Raiders of the Lost Left Testicle (Adventures in the Rifle Brigade - Garth Ennis)

Name: Frankingsteins

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Product:	Adventures in the Rifle Brigade - Garth Ennis
Date:	07/11/07 (66 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Hilarious archaic dialogue from the defenders of Blighty.

Disadvantages: Humour won't be to everyone's taste, particularly those who are easily offended or too sensible.

One of the more obscure entries in the canon of acclaimed Irish comic writer Garth Ennis (most famous for his epic ‘Preacher,’ currently being developed as a television series), ‘Adventures in the Rifle Brigade’ consists of two three-part stories released between 2000 and 2002, and collected together in paperback format in 2004. These brief escapades of a crack unit of British soldiers during pivotal moments of the Second World War play out along the lines of similar satires, from Michael Palin and Terry Jones’ ‘Ripping Yarns’ to the similar and presumably influential treatment of the previous war in ‘Blackadder Goes Forth,’ presenting the higher ranks of the British Army at its most absurdly jovial and patriotic, with first class degrees in rugby and buggery and an endlessly ridiculous vocabulary of upper-class nonsense at its disposal.

The Rifle Brigade comprises six memorable individuals, only two of which get to speak in any meaningful manner (if you can call it that). The rest mainly fill in as handy and highly efficient support each time conflict arises, from the awesome might of the gargantuan Yorkshireman Sergeant Crumb to the menacing pipe-playing of the mysterious, silent mascot figure known only as The Piper, whose squealing tunes cause anyone within earshot to dispatch themselves in the most immediately convenient manner possible before they bleed from every pore. Captain Hugo Darcy is the leader and by far the most entertaining character from the onset, simply for having such fantastic lines and an inspiring faith in his country and his team’s abilities that fortunately proves justified on numerous occasions. Second Lieutenant Cecil Milk (also known as Doubtful) has the most interesting psychology, dropping hints regarding his lack of interest in women and displaying an obvious fondness for his Captain that goes beyond loyalty or friendship: a running joke through both series sees Doubtful at the receiving end of some kind of tragedy and apparently slipping away to his death, each time asking for a final favour that his commander cannot possibly refuse, beginning with a simple kiss and progressing to increasingly extreme heights, though each time the Captain is saved from granting his boon once it becomes clear that Doubtful’s injuries aren’t nearly as severe as he apparently believed. There’s also a cockney and an American who do nothing of interest outside of repeating their catch-phrases (“yer aht of ordah” and “gawd dammit” respectively), while a number of notable enemies and allies are introduced as each story progresses.

It would be easy for a series like this to fall flat on its face or simply prove pointless and unoriginal when compared to the other, numerous parodies of stiff-upper-lippedness out there, but Ennis keeps the dialogue so refreshingly and hilariously stupid, it doesn’t even matter that the plots themselves lack any real interest. The first series introduces the Rifle Brigade flying into German-occupied Germany in June 1944, getting into some scrapes that they inevitably solve through firepower, and having to escape back to Blighty in time for D-Day. The second has a clearer objective of the search for Hitler’s missing ball (of course, the Albert Hall was the first place they checked), which will purportedly grant its finders limitless power to triumph over their enemies in a knowing parody of Indiana Jones, complete with Arabian setting. The plots feature a couple of twists and turns over their relatively short spans, but it’s the cheeky and often downright obscene dialogue that holds it all together – many of the minor characters’ joke names don’t even go to the effort of being double entendres, effectively making this a less intellectual publication than ‘Viz’ magazine, but I still couldn’t help myself from guffawing like a twelve-year-old each time the Captain reminisced about an old service chum, from Bell-End Brisco to Clitters.

There’s even something of a nod to the British sitcom and comedy film tradition, particularly the ‘Carry On’ series with the emphasis on the German interrogator’s hulking bosom and her father’s rather unfortunate fate under the heels of a stampeding elephant as he recreated with some foreign pornography in an outhouse, while the twisted, dark humour of an unrelated elephant (that just happens to be the Sultan’s irreplaceable pride and joy) mating with the Rifle Brigade’s getaway van and accidentally dying in the process, brings to mind similar uncomfortable pet-based tragedies in ‘The League of Gentlemen’ among other comedy series of the dark side. Despite making me laugh consistently, even the more feeble jokes having a certain charm about their poorness, I was worried that the format would become stale and repetitive after the first issue, but for the most part the material stays fresh; the only issue I didn’t really enjoy was the finale of the first series, which focuses almost exclusively on action as the Rifle Brigade attempt to escape back to England and is forced to contend with an attacking squad of Jerries, succeeding in dispatching them in fairly creative ways that nevertheless failed to tickle me as much as the simple delight of Captain Darcy using an outmoded turn of phrase. I can be quite ruthlessly critical most of the time on this site, but when it comes down to it, I am very easily pleased.

The art by Ennis’ familiar collaborator Carlos Ezquerra obviously adds a whole new level to the reading experience, realising the characters perfectly and helping to establish a firm voice for each of them in my head along with the dialogue, from the more obvious Yorkshire “ey-oop” regularly spewed forth from Sergeant Crumb to the typical nasal tone of the officer class, represented most strongly by the overdue appearance of Colonel Frigpipe in the second story, a distinctly Melchett-like character with a fondness for sherry and tendency to foul himself when over-excited. The more colourful and exotic characters introduced in the second series also break from the rather tired Nazi stereotypes of the first, featuring a self-serving yank and a Sultan whose invocations of Allah’s holiest of holes prove that Garth Ennis is creative as well as brave. This is the first of his work I’ve read, and while it works perfectly as a bit of frivolous, light-hearted relief between more sombre comic series with believable characters and realistically proportioned breasts, I’m eager to get embroiled into one of his more substantial works in the near future.

Summary: Collects 'Adventures in the Rifle Brigade' and 'Operation: B****ck' (2000-2002).