The newspaper-style comic strip has been around for a very long time, and it's a format that doesn't really seem to be going away even in an age where fewer and fewer people are actually engaging in print news; to the point where it looks like many publications may soon be as extinct as the pre-historic stars of this new graphic novel. Despite this, the format of silly, topical, and even bizarre comic strips continues in online spaces, often appearing on people's social media. And this is likely where most people will have met Scumbag and Dingus, the two titular dumb dinos.
Created by Nathan Hamill, son of the Star Wars mega star and talented creator in his own right, and Eric Filipkowski, who's worked on and off screen in a number of comedy shows including South Park and Drunk History, 2 Dumb Dinos collects together the first 36 strips into a small, hardcover volume. Partially inspired by the comic strips of old, the two creators make nods to current affairs, referencing elections and political figures, as well as having completely odd adventures that make little to no sense at times.
One of my biggest take aways from reading the book (a quick experience that took less than thirty minutes all told), was that I don't really know who this humour is for. Much of 2 Dumb Dinos is stuff happening for no real reason, and with no explanation, and it's perhaps more akin to the online comedy style of Gen Z. Now, this is where I'm going to sound old, and I kind of hate that, but because of this I just didn't really gel well with the book. There's a strip where Dingus convinces Scumbag to buy shoes for his hands, and Scumbag then can't get into a Pringles tube and assumes it's a plot by his friend to steal his new hand shoes. Another has one of the dinos dressing as different sub cultures each week, such as goth or as a Harry Potter fan, only for the last panel to reveal he'd been caught on To Catch a Predator, but don't worry, it's not a paedophile thing. If this is supposed to be comedy it didn't work for me as I failed to even crack a smile.
Many of the strips are like this, with almost disconnected things happening, leading to a punchline that's either got nothing to do with the rest of the strip, or just kind of peters out into nothing. Yes, I know that this is essentially Gen Z humour, where things are either random and weird, or they're funny by not being funny, but I'm not Gen Z, I'm old and boring (I guess), and so there was very little about the writing of the book that I actually liked. One of the strips even succinctly summed up why I didn't really click with it, with one of the dinos saying 'I think the fans are happy just watching us talk in profile in this featureless room that could really just be anywhere…We’ll just stick with what works: jokes that don’t make any sense or even have a punchline.'
But, comics aren't just about writing, they're also art, and the art can be a hugely important part of the final product. So, what's the art on 2 Dumb Dinos like? Well, the front cover is about as colourful as it gets. The purple and green of Dingus and Scumbag on the cover of the book is the only time you're going to get the characters looking like that. The interior of the book is very, very brown. There are two colours, a light brown that's pretty much everything, and a darker brown that's used for shadows and highlights. As such, the book is very dull looking, and mixed with the flat comedy, it led to a reading experience that felt devoid of much enjoyment. If the book was coloured normally, with the lead characters being bright and colourful, and the items and costumes used for their gags having some character, then perhaps the book would have landed better for me; but as it is it's two dull looking characters in a dull brown void that was thoroughly visually unappealing. Hamill has colourist listed amongst his credits, but little of that seems to be on show here.
This seems like a pretty negative review, and I'm disappointed that it comes across that way because I wanted to like the book. I like this kind of format of short funny comics, but I think this boils down to me not being the target audience. There will absolutely be people out there who love this, who find it funny and will get the humour. I'm just not one of them. So I'm not going to say it's bad, I'm not going to say it's a book you shouldn't try out, because it could very well be a hit for you. If you like weird and random humour, if you're Gen Z and grew up on odd internet memes and shows like Spongebob Squarepants then you should definitely give 2 Dumb Dinos a look.
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