TRULY GONE&FORGOTTEN: WHAM-O GIANT COMICS PRESENTS GOODY BUMPKIN
(w/a Wally Wood)
It's probably ill-mannered to wonder if Wally Wood ever bristled at any panel he had to draw that was devoid of fat jugs and fucking. It's fair to suggest that his more innocent work always seems to bear no small load of tension, as though we are continuously no more than a panel or two away from a bellowed "FUCK!" and a gangbang.
But maybe that's just me. Wood's art is so deliciously physical that his comedy and kid-friendly pieces feel like they're taking place in a carefully-shielded section of mature readers titles. Goody Bumpkin, for instance, feels like a kindergarten-class re-enacting Pogo plots, but I still expected to see Sally Forth pop up in the bushes.
But enough of that, I think the point is not only fairly clear but also often-remarked upon and a pretty common sentiment. Even if this all isn't really true of Wood's art, it may say something of how comics have encouraged an adolescent hegemony in its readership. Honestly, these things are no good for anybody. We should call the cops on 'em.
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As for Goody Bumpkin, it really does feel like a (mostly) human Pogo strip. Giant Man-Monster "Whatnot" is bereft on accounta the top-hatted wizard Rufus Rottenbad has transformed the giant's mother into a frog. With the aid of his many pals (Moppet -- identified by the phrase "Goody's my hero!" -- his pet dog, wisecracking crow, and Madcap, the weird elf in a weirder hat) he sets off to -- sue the wizard! It's a pun and it works!
Along the way, the gang meet "Hindu Stan," and encounter a mass of trolls at their troll bridge (they demand a fight and get put on the receiving end of a haymaker-tossing Whatnot). At Rottenbad's castle, they defeat the palace guards, recover Stan's stolen flying carpet, and have Rufus return Whatnot's momma to original size and state.
With all of this being said, by the way, I just need to add -- this is great fun. Almost certainly the highlight of the comic, and a great example of how Wally Wood could really just toss off a bunch of dumb puns and seemingly pointless meandering and keep you entertained all the while. Also, just to reiterate, there are no naked boobs.
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