In 2010, back when Cartoon Network still aired decent shows, J. G. Quintel’s Regular Show debuted and was a hit with a wide range of viewers for it’s design, slapstick-esque comedy and it’s generally good, chaotic vibes. It revolves around the lives and misadventures of two friends, a blue jay named Mordecai and a raccoon named Rigby, who both work as groundskeepers at a local park. The show had a great run right up to it’s finale back in 2017, where long time fans were given a wonderfully epic and emotional last episode where- despite all odds- our unlucky heroes are given the happy ending they deserved. Now, in 2019, fans are presented with a brand new adventure featuring out favorite raccoon and blue jay in Regular Show: 25 Years Later.
Twenty-five years after the epic battle between Pops and Anti-Pops, Mordecai, Rigby, and the rest of their friends return to the park for a reunion! Their crazy youth is nothing but a memory…or so Mordecai and Rigby think. It’s not long before these two friends stumble across a secret fairy world, find themselves young again, and have their children stolen by Viceroy Alberich, the Fairy King. Now, Mordecai and Rigby must work together to reform Alberich’s miscreant children if they want their own returned to them.
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I must confess I began reading this with uncertainty. I felt the same unease when this series was first announced in 2018. I was in middle school when Regular Show first aired, my best friend at the time and I quickly fell into a routine of going to her house every week after school (I think it was on Tuesday) to load up on junk food and watch the new episode of Regular Show. Good times, good times. So I guess you could say my expectations were high. Meanwhile, I feared that a comic doing something like picking up right where the final episode left off would only be a vain attempt to earn a quick buck. But I was pleasantly surprised. Not only was Regular Show: 25 Years Later a well thought out story in general, it also paid serious homage to fans of the show.
First off I want to discuss the art. I was happy to see artist Anna Johnstone didn’t get too experimental with this project, instead sticking to the style of the show while adapting to the new character designs. The lines are clean and the art is smooth, even during the transition scenes.
As for the story? As always this is a spoiler free zone but I cannot recommend this book enough. At first glance the story may just look like another crazy scenario Mordecai and Rigby have gotten themselves into. But this time around, there’s a new sense of nuance as you see these characters grow from reckless 20-somethings to somewhat reasonable adults. In between all the adventure, you get a silly story about about learning how to be happy even when your youth is just a memory, finding your place in the world fighting (and sometimes time traveling) for what’s most important to you. This spin off is perfect for Regular Show fans young and old looking for an easy read on a lazy afternoon.
Regular Show: 25 Years Later is published by KaBOOM!, an imprint of BOOM! Studios. It’s written by Christopher Hastings. The artist is Anna Johnstone and it’s colored by Joana Lafuente. The lettering was done by Mike Fiorentino and the cover art was designed by JK Phan. It’s available in your local comic book shop and via the BOOM! Studios website.
Wicked Rating: 8/10
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