Monsters, Inc.: Laugh Factory #1

August 22, 2009

Monsters, Inc.: Laugh Factory #1 (Boom! Kids)
By Paul Benjamin & Amy Mebberson

I’ve been really anticipating this comic. Monsters, Inc. is one of my favorite Pixar movies, and has a world of unlimited potential for exploration, so I wanted to see what could be done with them. I’m pretty happy with the results here. Set some time after the end of the movie, Mike has become Monsters, Inc. Number One “Amuser,” while Sully has settled in to an office job running the company. As the office work begins to overwhelm Sully, and he starts neglecting his friends, Mike decides to help by bringing in Boo for a visit. Benjamin‘s characterization of the monsters is spot-on, with even the drastic changes in Sully feeling natural and logical in the course of the story. We even pick up on a few running gags from the movie. Like the Toy Story series, it appears this one will be a series of one-off stories instead of an ongoing storyline, but as long as all four stories are entertaining like this one, that will be just fine.
Rating: 8/10