Harvey Comics Classics Vol. 2: Richie Rich
By Various, Edited by Leslie Cabarga, Introduction by Jerry Beck
Review by Dennis Feeback
The Scoop: Move over Uncle Scrooge! The richest character in comic book history is about to get his due. Harvey Comics' original creation Richie Rich, the Poor Little Rich Boy, represented the fantasies of every comic book-loving kid growing up in the 1960s and 70s. Now, Dark Horse is delighted to present the ultimate tribute to the boy who has everything-and we mean everything! This mega compilation of the essential Richie collects his earliest and most substantial stories for the first time ever. Created by Sid Jacbson and Warren Kremer as a back-up feature in Little Dot comics in 1953, Richie Rich went on to become Harvey's biggest moneymaker, appearing in over fifty different spinoff titles over the next forty years. In addition to the magnificent comic art of Warren Kremer, Richie was also drawn by animation great Steve Muffatti and comics legend Ernie Colon.
Contains over one hundred of the very best of The Poor Little Rich Boy, from the beginning of the series in 1953 through the classic years of the mid-1960s. Editor/designer Leslie Cabarga has reproduced the classic comics from crisp black-and-white printer's proofs and original artwork from the old Harvey archives, along with sixty-four pages of color meticulously restored from the original comic book pages. The book also includes a comprehensive introduction by Jerry Beck.
The Package: This book at first glance seems a lot like the Marvel essential and DC Showcase books. However, this is a MUCH nicer package. It all starts with a nice nostalgic cover. When you pick the book up, you realize how heavy it is. This is due to the fantastic paper stock, it’s thick and has a nice gloss to it. The nice paper really makes the black and white line work pop! The color sections, while nice, seem out of place with how beautiful the rest of the book is. Still, it was a nice touch.
Final Thoughts: Like the Casper book before it, this is a damn nice book. Ernie Colon was probably the first artist whose work I recognized even though I didn’t know his name at the time. Richie Rich was Harvey’s most popular character, and it’s not hard to see why. Seeing Richie deal with all the problems his wealth brings provides plenty of comedy fodder. That and the fact that Richie is a nice kid trying to help others also helps. However, this plot point becomes glaringly annoying after a while. Richie’s poor friends and girlfriend don’t want his money, thus he usually has to spend MORE money to make it look like he’s not spending money. In particular one story, “Anybody Who Goes to a Psychiatrist Ought To Have His Head Examined!”, Gloria makes Richie go to a Psychiatrist to stop spending money, thus making him spend money on the Psychiatrist! However, the exchange between the Doctor and Gloria is the highlight of the book.
Gloria: … and I want Richie to stop spending so much money on me!
Doctor: You do have a problem! I’ll try to help you over it, young lady!
See, comedy gold. While I was never attached to Richie Rich as much as other Harvey characters like Casper and Hot Stuff, this is still a fun read. True it gets repetitive REAL quick. But these are kids stories so maybe that will be ok to the “target audience”. Me? I had to break it up into several reading sessions.
And finally, my main gripe. Like the Casper book there is an error. It’s not as bad as the Casper book, but it’s probably more annoying. There is an entire page missing from one of the stories. This has happened two books in a row, and I hope Dark Horse straightens this out before Volume 3. That alone is not enough to not recommend this book, but it does seem to be a continuing problem.
Also like Harvey Classics volume 1 this book would make a great introduction to comics for any children in your life as well as nostalgia hounds. Recommended!
Final Rating: B, not as engrossing as Casper but worth a look none the less.
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