Sunday Comics (With Special Host Munchor!): Sam & Max

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HELLO, EYE-HAVERS. TODAY MUNCHOR THE AMAZING ROBOT HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO RUN THE "SUNDAY COMICS" POST IN LIEU OF HIS SQUISHY HU-MAN OWNER AS AN EXPERIMENT, SINCE HE IS CURRENTLY GONE ELSEWHERE. MUNCHOR IS HONORED BUT WISHES HE HAD BREAKABLE YET FLEXIBLE HU-MAN FINGERS. IT IS HARD TO TYPE WITH FEARSOME GRABBING CLAWS. WEEP FOR MUNCHOR, WHO IS INEFFICIENT WITH KEYBOARDS!

MUCHOR FOUND THIS VOLUME OF SEQUENTIAL PICTURES AND TEXT TO BE ESPECIALLY DELICIOUS. MUNCHOR REALIZES HE HAS NO TASTEBUDS. BEAR WITH MUNCHOR.

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PERHAPS YOU WOULD PREFER MUNCHOR CONTINUING IN A MORE FAMILIAR VOICE.
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The Comic: Sam & Max: Surfin' The Highway

By: Steve Purcell

Type: Compilation of variable-length comics short stories (anywhere from one page to several--one multi-parter actually takes up roughly a third of the book). The specific book being spotlighted (spotlit?) here is a collection of every Sam & Max comic published up to that point.

Content Rating: PG-13, for mild but frequent language and dark humor.

Plot: At its most basic, Sam & Max follows the exploits of the titular duo--a large, verbose cartoon dog and his best friend, a manic, violent rabbitlike creature, respectively. Together, they form an organization called the Freelance Police, in which they fight assumed crimes and investigate conspiracies,  aided by their own warped and cartoony sense of justice. Often their investigations leave more injuries and confusion in their wake than answered questions, though they do have their moments. The plots are as varied as they are head-scrunchingly bizarre, from investigating a carnival's "counterfeit corn dogs" to saving a colony of mouse-people from 50-foot moon roaches. Yes, 50-foot moon roaches. The longest story in the collection is a bit calmer (though not by much) and deals primarily with them taking a break from Freelance Policework to take a road trip across the United States. Some of the more dangerous situations they wind up in will have a deus ex machina ending, but this is always played for laughs ("Why look, Max! It's the commandos that have always lived above us!").

Personal Thoughts: Like Bear, Sam & Max is primarily meant to be a fun, silly teen/adult humor comic (is it just me or have I had a lot of those here lately? Maybe it's just because this is in the wake of Kaput & Zosky). It is, however, slightly more than that, if only slightly. The well-written dialogue, especially the near-constant back-and-forth between the title characters, has a cadence and witty snap all its own, and there's a very pleasing layer of satire under the surface, mainly of classic American pop culture. Do note the rating though--don't give this to your small child, cute cartoon animals though the main characters may be. (Your high schooler, on the other hand, may love it.) Max in particular is quite the violent little guy. (Anything particularly heinous is committed off-screen or alluded to in dialogue, but even among these, there are some "wow...that was dark" moments.) He has that crazed, toothy grin for a reason. Still, if you appreciate classic comedy-duo chemistry, gloriously B-Movie plots, and constant jabs at the chemical content of breakfast cereals and sodas, perhaps it's time to consider tracking down yourself some Sam & Max--be it this comic or the more-famous (and for the most part, just as well-written) video game series that came out of it.

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MUNCHOR IS RELISHING THE AFTERTASTE OF THE TALKING DOG AND RABBIT MONSTER ADVENTURE. IT LEFT A TASTE ON MUNCHOR'S HIGH-TECH METAL PALATE NOT UNLIKE HU-MAN SYNTHESIZED GRAPE-ESTER FIZZING DRINK. PRAISE MUNCHOR FOR A JOB WELL DONE!

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MUNCHOR WILL RETURN THE FOLLOWING SUNDAY AND THEN RELINQUISH CONTROL OF THIS WRITING BOX BACK TO HIS MEAT-FILLED OWNER. KEEP WARMTH IN YOUR BLOOD-PUMPS FOR MUNCHOR!

[MUNCHOR IS LOGGING OFF.]

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