for the anthology.
That foundation is weakened somewhat by some concerns that come with how the stories are divided up in the table of contents. The two stories with titles are clearly noted but the other two stories, which lack any titles, are simply listed as “Chapter One,” etc. The result is that new audiences are left to wonder just how many stories are presented in the table of contents. What’s more, even as audiences read through the stories, they are left having to look back in each chapter to realize how two of the four tie together across certain chapters. This creates its own share of problems for the presentation.
Another concern that rises in the collection is the artwork exhibited throughout the stories. While the chapter (issue) covers are in clearly the same stylistic vibe as the animation that made the original series so great, the art within the stories is anything but. For instance, illustrator Lisa DubBois’ work in much of the collection makes Tommy look more like PBS’ much maligned character Caillou while giving much of the cells an almost too cartoony look. On the other side of things is illustrator Ilaria Catalani’s work which actually comes across as an effort to maintain the original cartoon’s look. It may seem arbitrary but having that original look or even something close to that look helps with the aesthetic. In turn it helps to make reading the stories more bearable. So, to have any artwork that changes the look of its source material so dramatically throughout the stories against the efforts to maintain the original look does make for some problem. It just leaves one wondering why there was no continuity or stability between the covers and stories from one to the next.
One more issue that arises throughout each story is the editor’s note clarifying what Tommy and company are saying when they mispronounce certain words. One of the great things about the original series was that audiences of all ages knew what the kids were saying. They did not need translation. Having the translation once or twice is funny but when it keeps happening it becomes a distraction and an annoyance, detracting even more from the overall enjoyment. When this shortcoming and the others noted here are considered collectively they make the whole a real concern for this collection of stories. It leaves one hoping that should another collection of Rugrats stories should ever come along, those behind the comic book-based series will learn from these mistakes to make something better.
Thankfully, the lesser items in Rugrats: Bestest Comics – Book One are not enough to completely doom the collection. There is at least one more positive to note. That positive is the collection’s bonus covers gallery. The covers offer even more glimpse into the artistic side of the collection. The covers designed by Jorge Monlongo point straight to the artwork from the original TV series, making for even more curiosity as to why the rest of the stories’ art did not follow that path. Even Malachi Ward’s New York Comic Con exclusive variant harkens back to that noted artwork from the TV series. Children meanwhile will appreciate the much more cartoony variant cover designed by artist Art Baltazar. It is stylistically similar to some children’s titles from DC Comics, while still reaching to maintain that familiarity. Meredith Gran’s variant is just as impressive in its stylistic approach. The only real head scratcher is the variant designed by Natacha Bustos. Did we really need an imagination of what the Rugrats gang would look like in real life? The answer is no. So again seeing so many variant covers along with the final covers reaching to visually entertain readers, it again leads one to wonder why the artwork within the stories did not make that effort, too. To that end, it makes the bonus variant covers all the more appealing and as important as the stories. All things considered the whole of Rugrats: Bestest Comics – Book One proves to be hardly the “bestest” collection of Rugrats tales, but not the absolute worst, either.
Kaboom!’s forthcoming release of Rugrats: Bestest Comics – Book One is an intriguing presentation that is certain to divide longtime fans of the timeless Nicktoon series. That is because all things considered it simply does not live up to its title. This is shown in part through it stories, which are mostly engaging and entertaining. There is at least one story in this collection that comes up short, though. This despite its effort to be funny. The way in which the stories are separated in the table of contents is misleading, too. That is because only two of the stories have titles while the other two do not and are just connected through a series of chapters. Having no titles in those stories, readers are left to have to go back to realize their connections. The artwork featured in the stories in comparison to that in the story covers adds to the concern even more. That is because of the inconsistency therein. The constant use of the editor’s note translations gets real old real fast, too, detracting from the enjoyment even more. Thankfully all of this, while problematic, does not doom the collection. The bonus variant covers collected help with the engagement and entertainment, too. That is because for the most part they do try to honor the artwork and animation from the original series, too. At the same time, that they do leads to even more wondering why they did but the art work within the stories did not for the most part. Each item examined is important in its own way to the whole of this set. All things considered they make Rugrats: Bestest Comics – Book One hardly the “bestest” collection or Rugrats comics but also not the worst.
Rugrats: Bestest Comics – Book One is scheduled to release July 24 through Kaboom!, the children’s division of Boom! Studios. More information on this and other titles from Boom! Studios is available at:
Website: https://boom-studios.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BOOMStudiosComics
Twitter: https://twitter.com/boomstudios
