“The Flintstones” #1 is unsuccessful at its attempt to tell a clever and entertaining story. The art, however, is quite gorgeous. This is one time where judging a book by its beautifully painted cover was an expectation that needed to be met.
Written by Mark Russell
Illustrated by Steve PughWelcome to Bedrock, where Paleolithic humans head to dinner for a taste of artisanal mammoth after shopping at Neandertall & Big Men’s Clothing, where Wilma shows her modern art, and where, if you take a plane, you could literally end up sitting ON the tail section. Join Fred and Barney as Mister Slate sends them on a mission to show some Neanderthals a night on the town in hopes of luring them into this new system called “working for a living.” In Slate’s Quarry, of course. Is Fred’s ship about to come in? Find out when the gang finishes out the evening at the employee hot tub party, where they learn how the one percent lives here in Bedrock, home to the world’s first civilization and the modern stone-age family—The Flintstones. Don’t miss this extra-sized debut issue!
For a book written by someone known for their humorous output, writer Mark Russell falls flat with every word in “The Flintstones” #1. It was disheartening to see the same writer who brought wit and humor to the most recent “Prez” miniseries from DC Comics write something that is the complete opposite of that story. The modern Stone Age family is given a drastic makeover with versions of Fred, Wilma, Barney, and Betty receiving a more realistic look than their cartoon counterparts. Like the 1960s animated classic, Russell attempts to explore modern ideas and concepts through the prism of an entirely different era. Those attempts at exploration through humor fail and instead elicit groans instead of guffaws.
Fred Flintstone must show his boss’s new Neanderthal hires around the town of Bedrock in this first issue. Russell, instead of using situational comedy to his advantage, succeeds in inducing boredom and falling flat with unfunny jokes. The book is a lost opportunity because Russell has such a gifted artist in Steve Pugh. What we get instead is mostly gorgeous illustrations of mediocrity. This problem is evident in many comics based on licensed works and seems to be the rule instead of the exception. “The Flintstones” could have been one of those exceptions like DC’s “Future Quest”, which is another book based on Hanna Barbera properties.
Russell is also unsuccessful at making us care about this cast of iconic characters. Like his attempts at humor, the more serious moments of character building are awkward instead of involving. Matters of war, art, capitalism, and emotional connection are expressed with a lack of inspired writing and instead feel pedestrian. The addition of the lack of genuine humor only makes these moments stand out as some of the most jarring in the book.
Pugh’s art and Chris Chuckry’s colors are nice to look at but not enough to recommend “The Flintstones” #1. Pugh is able to express the pure joy and inventiveness that is lacking in the writing. Wilma’s facial expressions are just some of the best moments in this book. Pugh is successful at doing what Russell can only attempt to do: create a character that is three-dimensional and interesting. The panel where Wilma longingly caresses the wall of a cave depicts a young girl who is bursting with imagination and who contains a deep well of compassion within her. Chuckry’s color palette is versatile throughout, with a pleasant balance of colorful and earthy.
Simply taking in Pugh’s art without reading the words is a successful undertaking throughout the issue and is evidence of his storytelling skills. He’s particularly effective with his flashback sequences. The “present day” Stone Age scenes are rendered in a slicker and simpler style while the flashbacks contain more detail and a richer emotional resonance. Like the scene of Wilma as a child, the battle flashback has a Kirby-esque Silver Age quality that has a heightened emotional state to it while also exploding with fun and wonderment.
Pugh, however, isn’t successful with every page. There are some scenes where even he can’t salvage the lack of inspiration in the writing. The scene where Fred picks up Barney with the Neanderthals in the back seat is one of the least funny scenes in the book as well as being one of the least artistically dynamic of Pugh’s pages. Pugh even appears to be bored with the scene where one of the Neanderthals pops their balloon. I couldn’t tell what was going on in the scene or what the other Neanderthal meant by his words about death. Maybe Pugh was confused too as to whether this moment was meant to be funny or profound. It was unsuccessful on both counts.
The creative team behind “The Flintstones” #1 was reason enough to hope this book would be one of the best of the week or even the month. Instead it’s one of the biggest disappointments so far this year. Hopefully the writing can improve with future issues and catch up with Pugh and Chuckry’s admirable art.
Final Verdict: 4.0 – You can yabba-dabba-doo better than this.
