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Imagine my surprise when
I went in to the comic book relaunch of the famed
nineties series "Chip n Dale Rescue Rangers" and
discovered that the writers behind this 2010
relaunch for a new era managed to insert something
of a story. And not just a story but an arc for the
series, too! If you remember the old Disney comics
from the nineties, you'll remember they weren't
filled with solid stories, just truncated versions
of episodes, and or goofy slapstick fan services.
"Chip n Dale" actually creates a story with origins
and exposition, back story, conflicts, and a
mysterious enemy. I won't even bother to explain
what the comic book is about or what the series was,
because if you've read the comic book series
already, odds are you're a nineties kid and are
reading it for the sole purposes of nostalgia.
Nevertheless while the
lovely theme song is gone and the excellent voice
work from the likes of Tress MacNeille and Jim
Cummings and Peter Cullen are nowhere to be found,
this new series is actually quite good sticking to
the actual tone of the series that involves all
adventures all the time. We learn about Gadget's
bond with her father and how she learned to become a
brilliant engineer, we learn about Monterey Jack's
life as a swashbuckler and his propensity for
sticking to his gut whenever he's traveling and we
learn about a new device that is turning all of the
world's animals on the humans. Crabs, flies, polar
bears, rats, they're all for some reason turning on
humanity and trying to dominate the world all the
while covered in a red glow that is eerie and
significant in Monterey's life as he explains to the
team the possibility of a top secret device being
used. |
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Invented to help animals fend for themselves and
provide a sense of awareness for their
surroundings, the machine--as co-invented by
Gadget's father--was locked away forever for
fear it may become an evil device. Flash forward
to the present where the machine is now being
used and Monterey is trying to figure out who or
what is using this forbidden device. So not only
is there all of that good stuff like plot and
exposition, but there's also a mystery, a
puzzle, and a potentially surprising force of
evil at play in what is easily one of the
coolest re-inventions of the series. As a
nineties kid it's so much fun to see these
characters back to themselves, even now that
Chip with his Indiana Jones fedora and jacket,
is trying to find out what this new evil is
trying to accomplish before the entire world is
consumed by animals. The art is really good
providing something of a wacky model reminiscent
of the cartoons and not taking any liberties
with the characters. The series is entertaining
enough for the kids, but accessible for anyone
interested in traveling back to the nineties for
a little bit. I intend on keeping up with this
series. |
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