Steven #2

The Plot: Well, it's a nautical tale, but it's so lunatic in nature as to be virtually indescribable. It's also an all-out riot.

I didn't see the first issue of Steven Comix, but there's not a whole lot you need to know to get a kick out of this collection of strips. Steven appears to be a beer-swigging, hat-wearing kid (?) who sorta hates everybody and everything, save for how they might relate to him getting his next drink.

No, this is not a comic for kids, although it has a childish (or childlike) appeal all its own. It's drawn in a style somewhat reminiscent of Harvey Kurtzman, and the sheer lunacy of the narrative recalls some of the master's better work as well. There are two Sunday-style strips per page, some of which focus on other characters, such as Dumpy ("created" by "Pants"), but all of the strips contribute to the overall (wacky) narrative.

Somewhere around the middle of the tale, the characters (aware they're in a comic strip) warn Steven that "something went wrong with the comic and they moved us from the city to the seashore," at which point the nautical hijinks begin in earnest.

Steven and his companions (including a trio of sentient cacti) thereupon deal with their change of environment, encountering such problems as "Ole Portly," a ravenous Killer Whale, a tidal wave and a desert island ("how Gilligan!").

As I said, Steven is not for kids (although the cover, with it's giant whale and Popeye-like shot of "Dumpy" had my 6-year old daughter outraged that I wouldn't share), but it'll make you giggle like one. Steven at Sea is more fun than a barrel of (Sea-) Monkeys.

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