Most of us like crossovers. This gives you new opportunities to meet legendary characters. Once on our website I wrote about the interesting adventures of DC t-shirts and animators from the world of ACME. Now it’s time for the heroes of Hanna-Barbera.
Spring is coming
Well, I associate spring with awakening to life. Many mammals get up after a long winter sleep. Among them are teddy bears. And the most famous bear is, of course, Baloo. Oh, not that fairy tale. I meant Yogi. The beloved wild animal of all Americans, after a day spent stealing picnic baskets and escaping from Ranger Smith, discovers with horror that his companion Boo Boo is missing. In order to find a phlegmatic friend, Yogi chooses the most obvious solution – hiring Deathstroke – the famous bounty hunter.
Worlds collide
There are two stories in the booklet covering adventures with the bear and the bounty hunter. One of them is made in a slightly more serious style characteristic of DC Comics, the other one is closer to the cartoon. I will focus on the first one, which is quite absurd after all.
The story, titled “Jellystone Dark,” is based on strange elements of Hanna-Barber’s cartoons in the DC universe. After all, this is a world where an alien immigrant with superpowers, a ninja detective disguised as a bat, and an immortal warrior derived from Greek mythology are not only pieces of the world, but its foundations. As you can see, it’s the bread and butter for Slade. Jabberjaw is a distant relative of King Shark, Wally Gator is no different from Killer Croc, and Gorilla Grodd himself might as well be Gran Ape’s cousin.
„Deathstroke/Yogi Bear Special” – kadr z komiksu
Zwierzopokalipsa
Na szczęście Miś Yogi to Miś Yogi. Uczyniwszy go częścią większej całości, jaką jest mulitwersum, twórcy mogą rozszerzać nie tylko wszechświat kreskówkowy, ale także wszechświat DC. Nie muszą usprawiedliwiać Yogiego – jest tylko gadającym zwierzęciem w świecie, w którym wszystko jest możliwe. Dzięki temu scenarzysta Frank Tieri i artysta Mark Texeira poszli o krok dalej i skupili się właśnie na zwierzętach, które, jak się okazuje, są nieumarłymi.
Po przybyciu do Parku Yellowstone i walce z hordą zombie w lesie, nowy dynamiczny duet (wraz z uwolnionym strażnikiem Smithem) udaje się do tajnego laboratorium prowadzonego przez Creepleys, kolejną parę postaci z kreskówek Hanna-Barbera (znanych chociażby z Flinstonów). Jak się okazuje, Creepleys są w trakcie przekształcania setek zwierząt w potworną armię dla H.I.V.E., dzięki czemu fabuła zaczyna się jeszcze bardziej wpasowywać w część wielkiej historii DC.
Czy to dopiero początek?
How does it all end? Was Boo Boo found? Well, I don’t want to spoil you, but you know Yogi has no money, so he pays the mercenary without an eye for his services with a huge supply of picnic baskets, and Slade Wilson accepts the payment and does not vow to take revenge at all for being fooled. He just opens the basket and enjoys the sandwiches placed there. What a parody! The thief pays the killer with what he has. This scene gives a new kind of humor to the story.
There are even more adventures of our favorite heroes in the DC / Hanna-Barbera series, and I have the impression that we will have a similar series in the future. Why is it working? Comic book writers don’t try to bend one reality to fit another, instead simply portray them as constituent parts of the same matter in a whole new light.
The only thing I can say at the end: Reach for these stories, because they are truly outstanding in their simplicity!