By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Fanboys vs. Zombies
AUTHOR: Sam Humphries
PENCILLER: Jerry Gaylord
PUBLISHER: BOOM! Studios
PRICE: $1
RELEASED: April 4, 2012

I don’t use the word annoying in reviews very often. But I’ve got to use it here, because I found Zombies vs. Fanboys rather annoying. I say that with the understanding that I’m probably being too hard on it. But what can I say? I can’t help how I feel.

In this issue we meet “the Wrecking Crew,” a group of friends who meet up at the San Diego Comic Con every year. This year they’re back together again, but things aren’t quite the same. A love triangle has divided the group. Just when the conflict is about to reach its boiling point, the unthinkable happens: A dirty, infected convention hot dog turns an unlucky fanboy into a zombie. Soon it’s a full on zombie attack, and the Wrecking Crew must run for their lives.

I actually like the idea of a zombie story taking place at Comic Con. It’s a big place with lots of interesting people wandering around. It’s grounds for an interesting story at the very least. But the execution here is off. I really don’t like any of these characters, which is a pretty big problem considering I’m supposed to be hoping they don’t die. In this issue we meet our six protagonists, and they all do pretty much the same thing: Spew annoying dialogue that’s supposed to be funny but isn’t, and occasionally attempts to be trendy. Lines like…

- “That is a #humblebrag and a #firstworldproblem.”
- “You are my brother in the Wrecking Crew 4 lyfe. But I wear I will throw your ass into the heart of the sun…”
- “Zombie attaaaaaaaaaaaack! I’ve always wanted to yell that.”
- “G’day mate! It’s me, uh…Peter Jackson! Here to deliver you a smacking exclusive report about…The Hobbit Part 3! Thrweekend at Mordor!”

Yeah, I get it. It’s a surreal comedy. It’s just not a funny surreal comedy. (Though I’ll admit, the hot dog turning people into zombies was pretty good.) Combine this kind of humor with the fact that we have to cram six characters and their expositions into this issue before we finally get a little bit of zombie goodness, and what we get isn’t a lot of fun.

While I can appreciate Jerry Gaylord’s stripped down cartoony art in this comedic setting, and the premise of our little adventure here, Fanboys vs. Zombies #1 simply wasn’t enjoyable for me. Granted you could do worse for $1, but I’ll be leaving this one on the shelf.

Front page image from bloody-disgusting.com. Interior image from ifanboy.com.