Comics 100-Page Super Spectacular Review: DC Reprints 'Superman & Bugs Bunny' For A New Generation



Back in the Silver Age, DC Comics had a title called DC Comics 100-Page Super Spectacular that featured reprints of select comics, typically those related to special events that were going on. The issues had a diverse array of handpicked titles, ranging from the contemporary adventures in Young Love to the more standard Superman and Flash tales, with a splash of Batman thrown in for flavor. The nineteenth edition even had a selection of Tarzan newspaper strips. This week, the colorful characters in the Looney Tunes join in as DC reprints Superman & Bugs Bunny to promote the upcoming crossover specials.

To start off, I have read this miniseries before, many times. It holds particular nostalgic value for me because I first discovered it at my very first trip to a local comic shop. In my return visits to Argo's Books, I discovered the joy of reading comics and vintage books. The visits were brief, but I happen to go to a college that is a short walk away from the store. Getting the opportunity to officially review the special is a joy, and I'm delighted to share my thoughts with you.

The story starts off with a fitting pair of villains, Mr. Mxyzptlk and Yoyo the Dodo. In case you haven't heard of Yoyo, there's no need to fear. The Dodo himself describes his backstory, even including a recreated scene from his debut cartoon, Porky In Wackyland. Mr. Mxyzptlk and the Dodo soon bond over their shared love of the art of annoying people and conspire to help each other out. You see, DC's premiere imp (Sorry, Bat-Mite) is tired of superheroes and wants to go to a world where he doesn't have to deal with them, especially Superman. As for the Dodo, he wants to annoy people again. Society has gotten too weird for him in the Looneyverse. The Dodo agrees to send Mr. Mxyz to the world of the Looney Tunes.

You fool, don't look a gift rooster in the mouth! Wait...
The sequence that follows is utterly brilliant. Along with showing Mister M tangling with some of the weirdest characters that the universe has to offer, it's also something of a character study into how his mind works. For once, he's on the receiving end of some slapstick, and has a bit of a temper tantrum, unable to handle it. For all his talk of loving to annoy Superman and cause a bit of mischief, he can't even handle a pie to the face or an anvil to the head. At one point, he even says that this must be how Superman feels when he travels out of the fourth dimension. He's so petty that he can't even handle someone turning the tables on him.

This dovetails into the actual crossover, when Mr. Mxyzptlk decides to transport the Looney Tunes into the DC world, causing mass hysteria and talking cats and talking dogs living together. Or, more accurately, hurling cartoon sticks of TNT at each other. Once again, Mark Evanier, the author, takes this opportunity to create the best character combinations that are possible, used to maximum pun-filled effect. Take, for instance, Batman hunting Cobblepot and coming across a certain Playboy Penguin or the Flash having two separate encounters with Speedy Gonzalez and Road Runner.

It only gets weirder as Mxyzptlk and Yoyo start betraying each other, swapping characters into even more dimensions and combining various characteristics. This part does get slightly confusing if you don't know that Kyle Rayner was the Green Lantern or that Connor Hawke briefly took the mantle of Green Arrow at the time of the book's publishing. I wasn't confused when I first read it, but, then again, I had no idea that multiple people inherited the same title. On a similar note, some of the pop cultures make it clear that the comic is a product of the very early 2000s, but it doesn't hurt the book too badly.
Words can't describe how much I wish that we could have actually seen that happen.
Also, the running joke of Connor Hawke attempting to show people Michigan J. Frog's singing ability does wear slightly thin. It's still funny, but it does get a bit tiresome. It doesn't really adhere to comedy's rule of threes, instead sticking to the unknown 'rule of sixes.' Interestingly, now that I'm older, I actually recognized an alcohol joke in one of the sequences. Green Arrow first accuses and then gets accused of being drunk by a random person on the street. Still, seeing Batman gain the personality of Daffy Duck definitely makes up for it.

"They're called m-m-m-male rompers or something, I dunno!"
The best part of the story, by far, comes in when the Looney Tunes characters and the DC superheroes actually team up to stop the Toyman and get everything back to normal. The sheer absurdity of seeing the Looney Tunes fight crime alongside iconic heroes is something so wonderfully, dare I say it, loony and amazing. I definitely recommend reading the special or the miniseries, if you can get your hands on it. It's a joy to read and behold.

DC Comics 100-Page Super Spectacular (otherwise known as Superman & Bugs Bunny) is written by Mark Evanier, layed out by Joe Staton, finished by Tom Palmer and Mark DeCarlo, lettered by Phil Felix, and colored by Trish Mulvihill. You can find it at your local comic book shop.

Zachary Krishef is an evil genius. Do not question his knowledge of Saturday Night Live trivia or Harry Potter books.