Charles M. Schulz Peanuts #3 The Election Issue Review

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Charles M. Schulz Peanuts #3 The Election Issue Review
By Andy Frisk
October 29, 2012 - 22:36

Writer(s): Charles M. Schulz, Vicki Scott, Bob Scott, Paige Braddock, Justin Thompson
Penciller(s): Vicki Scott, Mona Koth, Paige Braddock,
Inker(s): Page Braddock,
Colourist(s): Nina Kester, Justin Thompson,
Letterer(s): Alexis E. Fajardo
Cover Artist(s): Charles M. Schulz
$3.99 US

Charles M. Schulz Peanuts #3 The Election Issue delivers a new Peanuts story by Vicki Scott that honors the tradition of the original Schulz creation. I always worry when the best comic strip of all time (and my all time personal favorite) gets reinterpreted by new writers and artists. Schulz's Peanuts are a legendary creation that will never need an upgrade or a reboot. Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy, Sally, Peppermint Patty, Woodstock, and the whole crew are ingrained in the lexicon of American pop art and culture. Children of all ages still can find something worthwhile, and worth learning about, in the classic cartoon stories of "It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown!" and "A Charlie Brown Christmas." Schulz's creations are a microcosm of what makes humankind great as well as penetrating looks into our fears and anxieties. It's fitting that "The Accidental Candidate" opens with that everyman little soul Charlie Brown accidentally volunteering to run for Class President and then characteristically fretting over the decision...

...Charlie Brown ends up taking to the task honestly and naively, but soon finds himself the target of a spirited and determined opposition that paints him as insensitive. Charlie Brown then ends up finding himself dogged by playground special interests, dirty politics and slogans. One can almost hear him sigh "Good Grief," like most of are doing this time of year (and especially in this Presidential election year due to the outlandishness of the opposition's fast and loose nature with the truth). "The Accidental Candidate" captures the same spirit of the powerfully insightful original daily strips from Schulz.

The other tales, which include a few reprints of classic Schulz strips, are also good, but disappointingly, also for this time of year, there is only a single, one page Halloween tale. It's a classic, but I'd love to have seen more of the Great Pumpkin...

Nothing will ever replace the insight and joy of the original Peanuts comic strips, but Boom Studio's Charles M. Schulz Peanuts isn't a bad homage to the greatest comic strip of all time.

Rating: 8/10