I love movies. I love comics. Movies about comics tend to be a match in heaven...at least, when they work. In my opinion the best internet comic about movies has always been Tom Brazelton’s “Theater Hopper.” Just as absurd as “Penny Arcade” but with a much kinder soul, “Theater Hopper” is required reading if you love movies. The series is seen through the eyes of the creator himself as he comments on movie culture, people, and Ben Affleck. Dear God does he attack Ben Affleck. In “Theater Hopper: Year Three” we find the comic at the point where it was really starting to get good. The artwork was getting better. The jokes smarter. Heck, we even get a few storylines that last longer then a few weeks.
Most noticeably the “Meet Charlie” storyline, which introduced a character who would be a good friend for supporting character Cami (Tom’s wife) and a good foil for Jared (from time to time). Another character who gets fleshed out in this collection is Jimmy, the good natured theater worker. Rarely will you encounter a comic strip that has a character who is good natured, working a tedious job, and being funny without being sarcastic. Yeah, I like Jimmy. He’s a bit of fresh air from all the disgruntled workers we see in movies these days. But of course the real star of the comic is Tom himself. Armed with a passionate love for movies and a sarcastic wit, he views the movie world with a critical eye and makes some pretty good commentaries in his comic while being informative.
The book collects all the comics strips from the third year of the comic. I’m assuming all these comics show up exactly as they appeared on the website and none of them had to be altered for copyright reasons, but I didn’t go to the website and compare every comic strip myself to check. Either way everything looks fine here. Popular movies that get attacked (nudged?) in this year include “Superman Returns,” “Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith,”“Ocean’s 12,” “The Incredibles,” Roger Ebert (which - considering his current condition - isn’t as funny as it was when it was released), and any movie starring Ben Affleck (he was in three movies that year). It’s an impressive collection to be sure. Of course, there are down sides, as there always is to comics like this.
Like “Penny Arcade” before it, “Theater Hopper” is a very current comic strip, tackling the latest and greatest. As a result some of the jokes don’t hold up as well as you’d hope. Either the movie has fallen off the radar, a situation isn’t remembered as well as it once was, or maybe no one saw the movie, there will be times when you’ll likely just stare at the comic and wonder if you missed something. Thankfully there is a commentary for each strip that should help you out in these times of need. I think the creator needs to be less critical of his own artwork in these commentaries at times, but they help fill in some of the blanks that some people might not get. Currently the comic can be read at www.theaterhopper.com.
Likewise the book can also be purchased there for a very reasonable price. Aside from the commentary there is a section of random (and I do mean random) sketches at the back of the book. The sketches range from serious to the truly absurd. For the record the absurd sketches are the most funny so that’s not a complaint. Brazelton was having trouble financing this book and it looked like the economy was going to claim another victim. Thankfully the fans pulled together and saved this book from the pile of tossed manuscripts. That in itself should give you an idea of how much people love this comic. If you love movies then “Theater Hopper: Year Three” comes highly recommended.
Follow Kevin T. Rodriguez at Twitter and The Movie Wizard.com
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