You'll never take Randy and Don alive, copper'. Cuz they got Max Hamm, Fairy Tale Detective on their side, see?
Don:
Cartoonist Frank Cammuso sent along a copy of this book for review, but it's not really a comic book, per se, not sequential art. It's got more of an illustrated children's book feel, with just a hint of adult cynicism thrown in for fun.
Randy:
It reminds me somewhat of a softcover Little Golden Book from my childhood, with it's unusual size, distinctive cover design and full-color covers. The interiors are black and white and gray tone on yellow parchment color paper, which is a departure from the Golden Books, but a perfect choice for the format, and I'm glad Cammuso sent this along for review.
Max Hamm, Fairy Tale Detective Vol.1
"The Big Sheep"
written & illustrated by Frank Cammuso
published by Nite Owl Comix
scheduled for release on Nov. 27
Don:
Shortly after Storybookland private eyes Humpty Dumpty and Max Hamm are hired by a little lady to find her lost sheep, Dumpty is found dead -- he "fell," of course -- and Max believes it's all connected to their current case. He starts asking some uncomfortable questions around town, and he attracts some dangerous attention.
Think of DC/Vertigo's Fables played solely for laughs, and you've got Max Hamm. The book's main appeal stems from the puns. Humpty Dumpty "was pickled," and "Something smelled rotten." Cammuso bombards the reader with these tongue-in-cheek lines that make the most of classic children's fiction. They're groaners, for sure, but they're also a whole lot of fun in this small dose.
Randy:
The Fables comparison is an obvious one, and it's a case of coincidental timing that Cammuso has released this story so close to the success of DC's new Vertigo book. You're right, though, that while the central idea is the same in some respects (fairy tale characters with a different spin), the approach is quite different. I wouldn't go so far as to call Cammuso's work "all-ages," but this is definitely done in a style that is friendly to younger readers as well as older aficionados of pulp mysteries. However, while Fables steers clear of the anthropomorphic animal style of most fairy tales, Cammuso's characters are reminiscent of the kind of things you might see in a cartoon.
Don:
The creator brings an expressive simplicity too a delightful array of cute characters. His work reminds one, at times, of the house styles for such cartoons as Sam & Max and Tiny Toon Adventures. In an interesting twist, the opening and closing sequences are told in a traditional comics method, but the flashbacks -- the bulk of the story -- is presented in an illustrated children's book mode with a looser pencilling style.
Randy:
You noted earlier that the puns are a lot of fun in small doses, and I agree, but that was the only place where I felt less was more while reading this story. There's room for exploration of the partnership of the Hamm and Eggs Detective Agency, and certainly plenty of stories to be told in this interesting setting that Cammuso has established, which reminds me to some degree of Toon Town from Who Framed Roger Rabbit? in approach. And while I love both art styles, I would love to see more from Cammuso in his very effective and attractive comic strip style. Maybe we'll see that in the next outing. Whatever the case, there was enough interesting in this unusual book to make me look forward to that next outing.
Don:
Cammuso's art put me in mind of the style of Mike (Herobear and the Kid) Kunkel, and I thought maybe we'd had another addition in a series of "animator" comics... titles by mainstream animators who turned their attention to comics (like Kunkel, Michel Gagne, Scott Sava and others). But it turns out Cammuso is an editorial cartoonist with The Syracuse Post-Standard. Some political cynicism about urban life creeps into the book, and it adds a bit a grown-up flair to a fun, silly book. Mind you, the book is still suitable for young readers... just not the youngest. I'd say kids who've hit double digits in terms of age will still get a kick out of this book, along with their parents.
For more information about Max Hamm, Fairy Tale Detective and Frank Cammuso, visit
