Dastardly & Muttley #3

Written by: Garth Ennis
Art by: Mauricet
Colours by: John Kalisz
Published by: DC Comics

Dastardly & Muttley has fast become one of my favorite mini-series to read when I need a good chuckle and this issue delivers those, once again, in spades. What Ennis and Mauricet have crafted here is nothing short of amazing, fresh, and all out looney.

We start this issue with the fallout of the previous issue's final-pages: the president of the United States, confronted by his staff, coming to the realization that when you hit someone over the head with a mallet, cartoonish as it may be, it has some pretty real repercussions. The breakdown of the scene is well done too: the president’s chief of staff grilling the president as he tries to understand why any earthly human being would do something like that, on national TV, in front of a bunch of witnesses. Oh, and this gets interrupted by a straight out the cartoons chase scene between a coyote and a road-runner.

From there, the action moves back to our heroes Mutt and Atcherly trying to evade German forces as they hatch a plan to make their way back to the United States. This is, as would probably be the case in real, easier said than done. However, Atcherly starts to accept the weirdness that has been surrounding the pair and pulls off one of the funnest escapes I’ve ever read. However, our heroes are now going to have to face some new foes in the form of two of their former colleagues who have been tasked to take them in.  

On art, Mauricet continues to shine as he brings these characters and environment to life. Since we are essentially dealing with cartoons come to life, the art has to be reflective of this and Mauricet never ceases to entertain. The incredible hijinx that he is tasked with drawing simply elevates the story and keeps bringing a smile to my face.