Hmm, not really a whole lot to do with the Flinstones. I was more a commentary on our current society and our insatiable consumerism. But, interesting.

fantastic mix of stories that recreate and refresh the original bedrock family we all know and love. The interactions between the characters as well as the furniture/appliances are brilliant and I can't wait to read more!

When I found out that DC Comics would be adapting Hanna Barbera properties to the 21st century, I had more than my share of doubts. I never liked Scooby Doo and I hated the promotional cover, and Future Quest was attractive to me only on a nostalgia value. Then there were the Flintstones. I liked the show when I was little but then I really lost love for it. To make matters worse, I hated the promotional cover by Amanda Conner and I gave up immediately on the project. I didn’t like Conner’s art and I mistakenly thought she’d be in charge of it, so I didn’t even bother to find out who the writer was.

Boy, was I wrong.

To begin with, this comic is written by Mark Russell, whom I already liked for Prez and his bible rewrite, God is Disappointed in You. His unique brand of political satire, heartfelt characters and irreverence where perfect for my tastes. The actual artist, Steve Pugh, drew in a style that was perfect for what Russell wanted to say.

The result was one of the most unique social satires in our time. Really. Mark Russell uses the original animated series characters as perfect metaphors for many of our current problems, but he doesn’t forget the inherent comedy that comes from writing this in a Flintstones comic. The problems of capitalism, post-war PTSD and depression, xenophobia, bullying, animal abuse (and, hilariously, “domestic appliances” with a predilection for existentialism) and even what happens when you forget your own history and democratically elect a tyrant (coug… Donald Trump… cough). This and so much more without reading as a pamphlet but as an intriguing story.

Yes. In Donald Trump’s world, a comic about The Flintstones is at its most relevant.

The rebirth of The Flintstones in this modernized graphic novel is such a unique idea. I really enjoyed reading about the various issues that individuals faced back in the day that can be easily transcribed into modern-day issues. I would have wanted to see a little more of the humor we grew up with, but I did enjoy seeing the development of the characters, adding some insight into their past. Overall, this was such a fun and quick read that I will recommend to anyone seeking an entertaining read between tasks.

When you think about it, The Flintstones was always addressing contemporary issues in a pseudo-Stone Age setting, but I'd still love to see the moment when someone realised that meant it could become Black Mirror facing the other way. Hence stories like the one where marriage has Bedrock up in arms, simply because it's new, and if the sex cave used to be good enough then why do people want to change the system now? It's unnatural!* The Water Buffalo lodge is a support group for the survivors fucked up by being tricked into perpetrating one of humanity's first genocides; Mr Slate a study in the perfidy and ultimate futility of the 1%; and let's not even get into the Great Gazoo. Russell has already demonstrated his satirical chops on his Prez reboot; Pugh was a perfect choice to meld the ridiculous technology and cute critters of the original with the long-suffering face of a Fred genuinely traumatised by consumerism, PTSD and the failure of religion. When I first heard DC were doing a gritty Hanna-Barbera reboot, it seemed like a parody of the misery and snark into which the New 52 had plunged so much of their own universe, and to be honest I'm still pretty sceptical of Scooby Apocalypse and the Mad Max-style Wacky Raceland. But I heard enough good things about this one to be thoroughly excited when it arrived on Netgalley, and it really didn't disappoint. Though be warned, the conversations between the armadillo and the vacuum cleaner will haunt you.

*Inevitably, yet still brilliantly, this story features a guest appearance by Adam and Steve.

This was quite different to what I was expecting but I really enjoyed it. It was very topical and also very funny, talking about relevant topics in a completely different setting. I liked the character designs and the absurdity of it, and the bit of seriousness thrown in.
I did feel like the author's views on politics/religion came though quite a lot, and some of their views were different to mine, so maybe I would have liked it more if I'd agreed with it all, but either way it was funny and different.

I went into this with the Flinstones I knew and loved growing up as a kid in mind but just as I grew up and took on real world problems like protests, riots and anarchy all around me so have the Flinstones.

The characters are the same from my innocent childhood but nothing else and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Seeing the chaos and emotional upheaval they are going through causes me to view the world around me a little different too. Mark Russell has them handling War induced PTSD, labor issues, questionable religious practices, over-inflated vitamin claims, feelings of personal failure, living beyond your means, and I could go on. Basically he took every major problem in modern American society and threw it back to the Stone Age. He’s holding up this color filled mirror and forcing us to look at what we’ve done to ourselves, to the innocence of our childhood.

The dialogue it smart and witty. There’s TONS of humor so you get to keep the fun of what Hanna-Barbera created. The story lines are well thought out and make sense. Even though he altered the characters, their problems and some of their personality from the original cartoon he still managed to keep the essence of who they were.

The art work is fantastic. It took me a bit to adjust because they are so different from the original. The men are more muscular rather than flabby but after a while you get used to it.

I think anyone who did NOT grow up watching the original cartoon is going to have an easier time with the storylines, characters and so forth because they won’t have that idea in their head of what The Flinstones are supposed to be and go through the culture shock of seeing their childhood grown up.

Overall I would definitely recommend giving this a chance, especially with everything going on in the world right now. It might give you some perspective….