Bart Simpson: Out to Lunch TPPublisher: Harper Design
Release Date: April 2012
Price: $15.99
Creator(s): Various
Format: 128 pgs.; Full-Color; Trade Paperback
ISBN: 978-0-0621-1533-1
Age Rating: All-Ages
ICv2 Rating: 1 Stars out of 5
The Simpsons remains a favorite part of American television, even after over 20 years, 23 seasons, and more than 500 episodes. Unfortunately, this comic compilation has none of the twisted humor that fans have come to expect from the series. Each comic in here is only ten pages or less, which doesn’t give the multiple creators enough time to explore a plot in depth. The result is a series of stories that are overly drawn out gags, stretched to the point where all humor is leached from them.
All the regular Simpsons characters are here and the expectation is that readers will know who they are, but fans will likely be disappointed by the mean edge to many of the stories. Libraries collecting Simpsons comics may want to alert parents to be aware of this one, as the comic "Bart Space" touches on cyberbullying in a bland, but still possibly painful, way. The art renders the yellow Simpsons characters in familiar style. However, competent art cannot make up for lackluster storytelling. By the time the second story about bad cafeteria food comes around, all but the most dedicated readers will have left in search of better fare. There are many Simpsons comic collections to choose from, so there’s no harm in skipping this one.
--Snow Wildsmith: Writer and former teen librarian and ALA/YALSA committee member.
